COMPLETED Distorted Truth: God Won’t Give You More Than You Can Handle

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Truth: God Won’t Give You More Than You Can Handle
October 29, 2023


disˈtôrtid
adjective


• Pulled or twisted out of shape; contorted.


• Giving a misleading or false account or impression; misrepresented.
“his report gives a distorted view of the meeting”


Big Idea: The longer we look at distorted truth as truth, the more likely we will BELIEVE it as a truth.


1. There’s an invisible world that impacts our visible world every single day.


2. The Bible says there is a distorter of truth. He distorts the truth just enough to get us in trouble, but not enough to scare us away.
John 8:38


Spiritual phrases we say:


• Everything happens for a reason.


• God helps those who help themselves.


We need to examine these sayings in light of Scripture. Here’s why this is important:


1. These statements lead people to conclusions about God and some of those conclusions are just not *TRUE*


2. We may be unintentionally *HURTING* people or pushing them away from God when we use these sayings.


Why Do We Say It?


I think we say it as sort of a spiritual – pep talk.


• “You got this!” “Hang in there!” “Don’t give up!” “God won’t give you more than you can handle.”


Why Does It Sound Biblical?


1 Corinthians 10:13 - No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.


Tempted: by which we are enticed to sin, or to a lapse from faith and holiness.


Thayer’s Greek Lexicon


The Danger


1 – It tells us lies about OURSELVES


2 – It tells us lies about EACH OTHER


3 – It tells us lies about how to COPE


• We self-medicate.


• We isolate.


• We become workaholics.


• We start to abuse substances.


The Truth


• Sometimes you will face MORE than you can handle.


John 16:33 - “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”


YOU…ARE…NOT…ALONE!


• It means when hard times come, it’s all right to ** “I can’t handle this by myself. I need help.”


• It means it’s all right to LEAN on God and other Christ-followers to get you through whatever you’re going through.


• And it means we don’t have to be superheroes because we have a HERO who reigns supreme.


The saying is not true, but the truth we have is even better: God will help you handle ALL you’ve had to live through.


When we face lives heartaches, we need to:


1. Depend on GOD


Psalms 46:1 - God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.


1 Peter 5:7 - Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.


2. Depend on God THOUGH others.


Galatians 6:2-5 - Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5 for each one should carry his own load.


• The word burdens means: Boulder


• The word load means: A knapsack