Where Are All His Wonderful Deeds

“The angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valour.’ And Gideon said to him, ‘Please, sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, “Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?” But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.’ And the Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?’” [1]

God is a God of might and power. We are taught that His saints “shall speak of the glory of [God’s] kingdom and tell of [His] power” [PSALM 145:11]. Have you witnessed His power? The Psalmist asserts that “One generation shall commend [God’s] works to another, and shall declare [His] might acts” [PSALM 145:4]. Can you tell your children of the might of the Lord our God? When you speak of God, do you speak from experience, or is His might and power merely a rumour so far as you are concerned? Are you able to speak authoritatively of God’s power? Or is it the case that God’s power is a historical event never to be repeated in this day?

Gideon was a man who had heard of God’s power and majesty, but he had never witnessed that glorious might. It was an ordinary day, not unlike any other day during the harvest. The people of the nation were hiding in caves and secreted in strongholds throughout the Judean hills; they were trying to preserve what little grain they had managed to garner. The Midianites and the Amalekites were ranging throughout the land, stealing whatever they found and terrorising the populace.

At that time, the people of God began to cry out to God, confessing their sin and seeking His deliverance. God is so gracious. He heard their petitions and their confessions, and He sent a prophet. The people wanted deliverance, and God sent a prophet. The ministry of the prophet has never been appreciated—it isn’t appreciated in this day. This man of God, when he came, spoke pointedly to the sin of the people. “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage. And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. And I said to you, “I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.” But you have not obeyed my voice” [JUDGES 6:8b-10].

That doesn’t seem like much, does it? The people were ravished by the enemies of God. They recognised their sin and acknowledged their wickedness. Yet, when God finally heard them, He sent a prophet to say, “I told you so.” We want relief; God wants holiness. We want deliverance; God wants purity. Don’t ever discount the ministry of the prophet. Though he will stand before the people of God, look them in the eye and say, “I warned you,” his stern message is the beginning of divine deliverance.

Until the people of God recognise the horror of their sin, God will never demonstrate His might and majesty—He will not expend His power to deliver those who ignore Him and who live as though He was of no importance. Until the people of God realise that their wickedness is utterly offensive, God will never reveal His power to renew His work. How awful are the words of the Wise Man:

“Because I have called and you refused to listen,

have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded,

because you have ignored all my counsel

and would have none of my reproof,

I also will laugh at your calamity;

I will mock when terror strikes you,

when terror strikes you like a storm

and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,

when distress and anguish come upon you.

Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;

they will seek me diligently but will not find me.

Because they hated knowledge

and did not choose the fear of the LORD,

would have none of my counsel

and despised all my reproof,

therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way,

and have their fill of their own devices.”

[PROVERBS 1:24-31]

The account in the text for this day corresponds to the condition existing among the churches of this day and in our nation. The people of God in that day when God called Gideon are analogous to the people of God in this day. Modern-day Amalekites and Midianites have ravaged the landscape. They repudiate righteousness, ridicule the Faith and resist the Spirit of God.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is not the enemy of Christians; but decisions rendered by that court reflect a disturbing trend within American society. The Congress and the Senate of the United States is not opposed to the Christian Faith; but past legislation has ensured that the Faith is increasingly relegated to a sort of religious ghetto. The State of California is not determined to extirpate the Christian Faith, but Christians have permitted themselves to be restrained.

What is true of our neighbours to the south is equally true for us in the Dominion of Canada. The Christians of this nation have permitted themselves to be reduced to an increasingly ineffective minority within society; and this despite the deafening silence of those of the Faith. Whether one should speak of the Supreme Court of British Columbia or the Supreme Court of Canada, the bent of the justice system is to stifle the Faith. It is not intentional; but it is done nevertheless. Whether we speak of the various provincial legislatures or the Parliament, legislation tends toward restricting the Faith in favour of the new morality. Christians have responded to the demands of an agnostic minority with either an attitude which is best described as blasé or they are attempting to respond through an unconscious effort to unite church and state.

Do not assume that I am suggesting that the Christian should not participate in the political process—Christians should invest themselves in the direction of their country. I certainly am not suggesting that the child of God should not vote for those who share our common moral view. Neither am I suggesting that the Christian should be unaware of the positions advocated by those who are sent to drink the waters of the Ottawa River. Christians should not be a silent people, refusing to tell our various civic representatives about our views and the moral/ethical positions that are vital to us. I do say that we should not expect political power to bring in the Millennium or to usher in a day of peace. The movement in the past several decades have promoted—deliberately or by default—the idea that we will transform our world through political processes. Political processes are contaminated by our own sinful nature; we dare not rely upon political solutions.

