Strength

Scripture has much to say about strength. The prophet Isaiah called out, “The Lord God is my strength and my song” (Isa. 12:2). Jesus commands His followers to love God “with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark. 12:30). Paul alludes to the fact that we are strengthened by spiritual gifts (Rom. 1:11). Paul confirmed to young Timothy that he was strengthened by the Lord for the preaching of the truth (2 Tim. 4:17). Perhaps one of the most well-known passages about strength is Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” According to all these passages, the origin of our strength is God. The psalmist wrote, “Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord” (Ps. 31:24). Isaiah said that the Lord “gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength” (Isa. 40:29).

Spiritual strength is something given by the Lord in our frail weakness and is manifested in believers as they stand strong and courageous on the Word of God. Therefore, strength is a gift of the Lord that gives us an internal fortitude that enables us to stand firm for the sake of God and His truth.

Spiritual strength never comes from our own resources; it comes from the Lord, whose unfailing strength sustains us in our greatest weakness. Peter reminds us, “After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you” (1 Peter 5:10). The promise of God to all believers is that He will “confirm, strengthen, and establish” us to the extent that He will take us all the way from the depths of our suffering to the eternal glory reserved for us in Christ. This is the hope that sustains us in the valleys of despair. This is the deep and abiding joy that resides in us when all reasons for hope seem lost. This is the spiritual strength that anchors our souls to Christ when we feel abandoned. Paul’s prayer for the Colossians was that they would “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy” (Col. 1:10–11). Endurance, patience, and joy amid persecution, suffering, and despondence are possible as God strengthens us with all power.

Another aspect of spiritual strength is exhibited in the courageous stand that believers take for truth, the gospel of Christ, and the Word of God. Peter reminds believers in 1 Peter 4:11 that to serve God faithfully is possible only by the “strength that God supplies.” This type of strength exhibits itself in boldness and courage to face the onslaughts of the devil and an unbelieving world for the cause of Christ. This is the type of strength that Joshua announced for the children of Israel: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Josh. 1:9). For this type of courageous strength, Paul says, we need the full armor of God (Eph. 6:10–18). Only robed in the armor of God are we able to stand against the schemes of the devil. God exhorts His people to exhibit strength in carrying out His plan and mission in the world. This is possible only as we grow in His Word, depend on Him in prayer, and seek to walk in a manner pleasing to Him in holiness. Through these means, God strengthens our resolve to stand for Him in every situation.