January 12, 2019 AS STRONG TODAY
Joshua 14:11-12 “I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in. Now then, give me this hill country about which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day that Anakim were there, with great fortified cities; perhaps the Lord will be with me, and I will drive them out as the Lord has spoken.”
Isaiah 40:30-31 “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
These verses challenge the mind-set that says that as we get older, we must curtail our ambitions and reign in our vision and adopt a more sedentary life style. It may sound contradictory to the above sentence, but no one can deny the fact that one loses some strength and experiences some physical limitations with age. The Old Testament is for the most part a picture of the natural, while the New Testament is primarily a picture of the spiritual application of the natural that we see in the Old Testament-that is not to say that we do not get blessed in physical and natural ways as we walk in the ways of the Lord. As I read theses verses, and other similar verses, I realized that we can read such verses and yet not be greatly impacted by them; we tend to see them simply as historical-about someone else in another time. Can we actually believe that there is truth in these verses for us personally? Do these verses find agreement in our own spirit that says ‘Yes-that’s me.!” In other words, do I experience the wonderful promises found in these verses? If not, then let us focus on what God has promised for those who know Him and who walk according to His ways. First, we know that we can ‘say’ we believe, or we can actually believe-to take as true the truths we find in the Scriptures. These verses are not just pleasant verses to read-they are for you and I. Because the Holy Spirit of God lives in us, because we have been made new, we can now experience the power of God at work in us in daily living. In Him, there is no place for apathy, retreat, disillusionment, giving up, laziness, or any such thing. Romans 6:11 reminds us that we are “alive to God in Christ Jesus.” As we discussed in the previous blog, we know that our outer man, our bodies, are ‘decaying;’ the aging process is underway. However, our ‘aging’ does not have to dominate our life or be the theme of our conversations. Jesus made a tremendous statement in Matthew 9:29 that gives much insight to our topic in this blog: “Then He touched their eyes, saying, ‘It shall be done to you according to your faith.’” Did you catch that? “According to your faith.” It’s a fact, it’s reality that some physical limitations will come our way, some are even born with limitations, BUT not true for our spirit. In our spirit, no matter our age or circumstances, you and I can be strong, we can take the high country as Joshua did, we can drive out the enemy, we can renew our strength, and yes, we can soar like the eagle and we can run and not be weary and we can walk and not faint!! It’s important to realize that we cannot do this in our own strength or by our own determination; experiencing the truth of these verses come as a result of knowing our true identity in the Lord-knowing who we are. We are speaking primarily in a spiritual sense, BUT, what happens in our spirit has a way of ‘showing up’ in the physical as well; the physical part of us, our view of life, reflects our spirit. So be energized spiritually and physically, cast out despair, do what needs to be done, confess that you will not be defined by physical limitations or by age, and go ahead and soar like the eagle and take that mountain-drive out the enemy!
John 7:38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scriptures said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
Daniel 11:32b “but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do great exploits.”
Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.”
Blessings,
Buddy
Joshua 14:11-12 “I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in. Now then, give me this hill country about which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day that Anakim were there, with great fortified cities; perhaps the Lord will be with me, and I will drive them out as the Lord has spoken.”
Isaiah 40:30-31 “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
These verses challenge the mind-set that says that as we get older, we must curtail our ambitions and reign in our vision and adopt a more sedentary life style. It may sound contradictory to the above sentence, but no one can deny the fact that one loses some strength and experiences some physical limitations with age. The Old Testament is for the most part a picture of the natural, while the New Testament is primarily a picture of the spiritual application of the natural that we see in the Old Testament-that is not to say that we do not get blessed in physical and natural ways as we walk in the ways of the Lord. As I read theses verses, and other similar verses, I realized that we can read such verses and yet not be greatly impacted by them; we tend to see them simply as historical-about someone else in another time. Can we actually believe that there is truth in these verses for us personally? Do these verses find agreement in our own spirit that says ‘Yes-that’s me.!” In other words, do I experience the wonderful promises found in these verses? If not, then let us focus on what God has promised for those who know Him and who walk according to His ways. First, we know that we can ‘say’ we believe, or we can actually believe-to take as true the truths we find in the Scriptures. These verses are not just pleasant verses to read-they are for you and I. Because the Holy Spirit of God lives in us, because we have been made new, we can now experience the power of God at work in us in daily living. In Him, there is no place for apathy, retreat, disillusionment, giving up, laziness, or any such thing. Romans 6:11 reminds us that we are “alive to God in Christ Jesus.” As we discussed in the previous blog, we know that our outer man, our bodies, are ‘decaying;’ the aging process is underway. However, our ‘aging’ does not have to dominate our life or be the theme of our conversations. Jesus made a tremendous statement in Matthew 9:29 that gives much insight to our topic in this blog: “Then He touched their eyes, saying, ‘It shall be done to you according to your faith.’” Did you catch that? “According to your faith.” It’s a fact, it’s reality that some physical limitations will come our way, some are even born with limitations, BUT not true for our spirit. In our spirit, no matter our age or circumstances, you and I can be strong, we can take the high country as Joshua did, we can drive out the enemy, we can renew our strength, and yes, we can soar like the eagle and we can run and not be weary and we can walk and not faint!! It’s important to realize that we cannot do this in our own strength or by our own determination; experiencing the truth of these verses come as a result of knowing our true identity in the Lord-knowing who we are. We are speaking primarily in a spiritual sense, BUT, what happens in our spirit has a way of ‘showing up’ in the physical as well; the physical part of us, our view of life, reflects our spirit. So be energized spiritually and physically, cast out despair, do what needs to be done, confess that you will not be defined by physical limitations or by age, and go ahead and soar like the eagle and take that mountain-drive out the enemy!
John 7:38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scriptures said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
Daniel 11:32b “but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do great exploits.”
Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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