I do, however, say that the people of this day must pray. Oppression brings repentance. When oppressed, the people of God cry out to the Lord God of Heaven. I am not quite certain that the Canadian people have reached the nadir of oppression. The Christians of this day are still crying out to the Baals of political leadership; they are still worshipping at the high places of political organisation. Soon, however, I pray that a few, perhaps a few in this place, will begin to cry out to Holy God. Confessing our sin of depending upon the vote and confessing our sin of depending upon the power of Parliament, confessing our sin of surrendering to despair and turning to Holy God we will discover His power and learn that He alone is able to deliver His people.

I do find hope in this passage—hope based, not upon a man, however gifted that individual might be but hope founded on the True and Living God. No mere mortal came to Gideon; the angel of the LORD came to him. Throughout the pages of the Old Covenant, this shadowy figure appears from time-to-time. What is fascinating is that this individual appropriates to Himself divine attributes. Many theologians have concluded that this is a theophany, an appearance of the Christ before His incarnation. [2]

When He appeared to Gideon, this individual first stated that the LORD was with Gideon. Gideon expressed his doubt as to the veracity of that statement with this curt question. “If the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?” The implication of his first question is that God would not have permitted such distress to come upon His people. Readers of this Book will recall that it was precisely because God was God that these distressing times had come upon the people. This same angel of the LORD had appeared to the people and delivered a message which is recorded in JUDGES 2:1-3. Listen to that message. “I brought you up from Egypt and brought you into the land that I swore to give to your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done? So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, but they shall become thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you.”

Take special note of the fact that this angel appropriates to Himself the authority of God. The Angel of the Lord had brought the people up from Egypt. The Angel of the Lord had sworn to give them the land they now lived in. The Angel of the Lord had made a covenant with the forefathers of the people. This individual now called them to account to Himself.

Gideon posed a second question. “Where are all [the] wonderful deeds [attributed to God]?” Gideon knew of these deeds because he had heard of them from his fathers. He had heard how the LORD had led His people out of Egypt. He had heard how the sea parted, permitting the people to cross dry-shod. He heard of the manna in the wilderness, and how the shoes of the desert wanderers did not wear out. He had heard of all these things, but he had never witnessed them.

Gideon was not dissimilar from the first generation of Christians, of whom the unknown writer stated, “We must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will” [HEBREWS 2:1-4].

Gideon knew that wonderful deeds had been performed in prior generations, just as the author of the Hebrew Letter knew that God had worked mightily in previous generations. In a similar manner, some of you have heard of the power and majesty of God revealed through His holy people in days past. The testimony of others is that God is powerful, but the all the evidence available to you is second-hand.

Perhaps you, like the saints to whom the Hebrew letter was addressed, or perhaps as Gideon Himself, are moved to ask, “Where are all His wonderful deeds?” Explore that question with me in this message and permit your mind to carry you to a place where God displays His majesty in power and reveals His majestic might.

THE GOD WHO SENDS KNOWS OUR CAPABILITIES — “The angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valour.’”

Let me establish a few truths for you who hear this message. First, God knows our abilities and our capabilities. As I read the words of the Living Saviour to the Churches of Asia as recorded in the Apocalypse, I am struck by our Lord’s knowledge of His people. Note how the Risen Son of God emphasises His knowledge of His people—He notes their strengths and their weaknesses.

To the angel of the church in Ephesus, Christ says, “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false” [REVELATION 2:2].

To the messenger of the church in Smyrna, the Risen Son of God says, “I know your tribulation and your poverty” [REVELATION 2:9].

To the Pergamum angel, the Alpha and the Omega says, “I know where you dwell” [REVELATION 2:13].

To the church in Thyatira, the Lord states, “I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first” [REVELATION 2:19].

To the angel of the church in Sardis, the Risen Saviour cautions, “I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead” [REVELATION 3:1].

To the Philadelphian church, the Living Christ says, “I know your works” [REVELATION 3:8].

To the Laodicean angel, Christ warns, “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot” [REVELATION 3:15]!

This series of statements gives comfort to the humble saint and stirs the complacent to consider how she may bestir herself. God knows what we are capable of doing, though we ourselves are not always capable of knowing what could happen were we to permit God’s mighty power to work through us.

