Our Strength is in God

It is good when we realise we need the LORD as much now as ever to guide, protect and strengthen us to do His will.  The life of a believer is marked by increased dependence and reliance upon God.  When we are born again we are not like new recruits starting their first job who are made to watch safety videos, fill out paperwork and are lined out with a job they learn to do independently themselves.  We raise our kids to learn to do chores and tasks without being directed at every step, yet it is the opposite for children of God.  We are the ones who imagine we can do things well ourselves until God opens our eyes to see our need for His strength and step-by-step guidance continually.

William Gurnall asserted the biblical doctrine that our strength is in the LORD.  He wrote in The Christian in Complete Armour:

"The strength of the general in other hosts lies in his troops.  He flies, as a great commanded once said to his soldiers, upon their wings; if their feather be clipped, their power broken, he is lost; but in the army of saints, the strength of every saint, yea, of the whole host of saints, lies in the Lord of hosts.  God can overcome his enemies without their hands, but they cannot so much as defend themselves without his arm.  It is one of God's names, 'the Strength of Israel' (1 Sam. 15:29).  He was the strength of David's heart; without him this valiant worthy (that could, when held up in his arms, defy him that defied a whole army) behaves himself strangely for fear, at a word or two that dropped from the Philistine's mouth.  He was the strength of his hands, 'He taught his fingers to fight,' and so He is the strength of all his saints in their war against sin and Satan...The Christian, when fullest of divine communications, is but a glass without a foot, he cannot stand, or hold what he hath received, any longer than God holds him in his strong hand." (Gurnall, William. The Christian in Complete Armour. Banner of Truth, 2002, pp. 18–19.)

The imagery of stemware without a foot is insightful, for unless the vessel is held in an upright position by a hand it is completely useless.  So it is for followers of Jesus Christ, for He said in John 15:5:  "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."  A wine glass cannot hold wine without a foot, and a branch cannot bear fruit unless it is connected to the vitality of the vine.  Jesus identified Himself as the vine and those who have been born again are the branches joined to Him by faith.  Like the seemingly endless waves of pride that rise up within us, we must continually remind ourselves we are incapable of obeying God or being fruitful at all without active reliance and a personal connection to Him.  Our strength and fruitfulness is not due to us, but is all by grace through Him.

"Brethren, be strong in the LORD and in the power of His might," Paul exhorted believers in Ephesians 6:10.  All our strength and power comes from the LORD, and what is impossible for man is possible with God.  On his own mighty Samson was weaker than his adversaries who bound him.  God often uses our failures to correct our proud and self-confident perspectives, for though Samson was blinded he looked to God for strength who helped him become stronger than ever before.  We remain untroubled when we discover our strength is in God, and praise God He makes us very fruitful by His grace.

God's Truth Stands

One consequence of believing the Bible is the word of God who is the Creator of all things is this completely impacts your outlook and perspective.  Because God is true and does not change or make mistakes, His word stands as the ultimate authority by which all other claims are gauged.  Builders use calibrated spirit levels to determine if a beam is level or a wall is plumb, and the tool expresses reality the most skilled workers trust and rely upon.  Our eyes do not always see clearly, but God always speaks truly.  The ideas and saying of men swing from one error to another, yet God's truth stands fast now and forever.

News websites and radio programs are buzzing as a result of the slap seen and heard round the world at the Oscars last night when Will Smith smacked Chris Rock.  One of the quotes I found intriguing was when Smith related a conversation he had with actor Denzel Washington who issued a warning:  "In your highest moments, be careful, that’s when the devil comes for you.”  Highs and lows are part of life as a human being on earth, but the Bible reveals man on his own is vulnerable at all times.  Those who put their faith in Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd Who guards and protects the flock of God, we never need fear the devil.  Instead of feeling anxious, troubled or threatened by enemies who oppose us we can make our requests known to God with joy and thanksgiving.

