Renewing Our Strength #20

In the opening paragraph of the last chapter of I Peter we find an exhortation to humble servant leadership. The reason given is simple: God is opposed to pride and arrogance. It is what fills this world with sin. There is then an exhortation we all need to consider beginning in verse:

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And 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. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Peter says there are times when we fell knocked down. The enemy is not going to go down without a fight; he will tempt us to sin and discouragement; all believers face this. Our job is to be on guard, even when worn down and weary, standing firm in our faith. What seems like forever is, in the scheme of things, a little while compared to eternity.  We can trust God, through Christ to restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish. He will come along to put us back together again, pull us up to stand stable, give us strength, and help us to stand strongly and firmly. This is no pull-yourself-up-by the-bootstraps kind of strength and stability, based on our own pride and sufficiency, but solely found in His strength.