My knees are getting older, that’s fair, so is the rest of me. They don’t bend like they used to years ago and they are often achy and stiff after I walk. Life has not been easy on my knees.
The Book of Hebrews talks about hardship and discipline and about our knees. Hebrews reminds us to throw off everything that hinders us, the sins that easily entangle us, and to endure hardship as discipline because “discipline produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” [12:1-11] Then in verse12, it gets to the part about our knees, we are to “strengthen [our] feeble arms and weak knees.”
How do our physical knees get weakened? They can be weakened through lack of use, through injury, through just the aging process. How do our spiritual knees get weakened? They too can be weakened through lack of use, and they can be injured when we fail to face the adversities of life in the proper way. Discouragement, complaining, growing weary and losing heart makes our spiritual knees feeble. [12:3]
How do we go about strengthening our knees? Just as physical knees need to be exercised appropriately so that the muscles and sinews can be built up, spiritual knees need to be exercised also. The first way is by becoming resolute in putting away discouragement and complaining in the face of adversity. Let’s face it Christian, the life of faith is not easy, nor does it become easier.
Spiritual life exercised amid worldly opposition is a tough battle. Jesus never promised it would be otherwise. Just read church history and you’ll know that true believers down through the ages have faced trials and hardships. Why do we think we will be any different?
