Muhammad Ali was considered arrogant by many people of his day. He once said, “It’s hard to be humble when you’re as great as I am.”
On another occasion, the heavyweight boxer quipped, “A rooster crows only when it sees the light. Put him in the dark and he’ll never crow. I have seen the light and I’m crowing.”
Arrogant? No, not at all, not when we look at Ali’s performance record.
Ali was assured. He knew he had the skills to back up his boasts. He didn’t make hollow threats. He told his opponents he intended to take them down, and he did.
How well founded are our claims to victory over the devil? When we declare success over the evil one, do we have the backing to enforce what we say?
Isaiah 3:18 tells us:
“In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments…”
Judah had boasted in herself, rather than finding her strength in the Lord. Her claims were empty, and God intended to strip them away, leaving Judah exposed before the world to be seen as she really was. God wished to bring his people to him to build them up in his power, to give them a credible basis for boasting. He wanted their performance record to back up their brave words.
We must find our true strength in God.
Isaiah 4:1-2 tells of a people with a changed heart:
“Let us be called by your name…and the fruit of the Earth shall be excellent and comely for them.”
When we toot our own horn, it’s false bravery that will fall aside in the heat of our spiritual battles. When we resound with the voice of the Eternal God, he will back up our shouts of victory, and we will triumph in the end.
When we train with God, we can be assured that our shouts of victory will be more than empty words.
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Code: FGO.G.03.15b.vp.kjv