Bible Characters

Prison Praise

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Did you know that when the good news of Jesus first reached the continent of what we now know as Europe, those who preached it spent a night in jail for their efforts?

 

The incident is recorded in Acts 16. A slave girl in Philippi, who earned her owners a lot of money by soothsaying, was converted to the Christian faith under the preaching of Paul and Silas.

Her conversion to Christ brought an abrupt end to her involvement in the black arts and a consequent financial loss to her owners. Her aggrieved owners engineered a mock trial for Paul and Silas before the city magistrates.

The magistrates turned a blind eye to the mob violence against Paul and Silas, beat them with rods and delivered them to the jailer, who ‘put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks’ (Acts 16:24).

So picture Paul and Silas. There they were, battered and bruised, and wallowing in a dark, dirty, depressing dungeon. How would you expect them to react to their plight? The way of God with them, when they were doing his will and work, seemed on the surface most painful and perplexing.

Remarkably, however, Luke records they did not utter even a murmur of complaint. Quite the opposite! There, in prison, they offered to God prison praise.

 

Doxology

 

A peal of doxology went up and out from those pained bodies, in those terrible conditions, in the prison at Philippi. ‘But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them’ (Acts 16:25).

So what a witness this is to God’s saving and sustaining grace! Paul and Silas obviously had a joy which this world cannot give, and which the adverse circumstances of this life could not take away from them.

  1. A. Ironside comments: ‘Those dear men, afflicted, miserable, unable to sleep, could not move without anguish; yet, as they lay in that dungeon, their hearts went out to God, presenting their case before him and, assured he heard, they lifted up their hearts in glad thanksgiving for his grace’.

Some years after his release from jail in Philippi, Paul wrote a letter to the church located in that city. The letter to the Philippians was written during another spell in jail for the long suffering apostle — this time he found himself in a cell in Rome.

In Philippians 4:4, Paul exhorted the Philippian believers, amongst whom, no doubt, was the Philippian jailer and perhaps some of Paul’s fellow inmates from the jail in Philippi, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice’.

 

Joy

 

Joy is a duty enjoined on all Christians. Christians are exhorted to be joyful, and Christians have every reason to rejoice. When Paul wrote this exhortation, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’, his readers would know that he practised what he preached.

They would have known of Paul’s time in the jail in their city, along with his midnight joy and praise there — a joy completely contrary to his circumstances and surroundings.

All this begs the question, ‘What was the secret of Paul’s indestructible joy?’

The answer is on the surface of the exhortation he gave: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’. Our God is ‘the Lord’, the absolute master, ruler and orderer of all things. The assurance of his total control — and absolute sovereignty over all that is — is ultimately our only true comfort, solace and joy. Our God reigns!

On dark days and sunny days; in days of ease and days of stress; on happy days and sad days; in sickness and in health, God is on the throne and cannot be overthrown. He alone is King.

He is sovereign and has the sovereign right to exercise his sovereignty as his wisdom, love and power sees fit. ‘The Lord has established his throne in the heavens and his kingdom rules over all’ (Psalm 103:19).

Strength

 

Secondly, Paul was able to ‘Rejoice in the Lord’ because he knew himself to be a recipient of God’s saving grace. And the deep conviction that we are actually loved by God is an inner source of joy and strength, which rises above adverse circumstances. ‘The joy of the Lord is your strength’ (Nehemiah 8:10).

Are we really loved by God? Yes! Romans 5:8 tells us that, ‘God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us’. God sent his Son to be our Saviour. He procured salvation on Calvary’s cross.

And God has also sent his Holy Spirit to apply the work of Christ’s redemption personally to our hearts and souls. Romans 8:31 ff. is rhetorical when it asks, ‘If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, will he not also give us all things with him?’

John Calvin allegedly ended every conversation with the words, ‘If God is for us, who is against us?’ He too then knew the secret of Christian joy.

So are we also able to offer ‘prison praise’? We might not be in a physical jail like Paul and Silas, but we can all feel trapped at times — trapped by our handicaps and limitations, trapped by our ailments and weaknesses, trapped by adverse circumstances, discouraged by little fruit for our labours, trapped by matters we are unable to change.

But, amidst all these, we are enjoined, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’. If God does not immediately release us from our prison, he will most certainly give us grace to sing our prison praise!

He is on the throne. He is all-wise and all-loving. He is working out his eternal will for the blessing of his people and glory of his name. Rejoice that he cannot be hindered or frustrated. Rejoice that he is a God of grace.

After all, he is the God who ‘so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life’ (John 3:16).

