Trust in God For Our Strength

Reflecting on persecution in the Christian life, we draw from the experience of Prophet Jeremiah as he faced an interior crisis at some point in his ministry. The Babylonian Empire under King Nebuchadnezzar was threatening the existence of Israel. At least, Jeremiah believed this was the warning he received from God. His efforts were nonetheless lost on people who did not want anything to do with him. Passhur, the priest, even put Jeremiah in stocks because of these prophecies. But Jeremiah was undeterred and still prophesied against him and renamed him Terror on every side (Jeremiah 20:3).

Jeremiah’s Prayer of Lament

Jeremiah also said things that made him sound quite discouraged in his vocation. He lamented bitterly to the Lord God about his situation. He did what the Lord asked and said what the Lord wanted him to say but suffered for doing what he knew was right. He could have quit but remained obedient because the Word of the Lord in his heart became like a burning fire shut up in his bones. And he was tired of holding it in, that he could not endure it (Jeremiah 20:9). Therefore, he determined to continue trusting in the insistent Lord and to preach the word to the resistant people, notwithstanding the consequences. Jeremiah thus becomes a model for us to take courage in the Lord when faced with persecution. He knows what his enemies are saying. He hears them plotting against him. He wonders why the Lord would get him in such a mess, let alone not warn him that the mission would be this difficult.  He later wishes that he had not been born than to have to live through such a vocation (Jeremiah 20:14-18). Credit it to Jeremiah for speaking harshly to the all-powerful, all-knowing God.

Like many of us in ministry, Jeremiah wavered between fear and faith. Although he eventually leaned in favour of faith that the Lord God would be with him, his idea of how he expected the Lord to operate was somewhat at odds. Jeremiah believed that whatever sufferings he was going through were a test from God, but he also trusted that he would enjoy watching and savouring God’s vengeance on his detractors. However, Jeremiah’s lamenting reminds us that when we face a crisis, we have an openness with which we may speak to God, honestly voicing our deepest thoughts and questions, expressing our heartfelt concerns and presenting our complaints with no holds barred. To submit such a prayer to God is a genuine gift. It is a reflection of having a deep relationship with God that goes way beyond praises and petitions. It shows that more is happening in our situations that do not allow God’s will to be done. That God’s heart breaks, and God’s tears flow way before our hearts can break and our tears flow. That God knows our situation before we experience it.

Yet God desires that we have a genuine relationship with Him. He, therefore, gifts us with prayer so that we can honestly speak our minds. God values what we say and honours what we bring to His table. In God’s books, our voice counts. It gives God more room to work in our lives. Like Jeremiah, we must be confident that God always has our best interests at heart and works with our prayers and other factors to create the best possible future. And God is not limited in the directions He can take our interactions. His steadfast love for us never changes. He is faithful to the promises He makes to us. We must trust God to be true to His word. And when troubles come, we shall recall the Word of God and declare:

God Is Our Strength and Defender

Like Moses and the Israelites, we sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted. We praise Him for being our strength and song, for becoming our salvation by hurling the horse and its rider into the sea. We exalt the Lord, a warrior who throws Pharaoh’s chariots and army into the sea (Exodus 15:1–4). When we look for our security in the Lord, our champion defender lifts us up and protects us. As in the days of Moses, the Lord will defeat our enemies in a profound display of His power. Then we will celebrate that rescue and acknowledge that God is our deliverer.

The Joy of The Lord Is Our Strength

In the days of Nehemiah, the Israelites were again in exile. The people were gathered together in the public square when they asked Ezra, the scribe, to read to them from the Book of the Law of Moses. Ezra read in the presence of men and women who could understand, and all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. The people were hungering for God’s word. They were eager to rediscover their heritage. They listened to Ezra read from dawn until noon. The Levites also explained the Law to the people as they remained in place. And the people rightfully responded in worship. And all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the Law. But Nehemiah told them to celebrate instead because the joy of the Lord is their strength, and the Levites also silenced the people for their confidence in God’s goodness, set them apart and made them robust people. Then the people went away to celebrate a great feast because they understood the words that had been made known. We, too, must realise that the Lord’s joy is our strength (Nehemiah 8:6-10).

God Is Our Refuge and Strength

So often did the Hebrews find the stamina and hope to remember God’s mighty acts in difficult times. In our Christian life, we also need constant reminders of God’s presence amid our troubles. St. Paul wrote that whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction; through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures, we might have hope (Romans 15:4). Turning to the Psalmist, we find such reminders that we look to the past to remember what has been done and to remind ourselves that God is at work today. We can trust Him even though nature threatens and makes us fearful (Psalm 46:1–3).

We seek security in material things like our riches, close relationships, and strong rulers, hoping they will protect us. But God’s name is the essence of who He is – a fortified tower – in whom only we can find the security we long for. So, we pray and ask that God strengthens us according to His word, especially when the soul is weary with sorrow (Psalm 119:28). We remember to trust in God’s word to make us wise and righteous and prepare us for good works. When weary with grief, we look to God’s Law for strength. We call on the Lord, for His name is a strong tower into which we run and are safe (Proverbs 18:10).

