Wednesday's "What's God been teaching me?" #7
Wow this last week has been a crazy week! I've had so much to do and so little time to do it! This week I found myself revisiting spiritual lessons I thought I'd already learned. Ephesians 6:14 talks about standing firm, and it seemed like no matter how hard I tried, I fell. I couldn't stand firm this week until I finally realized why.
Surprisingly, the answer to my weak knees popped into my head as I was walking between classes on Monday. It sure amazes me how the Holy Spirit can drop you a line when you least expect it! I spent the rest of the day probing and digging into this insight with all my strength. By the end of the day I realized that this was my problem.
As I searched my Bible with my concordance at my side, it hit me. I am not a strong Christian. I have no strength of my own. In fact, the difference between me and those who seem weak in their walk has nothing to do with my strength. This week, I realized that I am as weak in my walk as everyone else. I can pretend to be strong, but I can't stand at the same time.
I found myself asking, "Lord, how do I stand firm? How can I have a steadfast relationship with You?" And the Lord gave me the answer. He said, "To have true strength is to weaken one's self to a complete reliance on God's power." The day before this wonderful revelation, Rod Masterson delivered a powerful message about boasting in our weaknesses. From 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, he explained how Paul had a "thorn in the flesh" or weakness that he asked God to take away from him. The Lord's response to Paul, in verse 9 was, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Though Paul pleaded with God to take his thorn away, God left him with his weakness, so that Paul would have to rely on God for his strength.
Many people today try to live life in their own strength. Many think that they are strong, unshakable, and invincible. However, all of us will be defeated and put to shame by the evil one - because he is stronger and more powerful than us - if we rely on our own strength. In 1 John 4:4, it says that, "you, dear children have overcome them..." Why? Not because you are strong, not because you are mighty, but "because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." I learned it first hand this week that trying to stand firm against the evil one in my own strength is utterly impossible.
This week, I learned that the power to overcome evil comes from the One who is in me. I learned that my source of strength is Jesus Christ. I discovered that to stand firm, I must stand on the solid rock of Christ. I learned that true strength is another part of the upside down Kingdom of God.
It seems like everything is backwards in our faith. To be first, I must be last. To become great, I must be servant of all. To be exalted, I must humble myself. To be free, I must surrender. And from this week... To be strong in the Lord, I must be weak in my self.
In Romans Paul talks a lot about living by the Spirit and not by the flesh. He talks about how we must put to death the misdeeds of the body by the Spirit. Similarly, to let God be our strength we must put to death our own strength, and become weak. Because, it is in our weakness that God's power is made perfect in us.
In Ezekiel 34:16, God says, "I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy." So not only will we be opposed by Satan when we live in our own strength, but we will be opposed by God too. He will tear us down until we realize that we can't live in our own strength, and must rely on Him for our strength.
This last week, I was torn down to a realization of my weakness and an acknowledgment of God's strength. As I searched the Scriptures I came across an interesting pattern in the character of David. David has a reputation of a mighty warrior. As the song goes, "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands." As a young boy David killed lions, bears, and even the giant Philistine warrior, Goliath. If anyone could be considered a mighty warrior or a strong man, it was king David.
1 Samuel 30:1-6 describes a military victory led by king David against the Amalekites. However, it didn't start off as a victory. While on the way back from an encounter with the Philistines, the Amalekites raided the Negev and Ziklag taking the wives and children of David and his army captive. Among the captured women and children were David's two wives. When David and his army found their wives and children gone they "wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep." (4) Verse 6 shows the response of David and his men to this trial: "David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God." David then pursues the Amalekites, destroys them, and rescues the women and children. The important part however, is that "David found strength in the Lord his God."
In fact David makes it clear that his source of strength was God throughout the old testament and the psalms. 1 Samuel 23:16 talks about how Jonathan helped David find strength in God. In 1 Chronicles 16, David commits a psalm of thanks to God in which he says, "Look to the Lord and His strength..." Psalm 18: "I love you, O Lord, my strength...It is God who arms me with strength." Psalm 28: "The Lord is my strength...The Lord is the strength of His people." Psalm 59:9: "O my Strength, I watch for You; You, O God, are my fortress, my loving God." Littered throughout the psalms are David's references to the source of his strength. The mighty king David found his strength in the Lord God.
This week I discovered that God needs to be the source of my strength. His strength is far greater than my own. I learned that in everything we need to be constantly asking ourselves, "Am I relying on my own strength or God's strength?"
This week I choose to live in weakness and to rely on God's strength so that Christ's power will be made perfect in my weakness and He will help me to stand firm.
Surprisingly, the answer to my weak knees popped into my head as I was walking between classes on Monday. It sure amazes me how the Holy Spirit can drop you a line when you least expect it! I spent the rest of the day probing and digging into this insight with all my strength. By the end of the day I realized that this was my problem.