 

© Timothy Cross; originally published in Evangelical Times, reproduced with the kind permission of www.evangelicaltimes.org 

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The “Unquiet Horse”

THE FIRST PALM SUNDAY

 

In 520BC, the prophet Zechariah, under the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit, made the following prophecy: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Lo, your King comes to you; triumphant and victorious is He, humble and riding on an ass, on a colt the foal of an ass (Zechariah 9:9).

In the fullness of time, the prophecy was to be fulfilled to the letter in the Lord Jesus Christ, and Christians recall the fulfilment of this prophecy every Sunday before Easter, on the day known as ‘Palm Sunday.’ On this day, we remember how the Lord Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem on a colt – a colt being a donkey under four years old. Matthew’s Gospel records of that day how . . . the crowd spread their garments on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before Him and that followed Him shouted ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!’ (Matthew 21:8,9).

 

The Last Adam

 

The incident concerning the colt on Palm Sunday reveals Jesus as ‘the last Adam.’ We know from the Bible that before sin entered the world, the first Adam had dominion over the creatures. Genesis 1:26 tells us how God said, ‘Let us make man in Our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle . . . Palm Sunday reveals the Lord Jesus’  dominion . . . over the cattle, for the colt on which He rode was one on which no one has ever sat (Mark 11:3). The colt had thus never been broken in. Ordinarily, it should have bolted as soon as Jesus sat on it. But the Lord Jesus is the Last Adam with total dominion over the cattle. The Lord of creation was in complete control of this unbroken colt. Thou hast given Him dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under His feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air and the fish of the sea (Psalm 8:6-8). Palm Sunday demonstrated Jesus’ dominion over the beasts of the field. Later that week, the cock’s crowing just at the time when  Jesus predicted just after Peter’s denial of His Master, demonstrated His dominion over the birds of the air. Elsewhere in the Gospel records, Jesus’ dominion over the fish of the sea is demonstrated on more than one occasion – witness His being able to bring about a miraculous catch of fish, as well as predicting that if Peter went fishing with a rod and line, the very first fish he caught would have a silver coin in its mouth.

 

An ‘Unquiet Horse’

 

Returning again to ‘Palm Sunday’ and Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on an unbroken colt, consider the following:-

A specialist equestrian term refers to an ‘unquiet horse.’ An unquiet horse is a restless, anxious one. The anxiety in the case of an unquiet horse though is caused not by something intrinsic to the horse, but by the rider on the animal. Horses are very sensitive creatures and know at once if their rider is ill at ease. The spirit of the rider is communicated to the horse, so a troubled rider causes a troubled horse, that is, causes it to be ‘unquiet.’

On the first Palm Sunday there was much commotion. Messianic expectation had reached fever pitch. People behind and in front of the colt were shouting, waving palm branches and throwing garments on the road. Yet in spite of all this, the colt did not bolt or demonstrate any anxiety – unquiet ness – at all. Why? Because the Prince of Peace was riding upon it, and so this most honoured, dumb creature sensed immediately that all was well.

 

Horses are very sensitive creatures and know at once if their rider is ill at ease. The spirit of the rider is communicated to the horse, so a troubled rider causes a troubled horse, that is, causes it to be ‘unquiet.’

 

The Prince of Peace

 

Isaiah 9:6 refers to the Lord Jesus as the Prince of Peace. At this moment, the Prince of Peace was riding into Jerusalem with the sole purpose of making peace between God and humanity – the peace of sins forgiven and the peace of being reconciled to God for time and eternity. Riding a humble colt was certainly an act of humility for the Son of God. But infinitely more so was His crucifixion at the hands of cruel men later that week to procure our salvation. He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8). Colossians 1:20 refers to Jesus making peace be the blood of His cross.  And Romans 5:1 gives the joyful testimony of every Christian since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Peace in a troubled world

 

            The Prince of Peace alone was able to make our peace with God. The Prince of Peace alone will be able to bring universal peace, when He comes again in glory to reign, and destroy finally and for ever all the causes of disharmony in God’s world. And in a world as troubled now as it was in Jesus’ day, Jesus still says to His Own: Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid (John 14:27).

            So thank God for Jesus, the Last Adam, Lord of creation and Prince of Peace. He humbled Himself that we might be exalted. He suffered that we might be saved. He died that we might have eternal life. He, the sinless One, was punished in the place of sinners, that whoever believes in Him may enjoy peace with God, now and for ever.            

