1You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
Strength and grace seem to be a contradiction in terms. Strength would say that I can earn what I need and want. Grace says that I can never earn it, but I get it given to me freely because someone else purchased it for me. Strength says I can do this on my own. Grace says that what I do is never enough. Strength says that I have this covered. Grace says that I am too weak to accomplish this. So Paul tells Timothy, his young disciple, to be strong in grace. We must embrace our weakness and then grace can fill the vast void created by our weakness. But Paul instructs Timothy to be strong in a particular kind of grace. This is a grace that can only be found in the person of Jesus. It is through a personal relationship with the person of Jesus that we can be strong in grace. Jesus is not a philosophy to be mastered, or a self-help program. It is about knowing Him, as a child can know a parent, or a spouse their other half. It is in and through this personal interaction that grace empowers us to overcome our weaknesses. That is how Paul can declare, “When I am weak, then I am strong.” The more we rely on Him, the less we rely on ourselves, and hence the more strength He is able to pour into us.
The Arnold Journey 