This we know, God sends us. The Lord’s last command, issued to His marvelling followers, was, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” [MATTHEW 28:19, 20]. As Christians, purchased by the blood of God’s own Son, you have received one great command which is incumbent upon each professing child of God. That command is to go, making disciples as you go.

What excuse do you give for failing to go? Have you ever won a soul to faith in the Risen Son of God? Have you ever made an effort to turn another to faith in Christ the Lord of Glory? Have you ever spent a sleepless night, weeping over the lost condition of a family member or a friend? By the mercies of Christ, I plead with you to “Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame” [1 CORINTHIANS 15:34].

There is a truth here which is vital to your understanding. God did not say to Gideon, “The LORD is with you all.” He said, “The LORD is with you, Gideon.” The True and Living God is with the man who dares serve Him. I cannot help but think that the Lord God is speaking to some of you as individuals even during this message. You are hoping that God will speak to the entire church—and on occasion He does so speak. However, I must believe that He is speaking to individuals at this time. A great truth states that God changes the course of history with minorities, not with majorities.

Some who listen to this message will contend that they are unable to tell another of the great salvation which they have received. If you are able to tell another where you can find the freshest produce for cooking, you are able to tell another where to find life. Perhaps we would do well to hear again the words which the Living God spoke to Moses when that great man of God was first called to service.

You will no doubt remember that God assigned Moses a mission to confront Pharaoh, telling him to let God’s people go. Pharaoh was the most powerful leader in the world at that time. His word could mean life, or it could mean death. When he spoke, a nation trembled. However, God revealed His Name to Moses, so that the people would know that the words spoken were indeed those given by the True and Living God. God gave Moses great and mighty signs to perform in the presence of Pharaoh. Still, Moses resisted the command of God. He demurred, excusing himself because he wasn’t eloquent. “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.”

Is that your excuse? Do you imagine you are incapable of soaring rhetoric? Listen to how the Lord responds. “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak” [EXODUS 4:10-12].

Dear saints, God is seeks neither eloquence, adulation from the inhabitants of this dying world nor human power to awe sinners or great wealth. God seeks willing hearts that are small enough to be little in their own eyes so that He may be magnified before the world. He desires to accomplish great things through you. “The Lord is with you.”

Has not God promised? We serve “Immanuel—God with us” [MATTHEW 1:23]. Our Master has promised that where two or three are gathered in His Name, He is with us [MATTHEW 18:20]. Wherever the servant of Christ is found, there is the Master. If you are but willing to serve, you may be assured that He is with you [JOHN 12:26].

Did not the Son of God pray for us? “The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” [JOHN 17:22-24].

The Risen Christ appeared to His Apostle in Corinth, encouraging him to stay the course. “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people” [ACTS 18:9, 10]. If God had many people in ancient Corinth—and He did—do you not imagine that He also has many people in this Peace Region? In the Lower Mainland? In the Calgary Region? I know that if we go, many will come.

THE GOD WHO SENDS STIRS OUR SENSE OF HISTORY — “Gideon said to him, ‘Please, sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, “Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?” But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.’”

A little girl listened as her grandmother read from the Bible. The grandmother read about God and the repeated demonstrations of His mighty power, when the child blurted out, “God was a lot more active back then, wasn’t He, grandma?” Perhaps we feel that way! I suspect that many of us can relate to Gideon’s doubt. We look back and wonder why we do not see the great days of mighty men such as Spurgeon and Moody and Sunday.

The Angel of the LORD, revealed in the text to be the LORD Himself, appeared to Gideon. When He greeted the woodcutter (for that is implied by his name), Gideon was almost rude in his answer. “Excuse me! Excuse me! If the LORD is with us, why is this happening, as you can clearly see?”

Gideon recalled the narrations concerning an era which seemed almost mystical to him; those past glories could never be connected to the situation in which Israel then existed. He looked back, recalling the slaves that freed from Egyptian bondage and led out under Moses’ leadership. God, through Moses, had confronted the gods of Egypt, and He had bested them in each round of a ten-round match. Every god was defeated.

God had parted the Red Sea, permitting His people to cross over without even wetting the soles of their feet. He had fed them in the desert—manna, and then quail when they complained about the grain of heaven. Their clothing did not wear out and they had water that flowed from the rock according to Moses’ word. God had repeatedly judged the wicked among them. This He had done immediately and in powerful demonstration of His holiness.