TJEC

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Strengthening Ourselves in God

STRENGTHENING OURSELVES IN GOD

 

At an especially difficult and fraught time in the life of David, all seemed lost. An enemy force had  taken his family captive and rampaged the town in which he was residing. Then, to make bad matters  worse, even David’s own people turned against him and threatened to stone him dead. The Bible though records that at that time, David did not give in to despair, but rather ‘David strengthened himself in the LORD, his God’ (1 Samuel 30:6). Foes, friends and fears notwithstanding, David knew that whatever his circumstances, Almighty God – ‘his God’ – was in ultimate control, and that His purposes could not be defeated and His plans could not be thwarted.

In ‘strengthening himself in the LORD his God’ David has given us an example to emulate, especially when we too find ourselves ‘up against it.’ But how exactly do we do this? We do it by applying the truth of God’s Word to ourselves and our situation. To be more specific, we take hold of at least four truths revealed in Scripture.

 

  1. We are accepted with God through Christ

 

Ultimately, all is well with us, as the finished work of Christ at Calvary cannot be undone or rescinded. Through Christ’s merits and mediation, we are acceptable to God and will never be separated from Him. The Gospel of justification by the grace of God in Christ has great pastoral and practical implications:-

 

Justification is an act of God’s free grace wherein He pardoneth all our sins and accepteth us as righteous in His sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone’ (Shorter Catechism).

 

Truth be told, if we are united to Christ, we could not be more acceptable to God, for our acceptance with Him is not based on who we are or on what we do, but on who Christ is and what He has done. ‘A man is not justified (reckoned righteous) by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ’ (Galatians 2:16).

 

  1. God’s grace keeps pace with whatever we face

 

The Bible reveals a God of sustaining grace, as well as saving grace. When Paul was in excruciating pain – a pain from which he prayed earnestly to God to be released – God’s promise to him was ‘My grace is sufficient for you’ (2 Corinthians 12:9). From this we may reason that if our Father in heaven does not see fit to remove our burdens from us in answer to our prayers, He will most certainly give us a stronger back to bear our burdens. If the path He has laid down for us is a stony one, He will surely provide us with protective shoes! His grace will prove to be as sufficient for us as it was for Paul:-

 

He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater

He sendeth more strength when the labours incrase

To added affliction He addeth His mercy

To multiplied trials His multiplied peace

(Annie Johnson Flint 1866-1932).

 

  1. God promises wisdom to those who ask Him

 

‘Wisdom’ may be defined as ‘sound judgement in relation to life and conduct.’ How we all need wisdom in this complex world, so that we know how to act and react aright. But what do we do when we don’t know what to do? The Bible’s answer is ‘Ask God.’ God promises to give wisdom to those who humbly ask Him for it. ‘For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth comes knowledge and understanding’ (Proverbs 2:6).  ‘If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men generously and without reproaching, and it will be given him’ (James 1:5). The Bible also states that ‘The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom’ (Proverbs 9:10). Thus, if our sincere desire is to please the Lord and if our deepest horror is causing offence to Him, He will surely make the way ahead for us clear.

 

  1. ‘He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might He increases strength’ (Isaiah 40:29).

 

When we feel impotent, it is easy to forget that our Father in heaven is omnipotent. He is almighty God! Scripture abounds in reminding us of God’s absolute, sovereign might. He has no problems. He only has plans:-

 

‘Is anything too hard for the LORD?’ (Genesis 18:14).

‘Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is anything too hard for me?’ (Jeremiah 32:27).

‘For with God nothing will be impossible’ (Luke 1:37).

 

The wonder is that this God – whose might is such that He could merely speak the universe into existence – actually puts His power at the disposal of His needy children. Hence the Psalmist could testify ‘My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth’ (Psalm 121:2) and hence Paul could conclude on the encouraging thought ‘Now to Him who by the power at work within us is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think’ (Ephesians 2:20).

 

External appearance apart, Christians are no ordinary people. We are the adopted children of God! Yes, difficulties, disappointments, trials and traumas come our way in the will of God in this fallen world – but God’s will, will be done, for He ‘accomplishes all things according to the counsel of His will’ (Ephesians 1:11). If we belong to Jesus, when we are ‘up against it’ we have the privilege of bringing our difficulties and impossibilities to the Lord. He can handle them better than we can! When you are tempted to despair of yourself and your circumstances therefore, strengthen yourself in your Faith by asking yourself  the rhetorical question ‘Is anything too hard for the LORD’ (Genesis 18:14).  How we need to trust Him more than we do.

 

Is the burden intolerable?

Is the task impossible?

Is the grief inconsolable?

