Author's Note: All previous volumes of this series are here. The first 56 volumes are compiled into the book "Bible Study For Those Who Don't Read The Bible." "Part Two," featuring volumes 57-113, was published in December 2022.
Thanks for joining us for a two-part series on the topic of weakness – a feeling that we've all experienced at one time or another —maybe even daily. The Lord uses weakness to bring us closer to Him. Both the Old and New Testaments have numerous verses that illustrate the concept and how the Lord intervenes to help us glorify Him. Today, we will cover the Old, and next week, the New.
Imagine if people had no weaknesses; they would go about their lives without needing or praying to God. Weakness teaches humility. St. Paul wrote about God's message to him, "My power is made perfect in weakness." Then, from God's power, we derive strength to persevere, overcome, start, finish, or even accept whatever has made us feel weak.
The theme of strength through weakness is prevalent throughout the Bible, but before we dive in, I share a story that illustrates how a Bible verse helped me cope with a traumatic time in my life. Someone I trusted betrayed me and manipulated circumstances to walk away with all of my assets.
During that time, I was on a business trip across the country. After an event, I was alone in my hotel room and feeling very depressed in a downward spiral. There was a Bible in the room, and at that time, the Word of God was somewhat new to me. I forget how I found the passage "when I am weak, I am strong," but I repeated it like a mantra. Through repetition, I felt relief because the Lord made it clear that in my weakness, He would be strong in me and for me.
Now, let's review some Old Testament/Hebrew Bible passages. We will read about men who, despite their weaknesses, were chosen by God because of their strong faith, so that He could use them for specific missions and, ultimately, for His glory. Continually in the Bible, God intentionally chooses weak or flawed individuals who trust in Him to serve as role models.
We begin with Moses, the most influential man in the Old Testament, who is repeatedly referenced in the New Testament. (See Vol. 276 and 277.)
When God called upon Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage, He told Moses how he would perform God's miracles on earth. Moses protested due to a verbal weakness, likely a speech impediment. This passage shows how God resolved Moses' weakness. Today, that same God is ready to help you if you remain faithful to Him. I love this Exodus passage because God chose Moses, and when God chooses you, He does not take no for an answer:
"But Moses said to the Lord, '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.' Then the Lord said to him, '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.'
"But he [Moses] said, 'Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.' Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, 'Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Behold, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth, and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do. He shall speak for you to the people, and he shall be your mouth, and you shall be as God to him. And take in your hand this staff, with which you shall do the signs'" (Exodus 4:10 -17).
So, Aaron became Moses's "communications department." Meanwhile, Moses worked directly with God. With the Almighty's power, Moses performed miracles as needed, without his public speaking or speech weakness interfering with his strategic mission of freeing God's people, receiving the Law, guiding the Israelites through the desert, and leading them to the edge of the Promised Land. (See Vol. 86.)
Rest assured that if God has a mission for you, He will assist you in overcoming any weakness.
At the end of Exodus chapter six and into seven, another situation arose, where God needed to work around Moses's speech weakness and low self-esteem:
"Now when the LORD spoke to Moses in Egypt, he said to him, 'I am the Lord. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt everything I tell you.' But Moses said to the Lord, 'Since I speak with faltering lips, why would Pharaoh listen to me?' Then the Lord said to Moses, 'See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. You are to say everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his country'" (Exodus 6:28-30; 7:1-2).
Now we turn to young David. He was small and weak compared to the giant Goliath. However, David's faith made him strong and fearless. Again, when God wants to elevate you for His glory, no weaknesses — physical, mental, circumstantial, or spiritual — stand in God's way. Goliath mocked David, who bravely responded:
"You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head… all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear" (1 Samuel 17:45-47). Yikes! That is how faith overcomes weakness. Also note that "the Lord saves not with sword and spear" is a Messianic prophecy.
We conclude with a famous Isaiah passage that summarizes weakness as an opportunity for the Almighty God to intervene:
"Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. 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 40:28-31).
If today you are feeling weak for any reason, I pray that these passages have uplifted you with hope, trust in, and love for Almighty God. He WILL deliver you because:
"For when I am weak, I am strong."
Join us next week to study New Testament passages that show how Jesus embodied both strength and weakness. Then, we will review Paul's writings, which are among the most profound, memorable, and practical on the theology of weakness.
Myra Kahn Adams is a conservative political and religious writer. Her book "Bible Study For Those Who Don't Read The Bible" reprints the first 56 volumes of this popular study. "Part 2," reprints Vols. 57 –113. Order it here.
She is also the Executive Director of the National Shroud of Turin Exhibit. You can join our new effort in Orlando, Florida. Contact: Myraadams01@gmail.com
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