Real Power

Ephesians 3:7 (NASB)

7of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me according to the working of His power.

Ephesians 3:16 - 21 (ESV)

16that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his

Spirit in your inner being,

17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

18may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,

19and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

21Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

• Paul uses three superlatives to drive home his point: God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above anything we would dare to ask, think, or imagine. God is far above and beyond our finite minds. God “is able” because of his awesome power.

Perhaps the best way for us to grasp some of the greatness of this doxology is to look at it in outlined form:

Now unto Him who is

able to do all

above all

abundantly above all

exceeding abundantly above all

There is no situation in which the Lord cannot use us, provided we are submitted to Him.

He is able;

He is able to do;

He is able to do exceeding abundantly;

He is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask;

He is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think.

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Paul seems to want to use every word possible to describe greatness of God’s power!

Paul shares the exciting truth that this far above all power is available to us! It is even “above all that we ask or think.” In other words, the power of Jesus, like the love of Jesus for us, is beyond human understanding or measurement. And this is just the kind of power you and I need if we are to live in victory. .

The chemistry of POWER

The word “power” is dunamis, and “working” is energeia (energy).Some power is dormant; it is available, but not being used, such as the power stored in a battery. But God’s energy is effectual power—power at work in our lives. This power works in us, in the inner man. It is the Holy Spirit who releases the resurrection power of Jesus in our lives.

Some believers have been cut off from their source of power. Unbelief, unconfessed sin, careless living, worldliness in action or attitude—all of these can rob us of power. And a believer robbed of power cannot be used of God. “Without Me, ye can do nothing” (John 15:5).

• He is able to do all—above all—abundantly above all—exceeding abundantly above all!
• Get your hands on your spiritual power by opening your heart to the Holy Spirit, and praying for strength… for a new depth of love … for spiritual growth… and for spiritual maturity.

“Ye have not because ye ask not” (James 4:2).

Let’s take a closer look:

1. These verses are not primarily about me (and what I might receive) but about God and Who He is. The focus of this doxology is elevate Him not me.
2. God exceeds any limit my situation, circumstances, or conditions might on Him. What we “ask or think” does not equal the extent of God’s power. These words express the inadequacy of our ability to fully embrace all that God is in His person and all the ability God has in His person to accomplish His will.
3. The power at work within us, as believers, is not the power of our imagination, or the fervency of our prayer, or the urgency of our devotion. The power at work within us is the Holy Spirit, the One Who raised Jesus from the dead. The power at work within us is not our ability to please God, but God’s own personal ability at work within us to please Himself!

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1. I also came to realize that my prayer request is not the goal of the unlimited power of God extending beyond the boundaries of my imagination through the infinite working of His Holy Spirit. The goal of God is not my personal satisfaction. The goal of God is not granting my wish list. God’s goal, which He works with unhindered, unlimited power, is His glory being known in the world through the church.
   • Habakkuk 2:14, “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the

LORD as the waters cover the sea.”

1. This does not mean that my need is irrelevant to God. It means that the realizing of God’s glory is most relevant to me. That I should love and desire His glory in my circumstances, and that He should use my life for His glory, is a work beyond anything I could ask or imagine. That I should treasure God’s glory!

Jude 1:24 - 25 (KJV)

24Now unto Him who is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,

25To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and for ever.

Amen.

MONDAY MORNING MOMENT: “GOD IS ABLE TO DO IT!”

“God’s Word should interpret our experience, not the other way around.”

1 Thessalonians 5:23 - 24 (KJV) 23And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

24Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.

Be a Berean “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” Acts 17:11

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