1 Peter 5:8 says, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."  While the devil seeks whom he may devour, it is not our carefulness that deters him but God.  When Daniel was thrust into the lion's den, it was God who sent an angel to shut the mouths of ravenous lions so they could do him no harm.  Interestingly, when King Nebuchadnezzar was at his peak it was not Satan but God who came for Him in judgment and chastening.  Daniel 4:30-32 relates, "The king spoke, saying, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?" ³¹ While the word was still in the king's mouth, a voice fell from heaven: "King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you! ³² And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses."  Pride came before a fall controlled by the Most High to reveal Himself, not just to Nebuchadnezzar, but to all people today.

The sin of the devil is pride, and he does not deter any who follow his lead.  He encourages people to that end so they might destroy themselves because he is a liar, thief and murderer from the beginning.  Jesus spoke forth a warning to those He loved dearly in Luke 12:4-7:  "And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. ⁵ But I will show you whom you should fear: fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him! ⁶ Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. ⁷ But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows."  No child of God need tremble if Satan attempts to unleash his fury against them, nor should the devil be our deterrent to pride:  it is God we fear, God who kills and throws souls who reject Him into hell forever.  At the same time this is balanced by the care and love God has shown us constantly, for we are infinitely more precious to Him than sparrows.  He is our protector and Peace, and it is most foolish to carelessly cross Him.

When we are sheltered in the presence of the almighty God, let come what may for no one is able to snatch us out of our Saviour's hand.  Nothing shall separated us from the love of God we have received by grace through faith in Christ.  It is true the devil is a living, malevolent being who seeks to destroy, but he has been defeated and disarmed by Jesus the KING OF KINGS who provides salvation, eternal life and perfect peace.  Satan walks about to and fro, but Jesus sat down at the right hand of the Father because He accomplished all to redeem and reconcile us to God by His own sacrifice.  We ought to be sober and vigilant; we ought to fear God, remembering not one of us is forgotten by  Him.  We also should extol and praise the almighty God who has purchased us with His own blood, washed us clean and lifts our heads with joy.

Servants, Friends and Brethren

It is inspiring and endearing when God takes personal ownership of people.  In common speech we take ownership of all kinds of things, even things which are not technically ours like "my show" on TV or "my sleep."  God addressed Aaron and Miriam in Numbers 12:6-8:  "Then He said, "Hear now My words: "If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. ⁷ Not so with My servant Moses; he is faithful in all My house. ⁸ I speak with him face to face, even plainly, and not in dark sayings; and he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?"  God made Himself known to Moses His faithful servant, and thus rebuked those who made false accusations against Him.

Caleb was another man who trusted and served God.  Those people to whom God revealed His glory and signs yet did not heed His voice would be unable to enter the land of promise.  In contrast God said in Numbers 14:22-24, "But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall inherit it."  David was another man God identified as His servant after he offered to build a permanent structure in Jerusalem for the presence of God to dwell.  2 Samuel 7:4-5 revealed, "But it happened that night that the word of the LORD came to Nathan, saying, ⁵ "Go and tell My servant David, 'Thus says the LORD: "Would you build a house for Me to dwell in?"  Moses, Caleb and David were men to whom God revealed Himself and they listened to Him, were faithful, followed God and sought to bless Him.

Abraham was a man to whom God revealed Himself on the more intimate level as friend, for it is written in James 2:23:  "And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God." (Is. 41:8)  Amazingly, God was revealed to mankind in human flesh in the person of Jesus Christ who told His disciples in John 15:14-15:  "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. ¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you."  How incredible is it, that friendship with the almighty God is possible by His grace!

After Jesus rose from the dead, a new and unprecedented relationship was made possible by the power of the Gospel.  See how Jesus referred to His disciples who had forsook Him and fled on the night He was betrayed in John 20:17-18:  "Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'" ¹⁸ Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her."  Jesus did not send Mary to speak to blood relations--his half-brothers or half-sisters with Mary his mother--but to His disciples.  He called them brethren because by faith in Jesus they had been adopted into the family of God.  How remarkable it is that sinners can be called "My brethren" by Jesus because of the work He has accomplished through His death and resurrection.

