Limiting the Limitless: How Unbelief Hinders God's Intervention

Examining the Dangers of Spiritual Complacency

And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. 6 And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching. Mark 6:5–6.

And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief. Matthew 13:58

These verses have always shocked and woken me up. They make me think about my little faith and how I might hinder God's work in my life and ministry.

Jesus said He "could do no mighty work." "Could not" means that he did not possess the capability or that it was not possible.

Jesus was not able to do mighty work among these people. Now, anyone who knows the Scriptures and the Lord Jesus Christ knows that He has all power. There was nothing He could not have done, but He chose to limit His power because of their unbelief.

Jesus marveled at their unbelief. This is shocking. How could people who knew Him so well not believe?

But isn't that our story? We know too much or think we do. We have become so familiar with God and His things that we decide what He can and can't do or what He will or won't do.

How much do we limit God? I wonder if He marvels at our unbelief today. I am sure that He does.

He marveled. That means He was amazed, disturbed, impressed, astonished, wondered, or, in other words, said, "Can you believe this?"

To them, Jesus was just the boy from their hometown. They had known Him all their lives. They couldn't believe he was acting like a Rabbi, a teacher. They were offended. Who was Jesus to say and do the things He was doing?

He was a carpenter, a working man, a simple, ordinary man. They knew his mother, Mary.

Familiarity breeds contempt. Maybe we have had just enough Bible and church to innoculate us, vaccinate us, and make us doubt God.

How Are We Hindering the Work of God

Questioning

We paralyze God's work when we question God's ability and power to act, perform miracles, and intervene. That is what happened in the verses above. Don't you want to meditate on truth and Scripture and see how faithful God is? What about being thankful for what He has already done in the past? What about praying again and believing again?

Fear

Too often, we have allowed fear to dictate our decisions. We pull back from doing what God might have for us and miss opportunities due to our fear. Could it be time now to stand up and confront the challenges in front of us? Maybe we need to challenge our fears and see that they are the doubt that hinders the work of God. Isn't fear a form of doubting God, His love, and His power?

Pride

We hinder God by thinking we can do it. No longer do we humbly bow and expect God to hear and answer, but today, we stand and say we can handle it, we can do it. We do not need God. Oh, to repent of our self-indulgent pride. Isn't pride a form of doubting God because I believe I can and He can't or won't?

Deadness

I fear we have let the familiarity breed contempt. We have resisted God for so long that we are stuck, stagnant, and stinking. We think we know and are and do when it is far from the truth. Isn't our deadness a form of or a result of our doubt?

Little prayer

We choose ourselves and sin over God, who works in our lives. We stopped praying and casting our burdens on the Lord; we got this. Did we stop praying because we doubted God would answer or maybe even if He could

Unforgiveness

We hold on to resentment, bitterness, conflict, and unforgiveness, hindering God's work. Don't we hold on to our anger and vengeance because we doubt that God will really take care of us?