Limitations Unlimited

“I neither learned wisdom, nor have the knowledge of the holy.” (Pr 30:3 AV)

The above verse was written by Agur.  His name means compiler or “The collector.”  His statement above is his own self-evaluation as compared with the writers or originators of the wise sayings of Proverbs.  There is nothing more known of him than appears in this chapter.  We can deduce somethings about him.  We can see by his prayer for convenient sufficiency, he was a simple man who knew his calling and limits.  To pray that prayer also shows wisdom and humility. One truth seems to have escaped our most faithful commentators.  Agur compiled or collected, and then set in order, proverbs from various sources.  We do not know who these sources were nor do we know Agur’s relationship with them.  Some could have been from Solomon and not included in the previous section.  They could have been from anyone.  What we do see is a man who confessed he wasn’t the wisest of all men and had limited knowledge of the holy.  That is, he didn’t have as much knowledge of sacred truth as he assumed others had.  This did not stop the Holy Spirit from using this man as a servant through which to inspire holy Scripture.  The confession of the man did not match the Holy Spirit’s use of the man.  What he thought he was may or may not have been true.  By the Holy Spirit, Agur was able to recognize truth worthy of the word of God.  That takes spiritual insight which those more highly qualified may not have had.

Sometimes we cut ourselves short as to what the LORD can do with us.  The statement above may have been accurate as to how Agur felt, but it was not accurate as to the extent God could use him.  There are two mistakes we can make.  We can overestimate our abilities or gifts.  When we do this, the majority of what we attempt for the LORD is done in the flesh.  Our pride gets in the way and we go headlong into serving the LORD with an inflated idea of what can be done.  Sure, there are plenty of examples in the word of God when God uses someone above and beyond their abilities.  The apostle's gift of healing comes to mind.  These gifts or abilities were for a specific time and purpose.  Not everyone who was sick received a miracle.  If we are not careful, we can serve the LORD in the flesh and assume any results which come of it are by the blessings of the Holy Spirit upon our lives.  The other mistake is cutting short what the LORD can do with us if we yield to His control.  We are supposed to go beyond our limits.  We are supposed to surrender to the power of God so that all the glory goes to Him.  If like Agur, we make a statement above but it does not lead to the Holy Spirit accomplishing something despite our limits, then we have determined what God can or cannot do.  This man did not think himself credible to write what followed.  But it was that statement which was his qualification.

I see too many of God’s people make a statement like the one above and it freezes them at the level they believe they have attained.  They will not attempt anything beyond what they think they are capable of.  That is, capable of in the flesh.  That is our problem.  We do not want the LORD to stretch us beyond our limits because we want to be in control of the circumstances.  We are missing one dramatic experience.  When we trust the LORD and allow Him to work through us despite what we think we cannot do, it is one awesome experience when we realize just what God can do.  It becomes humbling because we realize the LORD didn’t have to do what He did.  He didn’t have to use Agur.  He could have used someone far more credible or experienced.  Yet, he chose Agur.  A man who didn’t think much of himself.  A man who had measured ambition but was content in whatever station of life the LORD had for him.  A man who was just as content to contribute to the inspiration of the word of God as he would have been if the LORD didn’t choose him.  We need to have a realistic view of what we are and what we are capable of.  But we don’t want to put ourselves in a situation wherein we determine for God what God can and cannot accomplish by us.  This is what Moses argued and it resulted in the LORD being very upset with him.  God can do anything.  It is good to know our abilities and limits.  But not to the exclusion of the Spirit's ability to work through us.