strengthen – Ministry of Grace Church

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1 Peter 5:10 – Temporary Suffering

Posted on March 8, 2017 by Will

Now the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, will perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

Truth to Learn

God will use our suffering to make us complete in Him.

Behind the Words

The word translated “all” is pas, which as we saw in verse seven means “all” or “the whole.”

“Perfect” is from the Greek katartidzō, meaning “to complete or repair thoroughly.”

The word translated “establish” is stēridzō, which means “to set securely” or “to turn resolutely in a certain direction.”

The word “strengthen” is from the Greek sthenoō, which means “to give bodily vigor or strength to.”

And the word, “settle” is from the Greek themelioō, which means “to place firmly on a foundation.”

Meaning Explained

Now Peter gives us a few more words of encouragement lest we think that we are fighting this battle alone. He tells us that even in the midst of our suffering, the God of all grace will do something for us. He is not simply a gracious God (the God of grace) but the God of all grace. The implication is that there is no grace which does not come from God.

Peter goes on to tell us that not only does He bestow favor on us that we don’t deserve, but he also invites us to approach His eternal glory. Approaching this glory is only possible for us because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ. This is the glory that James, John, and Peter got a glimpse of at the transfiguration:

And after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain apart, and was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. (Matthew 17:1,2)

God has invited us (called us) to come and see His glory! According to Peter, this same God will complete, securely set, strengthen, and firmly place us after we have suffered a little.”

God will not stop His work until He has absolutely completed what He wants to accomplish in us. God will establish our position in Christ, firmly and securely. God will make us spiritually strong. Our position in Christ will be built “on Christ” as we are used by God to build his church of which Christ is the chief cornerstone.

All of this will be done to us when? Peter says, after you have suffered a while. The word translated “a while” is oligon, which literally means “puny in degree or duration.” That is to say, our suffering here under God’s divine providence will be insignificant when compared with what is promised us in eternity.

Application

Though the suffering that you may be undergoing right now seems to be almost more than you can stand, God will use the suffering to bring you to a more Christ-like condition, and He will use it to bring glory to Himself. And … when we reach heaven, we will look back on the suffering and say, “Now, that wasn’t so bad after all!”

In God's service, for His glory,

Ephesians 3:16 – Prayer of Strength

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Will

Ephesians 3:16 – Prayer of Strength

that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man,

Truth to Learn

The Apostle Paul prayed for strength for us in our time of need.

Behind the Words

“He would grant” is from the verb didōmi, meaning “to give.” It is expressed here in the subjunctive mood, indicating the possibility of this occurring.

The expression “riches of His glory” is a reference to the wealth of goodness that God possesses.

The words “to be strengthened” are translated from the verb krataioō, which means “to increase in strength and power.”

“With might” is from dunamis (from which we get our English word “dynamite”), meaning “power or might.”

“Inner” is translated from esō, meaning “inside” or “that which is within.”

Meaning Explained

We mentioned in verse fourteen that Paul is bowing in worship to the Father. The particular form of worship here is a prayer for his friends in the church in Ephesus (and by application, for all believers).

This prayer of Paul’s contains five petitions, the first of which is identified here. He prays that we might be strengthened with might. On the surface that appears to be a redundant statement. How else would we be strengthened but with strength or might? It appears that what Paul is asking is that God would strengthen us “with His might.” After all, we have very little strength within ourselves. By ourselves we are no more than sinners on a downhill road to Hell. But – through God’s power and the abundance of His glorious riches, He can strengthen us with His mighty strength.

That this is Paul’s intention is borne out by the next phrase, “through His Spirit.” The way that God gives us some of His strength is through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God’s channel of blessing to us.

In the previous two verses we talked about the “ranking” of the three persons of the Godhead. This is not to say that any one of the three is more important than either of the other two. It’s just that for the purpose of dealing with the finite minds of fallen mankind, they have established a hierarchy. Each one of the three persons performs a necessary function. The Holy Spirit, as mentioned in this verse, is the one who enables God-given abilities within us. He is, in a sense, the conduit through which the power and enabling of God is “fed” to us. Thus, the “gifts of the Spirit” referred to in 1Corinthians and Hebrews, are really gifts of God, but they are given to us through the Holy Spirit.

In today’s verse Paul makes it clear that the strengthening power is not a physical or muscular strengthening. It is an inner strength. It is the inner strength which has allowed Christians throughout history to endure incredible hardships, and it reflects all the glory of God back on Him.

Application

Do you need inner strength to get you through a difficult situation? Rest assured that the Apostle Paul has already asked the Father to give you that strength. He prayed for you!

In God’s service, for His glory,

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