M-G: 5.3.16 // Helpless, Part 1 of 8

What comes to mind when you hear the word “helpless?” Being unable to keep above the water in a failing economy? Slowly dying of terminal cancer? In a free fall knowing impact is inevitable? Fallen and can’t get up? Feeling like a leaf tossed every which way by the wind?

Helpless is being overpowered, overran, defenseless, weak, powerless, incapacitated, or a victim. We become furious that nothing is being done about this from on High, and there is nothing we can do about it down here. We just feel helpless in a matter, and it is disconcerting to us. It is akin to being hopeless.

This is what I am supposed to say to us as believers, “Helpless is when we think or act as if God is not on the throne. It is a behavior that actually dethrones God and challenges His sovereignty. We can intellectually say that we believe that God is omnipotent or all-powerful, but at times we think or act in ways that speak to the contrary. We get agitated with God’s sovereignty because He is not doing what we think He should be doing! It’s quite a show of arrogance we put on for God. Beverly and I will on occasion use this GINOTTM with one another – “Are we having a ‘God is not on the throne moment?’”

Nobody likes to be in any position or situation of being helpless to do anything about something. Nobody wants to be a doormat. Predators prey on the weak, the isolated, and the helpless, but getting into the flesh for a believer is not the answer to addressing being helpless. There is a lighter side to this feeling of helplessness; sometimes helpless comes to my mind when Beverly dispatches me on an errand to the grocery store with a list of specific items to get, and I am praying, “O, Lord, help me to purchase the right things for I am as one wandering in a vast Wally wilderness, “Does anyone know where the mayo is located?!”

Sometimes God places us into a helpless situation so we are unable to take credit and be updated that the LORD is still God and on the throne! We actually need that more than we will acknowledge for fear of appearing weak or unspiritual. I mean; who reads their Bible and challenges the Almighty? Truthfully, I need to be reminded of it all the time for God has blessed me with an incredible memory, but it is really short. Joking aside, I bought this memory course on cassettes years ago and keep forgetting that I have it…! I finally remembered to toss it!

Occasionally, we all have to be reminded that when we are weak then are we strong (2 Cor 12:10); this is certainly one of those odd paradoxes of Scripture. Indeed, without His help, we can do nothing (Jn 15:5), and yes, when we seek His help, we can do all things through Him who is strengthening us (Php 4:13). During those times of helplessness we need to look up; it goes without saying, “I will lift up my eyes to the hills— from whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth” (Psa 121:1-2). We look up first, but we also need to take a look around and remember that our Helper is sovereign and all-powerful and made the heaven and the earth! In our whining, we need to ponder who made the world! Do we think there is anything too hard for the Creator God?

Listen, this prayer is far better than remaining silent and trying to work through something on our own in a helpless predicament, “O God, do not be far from me; O my God, make haste to help me” (Psa 71:12)! God’s timing is not our timing, and He is the just in time God, not too early, not too late but in His timing, providentially precise. If you think about His omnipresence or everywhere present, He is already there in the midst of our helpless situation (Psa 23:4; 139:1-12)! Why are we not putting His attributes to work in how we see things on a daily basis?

Shortly, we are going to get a visual of our utter helplessness to save ourselves when salvation first became a dire necessity with the fall of man in the Garden of Eden (cf. Rom 7:24). Man was helpless then; he is still helpless now after centuries past.

But let’s put a positive spiritual twist on the perspective of helplessness – God is on the throne (Rev 19:6). There has never been a “time” in eternity where God has vacated His rule as the I AM. God cannot forsake Himself! I would like to see omnipresence pull that off! He is eternal Majesty! Would to God we would be enraptured with His person, His power, His presence, His knowledge, and His wisdom! Alas, we are helpless and have thoroughly convinced ourselves to the point of being hopeless.

So, let’s apply the word “helpless” to salvation. For there are a lot of people going around saying you got it then you lost it, or you can’t lose what you don’t have, et cetera. The truth is that it is impossible for man to save himself or even keep his salvation through any effort whatsoever! I refer to these truths as positive because salvation is of God alone (Psa 27:9); there is no fear of earning or losing it; that’s the positive thing here, glory to God! Belief (Rom 10:9), not demonic belief (Jas 2:19) secures it for eternity (Gn 15:6; Rom 4:5; Eph 2:8-9; Titus 3:5).

Let’s take a look at this stark picture of helplessness after Adam and Eve went on a mission to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and kamikazed their lives – the day you eat is the day you die (Gn 2:17)…. Both Adam and Eve literally blew a fantastically unique and ideal situation; didn’t they? I mean; they lived in an idyllic setting that none of us will ever see this side of eternity.

Eden was a perfect environment where there was not one microscopic trace of sin for it had not entered the world through Adam as of yet (Rom 5:12). Think of it! He had a perfect body, perfect health, a perfect future, a perfect mate, a perfect environment, no worries, no stress, no fears, no wrinkles, and he fellowshipped with the Creator God! It doesn’t get any better than that on this side of eternity. There were no other humans on earth besides Adam and Eve before the Fall. The whole earth was theirs (Gn 1:28)! <>< 

To Part 2