God Is Our Unlimited Renewal

There is a point in time when everyone gets physically and emotionally exhausted. Reading from the prophet Isaiah gives us incredible encouragement that God is a source for unlimited renewal, and all we have to do is wait on Him. Then we will run and not grow weary. When we lack might, He increases power. We may grow weary and tired and stumble badly. But when we wait for the Lord, we will gain new strength. We will mount up with wings like eagles, run and not get tired, walk and not become weary (Isaiah 40:29–31).

In Isaiah’s words, we hear the Lord God speaking to Israel (and us), a people set apart for Himself and a nation constantly under duress from foreigners who would have loved to see them exterminated. A hard-hearted people who regularly were unfaithful to God. Yet he still called, strengthened, and upheld them (Isaiah 41:9-10). God does the same for us in the Lord Jesus Christ. We, also, have been taken from the ends of the earth and are called from its remotest parts. We are His servants, chosen and not rejected by Him. We should not fear, for He is with us. We are not afraid, for He is our God. He strengthens, helps, and upholds us with his righteous right hand.

God’s Strength is Perfect in our Weaknesses

In his second letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul elaborates on the principle of our weaknesses. Paul acknowledges that he had a thing about which he pleaded with the Lord. Paul did exactly what he told others to do about this thorn in the flesh in a time of trouble (Philippians 4:6). Not once did he plead that it might leave him, but three times. So confident was he that the Lord would respond positively to the plea, but to no avail. After praying ceaselessly, continuously, and repeatedly, it dawned on Paul that God was trying to tell him something. Perhaps he recalled someone else who prayed three times in His agony with the exact words (cf. Mark 14:39-41). Not that there was anything wrong with praying as such. Paul must have been quite passionate in his praying. The perceived lack of an answer must have added dimension to this trial (2 Corinthians 12:7) – from the physical pain caused by the thorn in the flesh to the mental distress occasioned by a messenger of Satan and the spiritual agony of unanswered prayer. It did not matter what the thing had become, Paul wanted an escape, and he went to God for a reprieve. God, in His faithfulness, had a response for Paul. Not as Paul initially hoped for or expected, but an answer nonetheless. Many of us would have closed our ears to God if He had responded to us like this.

And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness’ (2 Corinthians 12:9a).

Although the thorn was not removed, God gave and continued to give His grace to Paul. This grace was sufficient to meet Paul’s every need. There were two options for Paul – either the burden is taken away, or the shoulder that bears the burden is strengthened. The Lord purposed to show His strength through Paul’s apparent weakness. Paul was to participate by believing that God’s grace was sufficient. This can be difficult for many who stand in awe of the self-made man and adore self-sufficiency. Through St. Paul, we learn that we cannot receive God’s strength if we don’t acknowledge our weaknesses. We cannot accept the sufficiency of God’s grace if we do not admit our insufficiency. It is our great tribulations which reveal God’s strength. We must feel, recognise and mourn our weaknesses to God so His strength can be perfect in us. When we receive God’s grace, we experience His acceptance and pleasure in us. We enjoy His favour and approval of us. And God’s sufficient grace is available and within reach for us all the time. It was not granted to Paul alone because we are included in the “you”. It has been freely given to us through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

God’s All-Sufficient Grace

The grace of God is sufficient to uphold, strengthen, comfort, make your trouble useful to you, enable you to triumph over it, bring you out of it and out of many more like it, and bring you home to the Father. It is a promise we must each take home at this very moment. It is a promise we must remember all the time. We must become utterly dependent upon God’s grace and His strength because total dependence upon God will make us stronger than our pride and self-sufficiency can ever carry us. The Christian life is never going to be easy. We will continue to struggle with sin, experience weaknesses, suffer persecution, and endure desolation. We must trust that My grace is sufficient for you will come through in our time of need. God can only work in and through us when we empty ourselves and are hopelessly weak because no flesh can glory in God’s presence. As in the times of Paul, God’s power will be demonstrated in all our difficulties. This is why, like Paul, we would rather boast about our weaknesses so that the Power of Christ dwells in us; when we are weak, we are strong in the Lord (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

Take-Home Message

Knowing that the Christian life is difficult, we must be strong in the Lord and the strength of His might. When life diminishes our fervour, entices us to be unfaithful to God, or even ultimately destroys our being, we are encouraged to be strong. This ability to stand firm against evil schemes comes from wearing the whole armour of God (Ephesians 6:10–11). Then having learnt to be content in whatever circumstances, we will not speak from need. We will know to get along with little as much as we know to live in prosperity. In any circumstance, we will learn the secret of having abundance and suffering need and understand that we can do all things through Him who strengthens us (Philippians 4:11–13). Then we will say with Paul that I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me (Galatians 2:20).

*NB: All Bible quotations are from NASB Version