Living the Dream: Forgotten?

What can God NOT do?
One of the fun things to explore when it comes to understanding God as one who is sovereign (i.e. one who reigns and rules over the entire universe and works all things according to his will) is to consider what things God can NOT do. At first glance it may seem contradictory that God would not be able to do certain things if he is in fact sovereign over all things. But there are at least three things that the Bible says God cannot do:

• God cannot deny himself (2 Timothy 2:13)
   This passage contrasts our faithlessness with God’s faithfulness. It teaches that God will never fail to be faithful to his people. In other words, an unchanging characteristic of his nature is that he will never “deny himself” by failing to come through for his people, even when we are faithless toward him at times.
• God cannot lie (Titus 1:2)
  This passage explains that God never goes back on something he has said or says something untrue. He does not lie or lead astray or misrepresent. His words are true (Psalm 119:160). This is a truth we can apply to the Bible, recognizing that the words in the Bible are God’s words, and they can be trusted. 
• God cannot tempt toward sin (James 1:13)
  This passage articulates the difference between testing and temptation. God indeed tests our faith at times with various trials, but he is never responsible for tempting us to sin. The reason for this, James explains, is because God himself cannot be tempted to sin. He cannot, therefore, tempt us in a way that he himself cannot be tempted.

Each of these truths about God point us back to his character. Anytime we focus on God’s sovereignty and power, it is important to remember that his power is carried out through the goodness and perfection of his consistent character. Because his character is consistent and unchanging, he alone is worthy of our deepest trust.