When Moses had at last completed the tasks to which God had appointed him, God raised up new leaders who brought the people into the Promised Land. Joshua had directed the priests to march into the flooding Jordan River. As the soles of their feet touched the raging waters, the river parted and permitted the people to cross over just as they had passed through the Red Sea forty years earlier. Great nations were defeated before Israel and God had demonstrated His might and power on behalf of His people as He stayed the sun in its course and as He collapsed the walls of cities.

Years had passed, however, and Israel was in desperate straits. Gideon was reduced to beating a few baskets of wheat with a stick in his fear of the enemies of God. Does God have a sense of humour? The manner in which He addressed Gideon would indicate that God was almost mocking the scared man. God called Gideon “a mighty man of valour.” The word speaks of a great warrior marching resolutely into the teeth of combat. That was precisely what Gideon was not doing.

God, however, saw what Gideon could become, and not what he was. God always works that way with the one He chooses. He renames a ninety-nine year-old man, changing his name from Abram to Abraham—“father of a multitude.” By God’s power, Abraham has a son—Isaac. An impetuous, unstable and emotional man is brought to Jesus. Immediately, the Master says, “So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas”—Rock [JOHN 1:42]. Thus, Peter is transformed into a pillar for the early church. There lingers always this singular memory of what once was as God reveals that He is the God of the present.

The angel of the Lord in so many words said to Gideon, “Gideon, I know what you are. I know the circumstances in which you now labour. But I also know your potential, because I am with you.”

There is a parable here of contemporary churches. Broken and defeated before the forces of wickedness which have ravaged the land, God is with us. The world knows our flaws and our failings, just as we know each of our failures. However, God looks beyond what we are and calls us to become what He wills. Are there within this congregation no men willing to defy logic and become great soul-winners? Has God ceased calling woman to win others to the Faith of Christ the Lord? Are all the teenagers so enmeshed by the snares of this fallen world that they are unwilling to permit God to work through them? Oh, that we would cry out, “Where are all His Wonderful Deeds?”

It pleased God during the past thirty-four years for my ministry to be conducted in broken churches. First, I served a church which had dwindled to five people. The next congregation was massive—it had fifty-five people. Then, I started a church in the living room of our family home. We had thirteen people unite for that first service of worship. Next, I was privileged to serve a multicultural congregation which had perhaps seventy people and conducted services in Mandarin, Cantonese and Texan. From there, I journeyed to two broken churches divided by the border between two provinces. The largest of those congregations had thirty members. Then I went to a church in northern British Columbia; there were about thirty-five members left. Finally, I started another congregation in the living room of our family home. Most of these churches were broken and splintered—ready to shut the doors and cease ministering to their respective communities. Churches started in our home began with broken and wounded Christians. God worked marvellously and most of them are still growing and thriving today. The first need was for people to discover that God is God of the living.

Read again the marvellous promise of the Son of God. “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it” [JOHN 14:12-14]. This promise is given to you, to me, to us.

Were souls saved in the days Jesus walked this earth? The natural corollary is to ask who you have led to faith this week. Were disheartened saints encouraged through the ministry of Jesus? Then, who is stronger in the Faith because of your ministry this past month? Our children know the words to every rap song playing on the radio, but they are ignorant of the Shepherd’s Psalm and ignorant of the Shepherd. They grind to the pounding beat of salacious and violent songs? However, these same children no longer know the words to “The Old Rugged Cross.” We wonder why they live like the devil and we are helpless to change anything. Do we believe Jesus? He has promised His children, “Whatever you ask in My Name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My Name, I will do it” [JOHN 14:13, 14]!

I challenge the people of God to return to a day when the churches had power, when our children were saved, when sinners were convicted and sought salvation with many tears, when each believer was a valiant witness for the cause of Christ, and when the glory of the Lord was among His people each time they met.

THE GOD WHO SENDS EQUIPS US TO SUCCEED — “The LORD turned to him and said, ‘Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?’”

Never does God send except He equips the one sent to succeed. Perhaps one of the difficulties we have is that we endeavour to measure success according to the standard of this fallen world. It seemed it was through a message from the Messenger of the Lord that Gideon received a call to attack the enemies of the people of God. However, God drops the veil in this text, and “the LORD turned to” Gideon. Gideon thought he was dealing with a messenger, but all along the LORD was speaking with him.

Is that the way it is with you? As the message has been delivered, you have been interacting within your mind. You hear the challenge and still you have resisted, attempted to evade, dragged your heels. Is it possible that all along the Spirit of the Lord has been speaking to your heart? Can it be that God has chosen to use this messenger and this message to seize your attention?