As I searched my Bible with my concordance at my side, it hit me. I am not a strong Christian. I have no strength of my own. In fact, the difference between me and those who seem weak in their walk has nothing to do with my strength. This week, I realized that I am as weak in my walk as everyone else. I can pretend to be strong, but I can't stand at the same time.
I found myself asking, "Lord, how do I stand firm? How can I have a steadfast relationship with You?" And the Lord gave me the answer. He said, "To have true strength is to weaken one's self to a complete reliance on God's power." The day before this wonderful revelation, Rod Masterson delivered a powerful message about boasting in our weaknesses. From 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, he explained how Paul had a "thorn in the flesh" or weakness that he asked God to take away from him. The Lord's response to Paul, in verse 9 was, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Though Paul pleaded with God to take his thorn away, God left him with his weakness, so that Paul would have to rely on God for his strength.
Many people today try to live life in their own strength. Many think that they are strong, unshakable, and invincible. However, all of us will be defeated and put to shame by the evil one - because he is stronger and more powerful than us - if we rely on our own strength. In 1 John 4:4, it says that, "you, dear children have overcome them..." Why? Not because you are strong, not because you are mighty, but "because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." I learned it first hand this week that trying to stand firm against the evil one in my own strength is utterly impossible.
This week, I learned that the power to overcome evil comes from the One who is in me. I learned that my source of strength is Jesus Christ. I discovered that to stand firm, I must stand on the solid rock of Christ. I learned that true strength is another part of the upside down Kingdom of God.
It seems like everything is backwards in our faith. To be first, I must be last. To become great, I must be servant of all. To be exalted, I must humble myself. To be free, I must surrender. And from this week... To be strong in the Lord, I must be weak in my self.
In Romans Paul talks a lot about living by the Spirit and not by the flesh. He talks about how we must put to death the misdeeds of the body by the Spirit. Similarly, to let God be our strength we must put to death our own strength, and become weak. Because, it is in our weakness that God's power is made perfect in us.
In Ezekiel 34:16, God says, "I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy." So not only will we be opposed by Satan when we live in our own strength, but we will be opposed by God too. He will tear us down until we realize that we can't live in our own strength, and must rely on Him for our strength.
This last week, I was torn down to a realization of my weakness and an acknowledgment of God's strength. As I searched the Scriptures I came across an interesting pattern in the character of David. David has a reputation of a mighty warrior. As the song goes, "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands." As a young boy David killed lions, bears, and even the giant Philistine warrior, Goliath. If anyone could be considered a mighty warrior or a strong man, it was king David.
1 Samuel 30:1-6 describes a military victory led by king David against the Amalekites. However, it didn't start off as a victory. While on the way back from an encounter with the Philistines, the Amalekites raided the Negev and Ziklag taking the wives and children of David and his army captive. Among the captured women and children were David's two wives. When David and his army found their wives and children gone they "wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep." (4) Verse 6 shows the response of David and his men to this trial: "David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God." David then pursues the Amalekites, destroys them, and rescues the women and children. The important part however, is that "David found strength in the Lord his God."
In fact David makes it clear that his source of strength was God throughout the old testament and the psalms. 1 Samuel 23:16 talks about how Jonathan helped David find strength in God. In 1 Chronicles 16, David commits a psalm of thanks to God in which he says, "Look to the Lord and His strength..." Psalm 18: "I love you, O Lord, my strength...It is God who arms me with strength." Psalm 28: "The Lord is my strength...The Lord is the strength of His people." Psalm 59:9: "O my Strength, I watch for You; You, O God, are my fortress, my loving God." Littered throughout the psalms are David's references to the source of his strength. The mighty king David found his strength in the Lord God.
This week I discovered that God needs to be the source of my strength. His strength is far greater than my own. I learned that in everything we need to be constantly asking ourselves, "Am I relying on my own strength or God's strength?"
This week I choose to live in weakness and to rely on God's strength so that Christ's power will be made perfect in my weakness and He will help me to stand firm.
posted by Joshua at 1:19 PM
2 Comments:
Sorry about the colors being hard ont he eyes but the black was making it invisible and I couldn't see with white text while typing.
Yeah, the colours were kinda hard on my eyes, although I find it kinda cool how the words in red text popped out at me. Anyway, wow, what an encouraging post! I'm so glad that you feel comfortable to share what you've been learning during the week; I've learned so much through what you've been saying, and it's really cool to see how much I've been learning about these things during my week, too. Before last Sunday I never really considered boasting in my weaknesses, but ever since I heard Rod Masterson speak about that on Sunday, it's like my eyes are starting to open up and I'm starting to see how I have to change. And I do have to change. I don't want my relationship with Him to be based on me and what I think my strengths are. I have no strength without Him; I want to build my house on the firm foundation, my Lord, my Rock.
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