Have you ever felt overwhelmed at something ahead of you?  Maybe it is a challenge physically.  Maybe it is overwhelming sorrow upon the loss of a loved one.  Perhaps it is failing health or an illness that you must face.  Everyone has felt being overwhelmed or that things are happening which are outside of your power, and you fear that you cannot battle through. If you cannot relate to this description now, rest assured that at some point in your life you will understand these words. 

We are mortal, finite, and of limited power and strength.  Many have accomplished great things in their lifetimes but even those at the pinnacle of power share the same mortality and finiteness of the rest of us.

But God is not like us, He is omnipotent. This is how John describes the power of God:

“And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.”

Revelation 19:6 KJV

The Amplified Bible renders this verse as follows:

“Then I heard something like the shout of a vast multitude, and like the boom of many pounding waves, and like the roar of mighty peals of thunder, saying,

“Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God, the Almighty, the Omnipotent, the Ruler of all reigns.””

God is omnipotent.  It is one of the attributes of His character.  It is not something that He puts on and takes off.  It is part of His nature, it is eternal, and it will never change.  He is all-powerful.  His Name is rightfully called The Almighty. 

Omnipotence is not a common word for us, but its parts are.  “Omni” is a word prefix that means “all, every, the whole, of every kind”.  “Potent” is a word that means “having great power, influence, or effect.”  Thus, “omnipotent” means “having unlimited power; able to do anything.”  Only God is omnipotent. 

Consider the Book of Job.  There we read of a man who was subjected to loss of property and family, loss of extreme wealth, loss of health, painful boils covering his body, and yet through all of that, he did not curse God.  Rather, he remained faithful to God and was rewarded for that faithfulness. 

The point for our consideration, however, is not how Job reacted to the tests.  Rather, it is how it came to be that Job was tested in the first place.

This is how we are introduced to Job:

“There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.”

Job 1:1

The next verses in the chapter detail Job’s wealth and power in the community.  Then the scene switches to heaven with Satan conversing with God.  The thrust of Satan’s discussion is that Job honors God because God has blessed him.  In other words, Satan challenged God to take away the hedge around Job and Job would turn his back on God.  The first challenge and God’s response is as follows:

“”But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.”

Job 1:11-12.  Notice that God was in control.  God is omnipotent, and Satan is not.  Satan received permission to hurt Job but there was a limit that Satan could not exceed.  After receiving word that his entire family and all his flocks and herds had been destroyed, Job said:

“And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.”

Job 1:21-22.  Satan was foiled.  Job followed the Lord and he did not sin.  But Satan did not leave poor Job alone.  The second challenge was set up:

“Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life.  But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.”  And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.” So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.”

Job 2:4-7.  Satan was again allowed to test Job, but, as before, God put a limit on what Job could do.  God is omnipotent, and Satan is not.  Job again honored God despite his wife’s nagging that he should curse God and die.  Job 2:9-10

Job endured unimaginable pain and sorrow, and then he had his three friends who came to comfort him.  He remained faithful to God even though his friends encouraged him to admit his sin and get it over with! 

Paul said it this way:

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”

Romans 11:36

In Ephesians Paul notes:

“In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,”

Ephesians 1:11

The Psalmist expressed God’s omnipotence by stating in Psalm 115:3 “Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.”

The prophet Jeremiah talks of God’s omnipotence when he said:

“‘Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.”

Jeremiah 32:17

Omnipotence mandates that nothing is too hard for God – things are either done or not done, according to His will, not because they are easy or hard.  God’s power to do all that He desires is the basis for His sovereignty which then accomplishes His providence. 

So, what does this attribute mean to us?  Beloved, it means that no matter what you are facing, no matter how horribly you are treated, no matter how severe the pain and suffering you are going through, God is in control. 

As finite and mortal beings, we are no match for Satan’s power.  But, God is neither afraid of Satan nor is He unable to control Satan.  Satan may be more powerful that we are, but He is not as powerful as God is. 

Keep Job in mind.  Satan can do nothing to us that God does not allow in His sovereign providence. 

Father, thank You for Your omnipotence, Your power over all things.  I take comfort and I draw strength from the fact that You are unshakeable and that Your will takes priority over all else.  Even when I don’t understand what is going on, I thank You that I can rely on You. I praise Your Holy Name!