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Expositions of Holy Scripture - Second Kings Chapters VIII to End and Chronicles, Ezra, - and Nehemiah. Esther, Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes by Alexander Maclaren
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one act, and it was when he drew his bow that he felt his strength.
'Stretch forth thine hand,' said Christ to the lame man. But the very
infirmity to be dealt with was his inability to stretch it forth. At
the command he tried, and, to his wonder, the stiffened sinews
relaxed, and the joint that had been immovable had free play, and he
stretched out his hand, and it was restored whole as the other. So He
gives what He commands, and in obeying the command we realise and are
conscious of the power. Elisha and Joash but act an illustration of
the great word of Paul: 'Work out your own salvation ... for it is God
that worketh in you.'

II. And now, secondly, look at the perfected victory that is possible.

When the arrows, by God's strength operating through Joash's arm, had
been shot, the prophet says, 'The arrow of the Lord's victory! ...
thou shalt smite ... till thou have consumed.' Yes, of course; if the
arrow is the Lord's arrow, and the strength is His strength, then the
only issue corresponding to the power is perfect victory. I would that
Christian people realised more than they do practically in their lives
that while men's ideals and aims may be all unaccomplished, or but
partially approximated to, since God is God, His nature is perfection,
and nothing that He does can fall beneath His ideal and purpose in
doing it. All that comes from Him must correspond to Him from whom it
comes. He never leaves off till He has completed, nor can any one say
about any of His work, 'He began to build, and was not able to
finish.' So, Christian people! I would that we should rise to the
height of our prerogatives, and realise the fact that perfect victory
is possible, regard being had to the power which 'teaches our hands to
war and our fingers to fight.' A great deal of not altogether
profitable jangling goes on at present in reference to the question of
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