The Messenger 22
Introduction
In praying for the saints Paul highlights three vital things that every believer needs to know: the unquenchable, irrepressible hope to which they have been called, the spiritual riches they have inherited, and which, as Peter reminds us, ‘neither perish, spoil nor fade’, and the incomparably great power that God has for those who believe. Hope, riches, power.
Let me remind you again that Paul was not asking the Father to grant the believers those things. He did not pray “Father, grant them hope to carry them through even the most difficult of times; grant them spiritual riches to enable them to live an abundant life in Christ; grant them power to overcome the trials they will face in this world.” He prayed that the saints would know, understand, comprehend the reality and the spiritual dimensions of what they already had in Christ. What they possessed was complete. It was the spiritual insight into what they possessed that they needed.
On our own spiritual journey we need to take note of that. We don’t need more of this or more of that from God. We don’t need more blessings, more power, more hope, more grace, more love. We need spiritual revelation and insight to be able to understand what we already possess in Christ.
Knowing the power
Having previously looked at the hope and riches we possess in Christ, today our focus is on the power God has for us. In verses 19 and 20 we read:
“And (so that you can know and understand) what is the immeasurable and surpassing greatness of His power in and for us who believe, as demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted in Christ when he raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His (own) right hand in the heavenly (places)….” (Amplified Bible).
Notice how Jesus is the focus of the ‘incomparably great power God has for us who believe.’ How great, then, is the Father’s power for us who believe? How great is the power that we possess in Christ? How great is the power that you possess in Christ? The answer is the same power that was demonstrated in the resurrection and ascension of Jesus.
Now the next time you read in the Gospels of the resurrection of Jesus just think – that is the same power God has for me. And the next time you read in Acts 1 of the ascension of Jesus just think – that is the same power God has for me. And we are still tempted to think sometimes that we need more power as Christians?!
To help you focus on where your power lies as a believer, think on these words from a hymn by Charles Wesley:
Jesus! The name high over all, in hell or earth or sky;
Angels and men before it fall, and devils fear and fly.
Jesus! The prisoner’s fetters break, and bruises Satan’s head;
power into strengthless souls it speaks, and life into the dead.
I want to draw your attention the different Greek words Paul uses in his prayer to bring home the point of God’s power for us who believe. You will notice that I underlined some words in that quotation from the Amplified Bible. Let’s take a few moments to look at them more closely
Power is a translation of the Greek word dunamis from which comes the word dynamite. Working is a translation of the Greek word energia, from which comes our English word energy. Mighty is a translation from the Greek word kratos and can also mean dominion. And, finally, strength is a translation of the Greek word ischus.
John MacArthur in one of his studies on Ephesians sums it up well: “Dunamis means inherent power, energia means operative power, kratos means ultimate power and ischus means endowed power.”
Four words, all of which emphasise and direct our thoughts to the power God has for us who believe. And if you are in Christ then that power is in you. It is yours in Christ.
Finally, the thought I want us to take away with us from today’s reflection is one which I have already made but can’t emphasise enough. When you received Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord you received everything you need, and will ever need, for your spiritual journey. As Peter wrote in his second letter:
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3).
In union with Christ we have been given power. But not just power – the immeasurable and surpassing greatness of God’s power demonstrated in the resurrection and ascension of Jesus.
How is that knowledge meant to affect and influence the way in which we live out our life in this world? Nothing is more annoying to someone facing great difficulties than to be told that they don’t have to live under the circumstances when they can live above them. When I think of some of the things that people have to go through in this world, I realise just how unhelpful it is for them to be told to snap out of it, to pull themselves together and to claim their victory in Christ. At the same time I don’t want to diminish the greatness of what God has given us in Christ. So how do we keep in balance and in tension the realities of the problems we face and yet acknowledge that in Christ we have received, hope, riches and power?
The answer is found in Paul’s prayer: “I keep asking….” And if we are going to learn to transcend our problems that’s what we have to do. Not focus on the problem. Not try harder to work up some faith. Just keep asking the Father to enlighten us so that we may know in a real and practical way “the hope to which we have been called, the riches of his glorious inheritance in us and his incomparably great power for us who believe.”
If you have a question or a comment about this series please feel free to write to me, Brian, at
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