Can God Give You Too Much To Handle?

Introduction

So many times I hear the words “God will never put more on you than you can handle” or “God only gives the toughest battles to His strongest warriors” or some other variation of this phrase. How arrogant is this? I say God routinely gives us struggles that we cannot handle without Him! Today we’ll look at a commonly misused verse for this context, then we will talk about Job, Elijah, David, and others who despaired at times in their walk with God.

A misused verse: 1 Corinthians 10:13

This is the reason I really dislike when people yank a single verse out of the Bible and apply it to themselves. This verse is so often used to say that God will never give you more struggle than you can handle. This verse, and this chapter in 1 Corinthians is about Paul warning the church of Corinth against idolatry and this verse is specifically telling them God will never make it impossible for us to avoid sin.

Men that asked God to kill them

Job: Job 3:1-10

In these verses Job is in a deep depressive state. He goes so far as to wish he had never been born, but he also uses specific language to show this. Look at verse 4, when he says “let that day be darkness”. The Hebrew word ḥōšeḵ is a synonym for misery, destruction, death, sorrow, and other dark terms. Job laments his own birth this whole chapter. But I ask you, does this nullify his belief in God? Or does his belief in God allow him to eventually pull through this? Does Job fix his own problems, or does God rescue him?

Elijah: 1 Kings 19:1-4

Here, the prophet of God, Elijah is fleeing from Jezebel right after the greatest miracle of his life! Jezebel threatens his life and he becomes so afraid that he flees deep into the wilderness and begs God to kill him. Elijah was mentally, physically, and spiritually exhausted after the events on top of Mount Carmel, so he was more susceptible to the fear that came about from Jezebel’s threat. I ask you: have you ever been so spiritually exhausted that you were overwhelmed and become afraid? If you continue to read chapter 19 and find God’s still small voice (I highly recommend reading this chapter during hard times in your life) does God force Elijah to figure his own situation out? Or does God provide help for Elijah?

David: Psalm 22:1-11

David went through many struggles in his life, most of which are recorded in the Bible! This particular Psalm is also a prophecy of Jesus, and Jesus directly references this prophecy while on the cross, and what greater suffering has anybody ever suffered? None I say! In this Psalm David is begging God to intervene, he is begging God for answers to his abandonment. I ask you, did God abandon King David? No! Has God ever abandoned any true believer? No! Will God ever abandon you? No! But will he put more on you than you can handle? ABSOLUTELY!

God tries us as silver Psalm 66:10-20

The process of trying silver is putting it into a very intense heat to melt the metal, and while in a liquid state all of the impurities float to the top and can be pulled out. I argue that suffering is necessary for a believer to go through, because our love for God can NOT be conditional on the treatment we receive from Him. It is easy to love God during the good times, but if you have true faith in God He will get you through the hard times. You MUST lean on Him however. You are not strong enough to do it on your own.

Conclusion

Using 1 Corinthians 10:13 to argue that God will never give you more suffering than you can handle is heresy I say, and I say that it is only by leaning on God’s providence, love, and mercy can we make it through the suffering that is inevitable in each of our lives.