Strength on the Inside.

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“…that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man…” —Ephesians 3:16 Have you noticed how so often we pray for material things and physical things? And that’s fine because God wants us to pray about those things that we’re interested in, and we can certainly come with our requests and our needs to the Lord whether they’re physical or material. But we’re not to spend all of our time praying for material and physical things, but rather we ought to be praying for spiritual things, praying for the inner man, praying for strength on the inside. I’m talking about strength of character. Have you discovered the fact that the Christian life is impossible? In your own strength it is impossible. We are totally inadequate to live this life on our own. I can’t do it, and neither can you. But we are to be a channel of God’s blessing to the world. We are indwelt by the Spirit of God. This verse tells us that we have all the riches of Jesus, and we can be strengthened by the Spirit in the inner man, the Spirit of God. The Spirit of Jesus Christ lives in you and He wants to reproduce and to release His life through you. The Christian life is Christ in you, the hope of glory!

Grace in Severe Trials

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”

Acts 7:57–60

Joseph Parker, a powerful preacher and contemporary of Charles Spurgeon, spent a great deal of time, especially in his younger years, speaking in public parks and gathering places, presenting the gospel to atheists and skeptics who gathered to discuss the topics of the day. Once he was confronted by an infidel who shouted at him, “What did Christ do for Stephen when he was stoned?” Parker responded, “He gave him grace to pray for those who stoned him.”

God’s grace does not always deliver us from the suffering of trials. Some of the greatest Christians in history endured great hardship and persecution, and multiplied thousands have perished for their faith. What grace does, however, is overcome the hardship, so that we endure with faith and in our darkest moments are an unmistakable witness to the world. It is not by accident that the Bible tells us Saul was present at Stephen’s death. The attitude Saul saw displayed by the dying martyr helped prepare his heart to receive Christ.

Just as Jesus on the cross asked the Father to forgive those who were killing Him, Stephen sought God’s mercy on his unjust murderers. Most of us will not face that ultimate test, but we all endure physical, emotional, and spiritual trials. And for every trial, God’s grace is sufficient if we apply it and allow it to govern our responses.

Today’s Growth Principle: 

Rather than asking God for ease and comfort, we should ask for grace to reflect Jesus in our trials.