Not with the Lord

 

Is the darkness impenetrable?

Is the sky unpierceable?

Is the tear undryable?

Not with the Lord

 

Is the joy irrecoverable?

Is the state irreversible?

Is the case irretrievable?

Not with the Lord.

(Anon.)

 

Timothy Cross

 

 

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O Timothy (1 Timothy 6:20)

O TIMOTHY … (1 Timothy 6:20).

 

The Apostle Paul addressed two of his New Testament letters To Timothy, my true child in the faith (1 Timothy 1:2). The Timothy in question was a young, Christian Pastor. The New Testament letters to Timothy and Titus are known as ‘The Pastoral Epistles.’ They deal primarily with matters pertaining to the ‘nitty gritties’ of local church life  – I am writing these instructions to you so that … you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth (1 Timothy 3:14,15).

The differences in age and Christian maturity notwithstanding, Paul obviously valued young Timothy’s friendship a great deal. 2 Timothy is the last letter Paul ever wrote. At the time of writing, he was incarcerated in a Roman prison, aware that his death – his promotion to glory – was imminent. For I am already on the point of being sacrificed; the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:6,7). But Paul’s love for Timothy was such that he was adamant that he see Timothy again before he died – I long day and night to see you, that I may be filled with joy (2 Timothy 1:4). And so he pleaded Do your best to come to me soon … Do your best to come before winter … (2 Timothy 4:9,21).

 

i. Timothy’s Faith : His Conversion

 

We first encounter Timothy during Paul’s second missionary journey. He was from Lystra (Acts 16:1) in the province of Galatia – modern day Turkey. He was the product of a ‘mixed marriage’, as Luke relates A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer; but his father was a Greek (Acts 16:1).

It is difficult to ascertain the exact moment when Timothy came to conscious, saving faith in Christ. That he belonged to Jesus there is no doubt, but it is possible that even he himself did not know the precise time of his conversion:-

In the providence of God, Timothy was blessed with a Christian mother and grandmother who surrounded him with their prayers and Christian example. In 2 Timothy 1:5 Paul wrote I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you. It would seem that Timothy’s mother and grandmother nurtured Timothy in the Christian Faith, and taught him the Scriptures from his earliest days, for in 2 Timothy 3:15 Paul wrote how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 3:15).

In 1 Timothy 1:2 however, Paul refers to Timothy as my true child in the faith. This suggests that, under God, it was Paul’s own influence which was instrumental in bringing Timothy to the new birth. Timothy’s conversion then was perhaps similar to many who have been brought up in a Christian family: Acquainted with Christian matters since early childhood, perhaps sometime in our teens, ‘the penny drops’ and we trust in Christ as our own personal Saviour. It is as though we have gone over in ink what has already been written in pencil.

Timothy then was a true Christian convert. He belonged to Jesus. He had entrusted his eternal welfare to the crucified, risen and reigning Saviour. His conversion though is a reminder that whilst Christ is the only Saviour, there is more than one road which leads to the Saviour. Timothy’s conversion was different from Paul’s, but no less authentic. That we are ‘in Christ’ now is more important than being able to give a dramatic Christian testimony of how we came to Christ in the first place.

 

ii. Timothy’s Fidelity : His Commitment

 

When Paul first encountered Timothy, he immediately perceived in him enormous Christian potential as regards the service of God and the spread of the Gospel. Luke relates that Timothy was well spoken of by the brethren at Lystra and Iconium and Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him on his missionary travels (Acts 16:1,2). The great apostle thus chose Timothy to help and accompany him on his missionary endeavours. He saw him as both useable and useful material for Christ in relation to God’s eternal purposes of grace. And his assessment proved to be absolutely right. A little later on , when Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, he praised Timothy to the hilt saying how I have no one like him, who will be genuinely anxious for your welfare. They all look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But Timothy’s worth you know, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the Gospel (Philippians 2:20-22).

The overriding and overarching concern of Timothy’s life then was the interests … of Jesus Christ. If he had had a motto, it surely would have been:-

 

Only one life, ‘twill soon be past

Only what’s done for Christ will last.

 

Timothy’s chief concern was not his own personal glory or career, but that the Lord Jesus Christ should be glorified in the salvation of souls and the building of His church. When it came to actual practice, the welfare of Christians and the glory of Christ were somewhat blurred in his thinking and action. Serving Christ and serving His people were one and the same for him. He loved above all else to see sinners saved, and Christians better grounded, founded and established in Christian truth. Whilst initially, we could perhaps think of Timothy as Paul’s apprentice in mission, it was not long before Timothy graduated, and Paul had full confidence that he could undertake Christian work on his own. Hence Paul sent Timothy from Athens to the persecuted church at Thessalonica – we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s servant in the gospel of Christ, to establish you in your faith and to exhort you (1 Thessalonians 3:2). Hence Paul sent Timothy from Ephesus to the church at Corinth – I sent to you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church (1 Corinthians 4:17).

