“You can’t do it” are four words that we hate to hear. When authorities, like parents, teachers, and government use them to place limits on us, we rebel. We become determined to prove these words wrong when they are used to discourage us from our goals and dreams. They are the last words we want to hear when we are trying to accomplish anything. We can be driven to despair when we hear them repeatedly. But there are instances where they are exactly what we need to hear.

When it comes to living a life that pleases God, You can’t do it! It is completely beyond human capabilities. That’s why Paul said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. (Philippians 4:13) Without a supernatural empowerment from God we will fail miserably. When Jesus tells us, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind… You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”(Matthew 22:37-39), He is not expecting us to accomplish it with our abilities alone. When He said, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you”(Luke 6:26-28), He knew human limitations would not allow this. Jesus also taught, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?”  He knew we couldn’t even grasp this concept by ourselves. Jesus often said things like, “Go and sin no more” and “Be perfect like your Father in Heaven” but  He knew we couldn’t do it.

The fact that we can’t do it does not excuse us for failing. Many people take the attitude that they can’t do it, so why try. This includes many Christians. They decide they will hope God’s grace covers it and go on living as always. This is not an adequate response to God’s word. Galatians 5: 19-21 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. This scripture clearly tells us that if we continually practice evil, there are consequences. God expects us to access His power to accomplish the thing He requires of us. That’s why He put His Spirit in us. Galatians 5: 16-18 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.  For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.  But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

When we fail to please God it is the direct result of not yielding to His Spirit. Of course, it is impossible to be led by the Spirit if He is not in you. The Spirit of God only comes to live in us when we surrender ourselves to Jesus Christ. Our failures are the result of not depending on the Spirit to enable us to do God’s will. When we depend on our own abilities, we are destined to fail completely. This is why we see so many people with good intentions doing all kinds of carnal things. Trying to do God’s works in our strength won’t succeed. This includes simply living a God pleasing life. The only thing we can do is to submit to the Spirit. Prayer is a powerful tool to help us accomplish this.  How much time do we spend praying for help in yielding to the Spirit of God? As we learn to give more control of our lives to Him, we will please God proportionally. We can’t do it but He can!

All scripture is from the NKJV