BE STRONG. 2nd Timothy 2:1. To be strong in grace means having the grace that God has given us to complete any task our Lord assigns. This grace surpasses what is normal for man. It came from our Lord Jesus Christ when He first began a work in me, a work that is still ongoing according to His plan. His grace for lost souls was shown when He “who was rich, for our sakes, became poor, that we through His poverty might be rich.” Saving grace is a central theme in our worship, hymns, songs of thanksgiving, and public testimony.
Being strong in grace now, after God saved me over seventy years ago, means I have choices—choices that affect how I live today. Not acting on the truths in God’s Word would mean I despise the grace He gives me to live a quiet and peaceable life in godliness and honesty. To be strong in grace means I have been given a charge by one who has authority over me. It’s not a suggestion but a loud and clear command. I am now responsible for sharing with others what I’ve learned as a message from God in heaven through the Holy Spirit within me and God’s Word in my hand. As God’s truth, I gladly share with others; with words and wisdom of grace, I do what God desires.
The focus is on the Lord's strength, not on Timothy’s or anyone else’s. “Vain is man that trusts in man,” and that includes self-confidence and perceived personal strength of will, character, and mind. We must be spiritually strengthened and intentionally draw close to our Lord Jesus Christ. He enables us to do His will when we are willing and committed to following through.
When the charge is made to pass on to the younger believers in Christ, things I’ve learned and now know through practical experience often speak for themselves without words. My attitude and actions support what I say, and others may base some of their decisions on what my life demonstrates. The grace in Christ doesn’t make me independent, but causes me to trust fully in my Lord. By acting in faith on His faithful, unchanging commandment, I am strengthened by grace to fulfill His will according to His word.
Man's weakness reveals how perfect God’s power is. The spiritual strength required to fulfill His purpose comes directly from Him. The grace and strength I need to live each hour in a way that pleases the Lord are given by Him, through divinely granted grace, to meet every challenge. Victories are won, and lives are positively impacted because of God's strengthening power through grace. Those who are willing to learn, by God's grace, will be blessed and are strong because they recognize that grace has worked for them from the beginning. To everyone who listens to God’s truth: His grace is limitless and truly inspires me to show that grace to others. Many people struggle to understand their complete dependence on God. Most believe that independence is a great virtue. Help us all to see that it is in God alone that “we live and move and have our being.”