Proverbs 24:5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge
increaseth strength. 6 For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in
multitude of counsellors there is safety.
John Gill points out that you can sometimes do
by wisdom and strength what strength alone won’t accomplish.
Ecclesiastes 9:13 ¶ This wisdom have I seen
also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me: 14 There was a little city,
and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it,
and built great bulwarks against it: 15 Now there was found in it a poor wise
man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same
poor man. 16 Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor
man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard. 17 The words of wise men
are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. 18 Wisdom
is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good.
Gill goes on to say that with the knowledge of
Christ and growing closer and closer to Him one should grow stronger and
stronger.
Seek out the wise counsel of the Bible to wage
spiritual war against sin and wickedness in your life. Cross reference verse by
verse and seek out a multitude of counselors.
Matthew Henry says that as you grow in the
knowledge of Christ you grow in grace.
2Peter 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and
for ever. Amen.
Colossians 1:9 ¶ For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not
cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge
of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 That ye might walk
worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and
increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 Strengthened with all might, according
to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;
In the Bible, the Holy Spirit uses images of war
to relate to our struggle in the spiritual world. In fact, the Christians
warfare is not carnal or of the flesh. We are not to wage war with weapons like
the world does…
2 Corinthians 10:4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not
carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting
down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the
knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of
Christ;
…. but with the sword of the Spirit, which are
the words of God, and prayer, with God speaking to you through it and you
speaking to God.
Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto
with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
Again, as a sword that wages war spiritually…
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick,
and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the
dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
The more victory you have over sin the more
Satan wants to crush you. As you draw closer to God in Christ through His words
in this Book you will find defeat on the side of you that must live in the
world. Job loss, heartbreak, grief, bankruptcy, friendlessness, disease,
accidents, and alienation from those you love can come at any time and for many
reasons; some of which are your fault and some of which are not. As the Lord
gives you more and more of Him the world has less and less use for you. Waging
this spiritual war becomes more difficult in the flesh because of the demands
of the flesh. But, you aren’t supposed to war in the flesh.
It’s hard to imagine yourself having victory when you are
unemployed and the only options that seem to be available to you are jobs that
won’t support anyone living outside of a lean-to in the woods. It’s hard to
imagine victory when your every concern for others is tainted by your own
personality defects and fear. It’s hard to imagine victory when you can’t even
support yourself much less those who depend on you. It’s hard to imagine
victory when you’re sick, growing older and weaker, and struggling with the
flesh’s eventual downfall.
But, it’s in those times when victory is at
hand, nearby, and just ahead. When you step back from your trials, which may be
90% your own fault from past sinfulness and years of wrong thinking, or you may
be a casualty of a changing world and your growing older. But, when you step
back from your trials and tribulations and examine yourself spiritually you may
find that you are growing closer to God, that you are hungering more for the
things of God as the things of the world grow dimmer and dimmer. You may find
that victory is in your grasp because God is handing it to you. He has won the
victory for you, changing your attitude toward sin and self.
You might find, as you wage this war of the
soul, that a wise man or woman is strong and a man or woman of knowledge
increases their strength, that with Christ’s wisdom you can win this war and
with the over 31,000 verses in HIS Bible you have an abundance of counselors
and that by just reading it and hearing it read and preached He will speak to
you about things that have no relation to the list of names in 1st Chronicles
or the construction of the tabernacle in Exodus, but by the reading of God’s
very words, believing, and submitting to them God will give you the war, the
victory won in Christ.
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