Good News #189: Because of Jesus, I Am Made Strong; My Strength is in Him!
God is a practical God and everything He gives us are multi-layered in use, relevance and significance.
Some of us, Christians, make the mistake of thinking God only gives gifts, anointing, wisdom, talents, skills useful within a church setting.
Many others think that the excellencies we do outside of church activities are from the devil. We give the devil too much credit, yet Jesus taught us that the devil can neither create nor do nor give anything beneficial or useful… Jesus said it this way in John 10:10a:
“The thief only comes to steal, to kill, and to destroy.”
The wisdom, gifts, talents, skills that we find beneficial for our career and professional successes are from God… and in these same gifts God has hidden the potential for use in spiritual warfare, too.
The primary profession in the cultural context when the book of Joel was written was agriculture. Plowshares and pruning hooks are used in the agricultural fields… and God is saying use what you use in your agricultural profession to do battle with (swords and spears).
What we see as weak, base, and non-beneficial, God sees in its full potential the way that He designed it when He gave it to mankind.
And so the word of the Lord goes on to instruct — Let the weak say, “I am strong.” because He knows the strength He has given in what man sees as weak.
The gospel is this — everything that the Lord gifts you with are useful, beneficial, significant and relevant in various areas in our lives. We need only to listen to Him about what He says about these things and how to use them accordingly in line with His purposes for it for your life.
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Beat your plowshares into swords
Joel 3:10
And your pruning hooks into spears;
Let the weak say, “I am strong.”
