God is Omnipotent. Therefore there is nothing He cannot do. This statement appears correct on the surface. It is, however, only partially accurate. How can this be, you might ask? How can someone with unlimited power have things He cannot do? In this paper, we will see a few things that God cannot do and how they are not limitations but show us how God is wise, powerful, and genuinely omnipotent.
Among the things God cannot do are actions that themselves would be contrary to the Nature of God. A few examples are: God is
Immutable. Immutability means that God cannot change; God in His being and attributes is entirely and wholly perfect and, thus, ultimately unchangeable. Malachi 3:6 says, “For I am the Lord, I change not.”
Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” God is Eternal. Eternity is an infinite duration of time. God is, according to this, without beginning or end. Therefore God cannot cease to exist. Revelation 22:13 says, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” Habakkuk
1:12 says, “Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One?” God is Omniscient. The Bible shows us that God’s knowledge is complete and perfect. He is all-knowing; and by extension, God
cannot be fooled. 1 John 3:20 says, “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” Although
simple, this thought process can be extended to most, if not all, of the attributes of God. (e.g., God is Omnipresent - God cannot be
contained. God is Self-Existent - God cannot be dependent upon anyone or anything.)
Most importantly, we see in our relationship with God that He provides an example through His “communicable” attributes that, while reassuring His nature, gives a standard of perfection - an unattainable standard that demonstrates how truly lost and desperate we are as sinners yet how amazing God’s love is for us. God is Holy; therefore,
God cannot sin. Psalm 145:17 says, “The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works.” God is Truth; and, in accordance, God cannot lie. Hebrews 6:18 says, “That by two immutable things,
in which it was impossible for God to lie.” Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that he should lie.”
In conclusion, we can see that although there are things God cannot do, it is not a limitation to His power but a manifestation of His true power - an illustration that He is truly in control of His power. “If He was bound to do all that He could all of the time, His power would not be under His Control.”1 So whether or not God can or cannot do these things is, and should be, a reminder that God, personal as He may be, is not restrained by humanity but is instead above His creation in ways that we cannot comprehend. Isaiah 55:9 says, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
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