from Pleasant Grove Baptist Church http://bit.ly/2UTUi83
via IFTTT Where did Saul find this strength? Consider Moses. Raised in the palaces of Egyptian royalty, educated in the best schools, trained in the skills of the greatest nation on Earth. And yet, when Moses finally sought to help his oppressed kindred, he was powerless. He was scared. He gave up and ran. Moses found his strength after 40 years as a Shepherd in the desert, at the face of a burning bush and God's voice. Saul, followed a very similar path. Born a jew, raised in the church, taught by the best scholars of the Bible, trained by the peak of church leadership, and Saul persecuted Jesus. He found strength on a lonely road facing the light of Christ and the voice of God. Seclusion, hardship, light. Those are the hallmarks of finding strength. The education of Moses and Saul was the best of the best, yet both men were useless at best, dangerous at worst. These men enjoyed all that earthly wisdom had to offer and it accomplished nothing. It's Jesus. Falling facedown in the light of Christ, the righteousness of God. Being filled with the Holy Spirit inside and out. Walking in communion with God, the source of all truth. Jesus. So often we seek strength through other means. We seek wisdom from other sources. We drink from the well of man, instead of the living Waters of Jesus. Why? Pride. The fundamental sin of man since the garden of Eden is still seeking to be like God, through our own means. Evil. Satan proclaimed "you will be as God, knowing good and evil" and we listened, and we listen still. Tempted of our own evil desires to be someone, gain authority and power. Evil. We charge out in search of that forbidden fruit that can make us like God... Without God. The answer? The cure? Meet Jesus. Face the light of Christ. Allow yourself to fall to the ground in His presence and be blinded to the world, cast into the desert to find the burning bush. Strength is not found in man, not in education, not in books, not even in the bible alone. Wait.. what? Not in the Bible? Saul studied deeply the exact same Buble that Jesus preached from, the Bible that you and I read today, and still Saul persecuted Jesus, murdered the saints. The Bible alone will not save you, will not strengthen you. Remember Satan knows the scriptures inside and out and is still condemned and evil. Jesus said to "wait until you are clothed with power from on high". And on the day that happened there was tongues of fire. The burning bush, the light of Christ. There in is strength. Then and only then can we become warriors for Christ, witnesses of the greatest story since the creation. Strength, wisdom, truth, life all comes from meeting Jesus, in person, and being filled with His presence. Then and only then can all the education and training we have had become useful. Only the wisdom of the Holy Spirit can bring truth to the scriptures we read. It's all Jesus. Seek Him first, and live in strength.
