Isa 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up
with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary;
and they shall walk,
and not faint.
This is a very
expressive term and most helpful. To renew strength really means to
exchange strength.
It is the same term used when speaking of a change of garments. They
shall lay aside
their strength, and put on, as a garment, strength from God. How suggestive!
How
needed this is on
the part of Christians today. Many feel that they are strong and may boast of
it.
And so indeed they
are in the sphere of the natural, but it is a strength which utterly breaks
down
in the sphere of the
Christian’s life. Our great need is to rid ourselves of self-strength that God
may
clothe us with His
own strength. And that is the first blessing promised to those who wait upon
God. Did you ever
notice the whole fortieth chapter of Isaiah is a series of contrasts between
the
frailty and
feebleness of man and the strength and greatness of God? “All flesh is
grass—but the
word of our God
shall endure forever.” “It is He that sitteth upon the circle of the earth—and
the
inhabitants thereof
are as grasshoppers.”
While praying over
this idea of exchanging strength, I wondered why it should be necessary to
exchange so many
times. The Lord made me see that it was because of normal growth in the
spiritual; just the
same as growth in the natural necessitates the changing of garments. Have we
not
all noticed a young
boy—how he outgrows his clothes so soon and sometimes needs to exchange
a suit before it is
really worn out? It is not a question of the suit being worn or shabby as much
as
it is a question of
growth. So in our Christian development, we need many changes of garments
(spiritually
speaking). Many experiences, blessings and manifestations, which served
beautifully
at one time in our
Christian development utterly come short now. Owing to a deepening in God
and greater room
being made in our hearts, the demand comes for more of God, an exchange of
garments, and a
fuller revelation of His Spirit. It is not a sign that we have out-grown God or
worn
out His
blessing—that is foolish. It is a sign that as healthy, normal Christians we
are growing and
that God desires to
reclothe us with fresh blessings, fresh experiences, fresh touches and
manifestations. He
is rich; His wardrobe is full. Let us trust Him to clothe us anew.