Those who have been adopted into God's family are His human brethren though we remain His humble subjects; we show ourselves His friends by believing and obeying Jesus.  Since He has made Himself known to us it is fitting we also are faithful, follow Him fully and seek to bless Him.  We also ought to serve and show ourselves friends to the brethren, for we have been made one Body in Christ.  We are all different but are partakers of the same Holy Spirit and same LORD.  Praise the LORD Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life.  May our lips show forth His praise and our lives bless His holy name who calls us brethren, having been purchased with His own blood.

Not of This World

I appreciate the perspective and insight of G.K. Chesterton who masterfully communicated in an intellectually stimulating and satisfying way how mankind's existence reveals the reality of a God Who created man and everything else.  In response to cave paintings Chesterton claimed, "Art is the signature of man" and if this is true, then mankind is indeed the signature of God who created artists of every kind.  The biblical account of Genesis says God created mankind unique from all other creatures in His own image, and thus accounts for the vast difference between people and animals.  Chesterton wrote:

"The simplest truth about man is that he is a very strange being; almost in the sense of being a stranger on the earth.  In all sobriety, he has much more of the external appearance of one bringing alien habits from another land than of a mere growth of this one.  He has an unfair advantage and an unfair disadvantage.  He cannot sleep in his own skin; he cannot trust his own instincts.  He is at once a creator moving miraculous hands and fingers and a kind of cripple.  He is wrapped in artificial bandages called clothes; he is propped on artificial crutches called furniture.  His mind has the same doubtful liberties and the same wild limitations.  Alone among the animals, he is shaken with the beautiful madness called laughter; as if he had caught sight of some secret in the very shape of the universe hidden from the universe itself.  Alone among the animals he feels the need of averting his thought from the root realities of his own bodily being; of hiding them as in the presence of some higher possibility which creates the mystery of shame.  Whether we praise these things as natural to man or abuse them as artificial in nature, they remain in the same sense unique.  This is realised by the whole popular instinct called religion...It is not natural to see man as a natural product.  It is not common sense to call man a common object of the country or the seashore.  It is not seeing straight to see him as an animal.  It is not sane.  It is a sin against the light; against the broad daylight of proportion which is the principle of all reality.  It is reached by stretching a point, by making a case, by artificially selecting a certain light and shade, by bringing into prominence the lesser or lower things which may happen to be similar.  The solid thing standing in the sunlight, the thing we can walk round and see from all sides, is quite different.  It is also quite extraordinary; and the more sides we see of it the more extraordinary it seems.  It is emphatically not a thing that follows or flows naturally from anything else." (Chesterton, G. K. (2008). The everlasting man. Ignatius Press. pages 36-37)

Man is not an accident, product of nature or a social construct:  people male and female have been created in the image of the almighty God, people who are more than bodies but possess an eternal soul.  There is a sense of morality and duty borne from a conscience, an individual will we submit to God as Master or shall master us.  Man alone has senses animals cannot understand or express:  indignation based upon morality, judgment according to wisdom, desire for intimacy and honesty, modes of communication and expression, to appreciate kind words and gratitude, the horror of sin and the delight of forgiveness.  I was once told by a pastor, "People are weird and life isn't fair."  This is true for we are indeed strange, unique beings all created and sustained by the grace of God.  Compared to animals in nature man is unique, and compared to all other people Jesus is even more unique--truly not of this world.

Praise God for His power to create, redeem and save!  On our own we would have all remained like beasts before God clawing for scraps in the dark, but glory to God as Zecharias prophesied of Jesus Christ who brings knowledge of salvation and forgiveness of sins in Luke 1:78-78:  "...Through the tender mercy of our God, with which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; ⁷⁹ to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."  The God who said, "Let there be light" and there was light is the God who has revealed Himself to us in the person of Jesus, the One who alone gives rest for our souls.  Without God revealing this to us, we wouldn't have known we had souls or that rest is needed or possible!  What riches of knowledge, grace, forgiveness and love are freely provided for all who are born again through the Gospel:  in the world but not of the world, now eternal citizens of heaven by grace.