Friday, April 5, 2013 "God Helps the Helpless"

Question: "God helps those who help themselves - is it in the Bible?"

"God helps those who help themselves" is probably the most often quoted phrase that is not found in the Bible.  Where ever the original source of this saying came from, the Bible teaches the opposite.  God helps the helpless! Isaiah 25:4 declares, "For You have been a defense for the helpless, a defense for the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat..."Romans 5:6 tells us, "For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly."  In terms of salvation, we are all utterly helpless. We are all infected by sin (Romans 3:23), and condemned as a result of that sin (Romans 6:23).  Nothing we can do on our own can remedy this situation (Isaiah 64:6).  Thankfully, God is the helper of the helpless.  While we were still sinners, Jesus died for us and paid the penalty. God provided the "help" that we needed precisely because we could not help ourselves.  Apart from salvation, the confusion often lies as to when we should act and when we should be still.  Many Christians fall into the trap of inactivity. Many Christians ask God for help, but then expect God to do everything Himself. They excuse this by pointing to the fact that God will provide according to His will and in His timing.  However, this is not a reason for inactivity. If you are in need of a job, ask the Lord to help you find a job - but then be active in actually looking for a job.  Having done so, you then move His hands to show you His will.  I ask the Lord to reveal things to me as I walk and He does.  So do I sit still on the sofa and do nothing?  No, on certain things.  But on other things, yes, I do wait upon the Lord and believe He will provide the "help" when it is right.  We must ask the Lord for wisdom to know the difference.  But I just wanted to expose this popular saying as myth because it is not "biblical doctrine".  Another day we will explore the other one..."God only gives those what they can handle."  Always interesting to discover the truth of God's word. Don't miss out. 

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