“Thy God hath commanded thy strength: strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.” (Ps 68:28 AV)
The first phrase caught my attention this morning. As is my custom, I check with the ancients to see what their view is. Putting them all together, the ‘thy’ is the strength that Israel possesses at present. The Psalmist then seeks the LORD to strengthen them beyond what they possess to what they need so that the will of God is accomplished. In other words, the LORD has made Israel strong by decree and action. He has grown them numerically, spiritually, and with the ability to conduct themselves in pursuit of God’s commands. With the LORD commands the strength of Israel, in essence, He is telling Israel to fall out. He is calling them to inspection at their full strength. He is demanding they do all they can do as the LORD had presently strengthened them. The troops are to stand ready, equipped as the LORD has provided, prepared to fight the battle before them. The LORD demands Israel to come with all they have at the front of the line and submit to what the LORD would direct. The second verse is complimentary. That is, even in our full strength, the battle is too much. So, the writer seeks God to strengthen them even more than they are at present so victory would result. Herein is a principle. We cannot ask the LORD for more strength if we are unwilling to give that which we have. All of it.
There is a saying that is attributed to the Bible but is not really in there. “God helps those who help themselves.” Have you ever heard that one? Other than quoting this as if it is a verse in the bible is that God often helps those who do not, or cannot, help themselves. Sometimes, the grace of God comes upon us whether we seek it or not. It rains on the just and the unjust. God does not always demand we expel our full strength. Just think of Jericho. The children of Israel marched around the city walls for seven days and the LORD made the walls collapse. Or, when the LORD asks the cripple man at the pool of Bethesda if he really wanted to be made whole. That fella clearly did not expend all of his strength and resources. But there are times when the LORD does intervene when we have nothing left. Remember the lady who was sick with the issue of blood for fourteen years? She spent all her living trying to find a cure. Or, how many times did the LORD cure those who were by the roadside begging? They spent every day, all day, begging for alms. They did all they could.
In our passage above, the LORD asks for troop assembly. In fact, He commands it. The LORD wants one-hundred percent commitment on their part before He will strengthen them more than they already are. The question is, do the circumstances we face at present require our full commitment? And, if it does, are we fully committed? It is way too easy to sit back and ask the LORD to do it all for us. Is the whole person, abilities, and resources, at the front line standing for inspection and ready to march? Or, do we hold a little back and ask the LORD to make up the difference? Is our all on the altar? Are we fully in? Or, do we sit there like Israel did for 40 years and ask the LORD to do everything? Perhaps this was the moment Israel finally matured. They have been cared for in Egypt by a nation that enslaved them. God delivered them and all they could do was to demand God care for them as Egypt did. They couldn’t handle liberty because liberty demands faith. When we are in a fix and we seek the strength of the LORD, we have better be willing to come with all we have before we ask. We have better expel all that God has already given before we ask for more. God commands our strength. But He will not limit us to what He has already given. A willingness to use what He has given opens the door for more!
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