Eventually, Timothy settled down as a permanent Pastor in Ephesus. Paul’s letters to him are an exhortation and encouragement to press on in the work of being a pastor and preacher there – attend to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching to teaching … Practise these duties, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress (1 Timothy 4:13,15) and Preach the Word, be urgent in season and out of season, convince, rebuke and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching … As for you, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your ministry (2 Timothy 4:2,5).

 

iii. Timothy’s Frailty : His Condition

 

Timothy was a walking sermon illustration on the text of 2 Corinthians 4:7: But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us.

                We tend to look up to our Christian leaders. We tend to think of them as being in a higher league from ourselves. It is as though they are made of ‘stronger stuff’ than we are. Timothy was a Christian leader and was ordained by God to be such. Yet the Bible reveals that Timothy was made out of the same frail flesh and spirit of which we are made. Scripture reveals that Timothy was no ‘muscular Christian.’ Yet Scripture also reveals that God used Timothy for His glory and the building of Christ’s church.

Paul addressed Timothy with the high compliment But as for you, man of God … (1 Timothy 6:11). Timothy was a man of God! Yet although this was true, Timothy was also, like Elijah – another man of God – a man of like nature with ourselves (James 5:17). Scripture reveals that Timothy battled against both physical and mental handicaps. Until he reached glory, he had to fight the good fight (1 Timothy 6:12) against enemies both without and within.

 

Timothy’s Physical Constitution

 

Timothy was not endowed with a robust physical constitution. In 1 Timothy 5:23 Paul advises him concerning your stomach and your frequent ailments. This is a reminder that every Christian is not yet fully saved! The final Christian hope is the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:23). This will occur when Christ comes again in glory – we await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who will change our lowly body to be like His glorious body, by the power which enables Him even to subject all things to Himself (Philippians 3:20,21). Until that day, every Christian, no matter how godly, will be subject to sickness and pain to a greater or lesser degree, and will eventually suffer physical death. Timothy then was physically handicapped. Yet he still worked for the kingdom of heaven within the physical limitations imposed on Him by God – and the blessing of God was upon his labours in spite of his physical limitations.

 

Timothy’s Psychological Condition

 

It would seem that young Timothy was less than robust psychologically as well as physically. Paul’s letters to him betray the fact that he sometimes lacked confidence and was prone to discouragement. Timothy by name and timid by nature! Paul’s letters to Timothy were letters of needed encouragement exhorting him to ‘keep on keeping on’ in the Christian ministry – looking to God Who is greater than all the opposition without and discouragement within, and can accomplish His will and purpose through us in spite of our physical and psychological handicaps. Hence the many exhortations in the ‘Pastoral epistles’ which were applicable to Timothy personally and relevant to Christians and Christian leaders in all ages:-

Do not neglect the gift you have … (1 Timothy 4:14).

Rekindle the gift of God that is within you … for God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self control (2 Timothy 1:6,7).

Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 2:1).

Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 2:3).

As for you, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your ministry (2 Timothy 4:5).

Paul thus urged Timothy simply to be faithful to God in his particular and peculiar circumstances. We are to be the same. We are to do what we can, where we are, with what we have, and to leave the results to God. God calls us to be faithful, not necessarily successful.

 

O Timothy!

 

 

No doubt, if you saw Timothy, and were aware of his physical ailments and nervous disposition, he would not strike you immediately as a great Christian leader. It goes to show that God’s ways are not always our ways and that the laws of the kingdom of heaven can differ from the laws of this world (see Isaiah 55:8,9). God often sees fit to use frail, redeemed sinners to accomplish His almighty purposes. In this way, His work cannot be explained rationally, or explained away with a human explanation. In this way, He Himself gets all the glory. And the goal of the universe is, after all, the overriding and overarching, unsurpassed and unsurpassable glory of the one true God – To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen (1 Timothy 1:17).

A medical missionary of many years experience once wrote:-

 

God delights in using weak people, because it shows how big He is … the Lord gave me wisdom far beyond my own resource to help people medically. Whatever aspect of the Lord’s service it be, I have found that my weakness is but an opportunity for the Lord to display His power. ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me (2 Corinthians 12:9b).

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