Some years ago, as I laboured preparing a message, a delightful young mother of three phoned my office. Upon answering the phone, she immediately asked me a question. “Pastor, how is your prayer life going?”

How many people have come up to you during the past week and asked about your prayer life? I am probably not far off the mark to say that this is a rare occurrence for you. You need to understand that I encourage my people to ask me about my devotion time and my prayer life.

When I confessed that it was not what it should be, she asked, “Why not?”

Again, I was compelled to admit that I was simply too busy.

At this point, the young mother said, “You cannot control the demands on your time, but you can control what you give your attention to. We look to you for guidance; and whether it is right or wrong, most of us look to you for spiritual strength. You are no stronger than your time with Christ.”

Isn’t that wonderful? What a ministry to a tired pastor this young mother provided! Before she had hung up the phone, the young lady said one more thing to me which I needed to hear. “You need to remember, Pastor, God does not make junk.” She expected me to succeed in the ministry to which God appointed me. She was looking for success for all in attendance at our services. Isn’t that wonderful?

Consequently, have you ever asked your pastor how his prayer life was going? Did you ever ask your pastor what he was reading during his devotion time? Try it sometime. He’ll thank you, right after he picks himself up from the floor.

We live in a wicked day. Governments, both federal and provincial, have yielded to the demand to redefine marriage. Courts in multiple American jurisdictions have concluded that they have authority to redefine marriage and the United States Supreme Court seems headed in the same direction. City governments seek to regulate churches out of existence, and it seems that the majority of the citizens silently permit it to happen. Senators and parliamentarians condemn the few godly men who dare speak out to warn of the threats posed by Islamism. Urged on by a lawless administration, America has become a world leader in the slaughter of the unborn, and the churches can only mount a noisy march once a year in protest. We rush to protect the right to take one’s own life and to slaughter the unborn here in Canada. We exalt immorality in song and make raw sex a form of personal entertainment. And the churches remain silent about this plague. Divorce is the preferred means of making marriage work. Denominations congratulate themselves when they grow by so much as one percent per annum, although the population continues to grow at more than two percent per annum.

We need individuals to stand firm now. We need a godly man to stand and say, “That is enough.” We need godly women who will take a stand within their home and say, “That is enough.” We need mothers and dads who will insist that their children join them in prayer and join them in reading the Word of God and join them in worship of the True and Living God.

Instead of appealing to the system developed from within this fallen world, we need to again believe the Word of God and obey the Living Word. Until we win people to the Faith—one at a time—there is no hope that this nation can be turned from destruction. Perhaps you do not have a voice which is heard in the precincts of government—whether provincial or federal. You do, however, have influence with one someone who does know you. If each of us who name the Name of Christ were to give ourselves to win that one and equip that one to win one other, we could change the moral path of this nation.

We need godly pastors who dare preach the whole counsel of God, but we also need godly parishioners who welcome the whole counsel of God. We need godly preachers who dare go beyond the elementary truths of the Word of God—repentance from dead works, faith toward God, baptism and the resurrection of the dead. We need preachers who will teach us how to live, and we need church members who will receive the teaching, putting it into daily practise in their own lives.

There needs to be some mothers who will pray for their daughters, saying “Amen” by refusing to permit them to dress as though they were common trollops and who teach them that their bodies are to be reserved for their husbands when they marry. There needs to be some fathers who will model righteousness for their sons and who refuse to permit their sons to go to hell simply because “everybody is doing it.”

When did you last pray as a family? When did you last read the Word of God together as a family? When did you last sit together as a family during the worship of Almighty God? There is the heart of the problem for our day!

This, then, is the invitation. Men, God is looking for just a handful of men who will resolve to live godly lives, witnessing to all who will receive their testimony and turning some to righteousness. Will you be one of those men?

Ladies, God is looking for a few godly women who dare live holy lives and refuse to make concessions to evil. Even now Holy God is calling, and as He calls He promises to give His strength to each one who goes.

As surely as the LORD spoke to Gideon, so He now speaks to the people of this congregation. “Go in this might of yours and save Canada from the hand of the wicked; do not I send you.”

Here is a promise for your journey.

“He gives power to the faint,

and to him who has no might he increases strength.

Even youths shall faint and be weary,

and young men shall fall exhausted;

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings like eagles;

they shall run and not be weary;

they shall walk and not faint.”

[ISAIAH 40:29-31]

Amen.

[1]Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version  2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

[2]see G. B. Funderburk, Angel (article) in Merrill C. Tenney, Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI 1975, 1976) 160