Strength to Strength

I lead four exercise classes during the week here at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in what I call the F.I.T. (Faithful In Training) Program.  These classes consist of core training, medicine ball work, fight training, self-defense, sport training and flexibility.  Never in all of my years of fitness training and coaching have I seen someone go from “strength to strength” during a workout as the psalmist writes in Psalm 84:7.  It is simply a natural result of physical work that one ultimately goes from strength to weakness.  So what can the psalmist mean when he says the experience of every child of God is to go through this life from strength to strength? 

I think the answer is clear.  It is grace for the race.  The Christian united by faith to Christ is continually given fresh supplies of grace to make consistent progress in the race God has set before him.  That is why we hear countless stories about Christian pilgrims who have been walking with our Lord for decades who have as much zeal, enthusiasm and vigor at the end of their race as they did when they first began, if not more.  Older…yes.  Physically weaker…yes.  To be sure, the years of toilsome travel over rough terrain have taken its toll on these pilgrims passing through.  Yet, they have gone from “strength to strength” because they understood the psalmist to be suggesting progress…not perfection.  This was a source of great strength to them because they knew that everything they did, they did imperfectly.  They…

• Worshipped imperfectly
• Witnessed imperfectly
• Walked imperfectly
• Prayed imperfectly
• Served imperfectly
• Loved imperfectly

With all of this imperfection, falling short and missing the mark, how can someone truly go from “strength to strength” on this side of the grave?  In a word…the CROSS.  The perfection of the cross covers all of our imperfection.  His perfection…our pardon.  His perfection…our patience.  His perfection…our persistence.  His perfection…our power.  His perfection…our protection.  His perfection…our  peace.  His perfection…our promotion.  His perfection…our position.

Because of our position of being united to Christ, we already have everything we need to live the life God is calling us to live.  This is the good news of the Gospel that we would go from “strength to strength” until we go into glory.  NEVER FORGET THAT…AMEN!