In a sermon on Romans 16: 25-27 entitled God Strengthens Us by the Gospel John Piper makes this statement:
"What kind of strength does Paul mean that God is able to give? Well, God can give whatever kind of strength he wants—“By my God I can leap over a wall” (Psalm 18:29). But here he means the same kind of strength that he referred to in Romans 1:11-12, “I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen (stÄ“rikthÄ“nai, the same word as in 16:25) you—that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine.” The substance of this strength is faith in Jesus Christ."
Notice the statement .. mutually encouraged by each other's faith .. I think that this is perhaps the most important thing that can happen between believers when we gather. I think we should make it our goal when we are with fellow believers to look for a way to encourage their faith -- this seems to me to be central to our fellowship.
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