Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Sadly some who read this verse only get to hear the part that declares “I can do all things.” It is not true, but some believe it as if it were gospel. Here is what I understand in that statement.

Go ahead and sin all you want. If you are declaring that you can do all things, then isn’t sinning a part of all things? Let me go a little further with that thought. If you can sin all you want, you have a bigger problem than your sin. If you can sin all you want then the Holy Spirit has not been given unto you and you are dead in your sins. One of the prime properties of the Holy Spirit is holiness. His presence drives you to want to be holy. He will convict you of sin. His responsibility is the chastening.

Please note the word which in the verse. It is used rather than who. The Greek word is ho and is a demonstrative pronoun. This is used to indicate that the demonstration, the actual act of obedience of faith in Christ is what strengthens me. I can do all things through Christ is a faith based response to what Christ is doing in you. It is that exercise of faith which strengthen your faith.

A proper understanding of the Word helps unite the verse to accomplish all that is intended. That will keep us from parsing statements and quoting only the part that does not stand alone in context. We often hear others quote scriptures out of context and the only protection we have in not being drawn into error is a sound familiarity with the Word in meaning and context.

Luke 17:5-6 And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.

There are times in our lives when we might think, “If I only had more faith!”

2 Thessalonians 1:3 We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth;

Confusion arises in the assumption that increase equals growth. The mistake is in the understanding of what faith is and how it acts. Jesus answers the apostles about their request for increased faith in an indirect manner. If faith is one grain, it is sufficient to perform the will of God in powerful ways, you don’t need a second grain of faith.

Romans 12:3c God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

God gives out faith by measure, not equally. You will never get more faith than what you are given. Rather than thinking of faith as something that can be multiplied, think of it as a muscle group. Some muscle groups consist of more than one muscle. Exercise that muscle group, they do not grow in numbers, they grow in strength.

Romans 16:26 But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:

Exercise your faith.