God looks for opportunities to show Himself strong in the lives of His saints. This is true both historically and in the lives of His people living today.
God works in mysterious ways! At times, in order to bring about His desired plan in the lives of His own people, the Lord strengthens the hands of His enemies.
Perceived strength can be one’s own worst enemy. After all, it leads people to think that they are more powerful and capable than they really are.
Authority resides upon those who have the right to rule; but, unfortunately, it is not always combined with the ability to rule wisely. In the most basic sense, authority is the right and responsibility to rule others as given to one individual by another. The centurion in Matthew 8:9 expressed this truth when he said that his authority gave him the right to issue commands to his soldiers. The apostle Paul referred to his authority to call for the arrest and persecution of Christians (Acts 9:14; Acts 26:10, 12). This truth was also taught in the parable of the nobleman and his servants where the reward given was authority to rule over cities (Luke 19:17). Unfortunately, this desire for authority over others has been the source of problems and troubles throughout history.
