Ephesians 1:20

Which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His [own] right hand in the heavenly [places] (Ephesians 1:20 AMP).

The Apostle Paul has been building to this crescendo – the Resurrection Power of Christ.  Now it begins to make sense why he was so focused on our revelation being in one direction.  He did not want us to be asking God for anything less than the fullness of this blessing that is ours in Christ because it is the power over death.  What good is it for me to die to self if I am just then dead?  No, the point of dying to self is to allow the resurrection power of God to raise me back up from death to life, but not the old life.  It will be the new life in Christ.

This puts a very interesting twist on the process of our sanctification in which we are to put the old man to death.  It makes Paul’s statement to the Galatians even more poignant:

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.  Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives (Galatians 5:24-25 NKJV).

We tend to think about the act of dying to self as a solo thing, when in fact it is just the first step in the process.  The truth is that when we die to self, we are allowing God to raise us back up by the same power He raised Jesus up.  So, on a more personal note, when I put to death my anger, my tendencies to worry, my critical and judgmental opinions; when I take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, I am allowing God to release His resurrection power in my life.  That sure does take the sting out of the first part of the process and give me a strong motivation to nail it (pun intended).

Today I will look for opportunities to die to self so that I can experience the resurrection power of God in my life.

Check out Gennarino's devotion on this verse:  Ephesians 1:20.  

Ephesians 1:19

And [so that you can know and understand] what is the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power in and for us who believe, as demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength (Ephesians 1:19 AMP)

Paul is praying that the believers in Ephesus would begin to understand that the power of God – a power without measure or limits, a power that surpasses greatness – was at work in them.  This is a truth that is hard to believe but it certainly does shed light on a huge misunderstanding most Christians have about what we can do for God.   It is a common misconception to consider that our limitations in being able to do mighty things for God stem from our lack of education, resources, time, or experience.  This verse clearly demonstrates that none of those things really matter since we are equipped with a power from God to turn the world upside down regardless of any of those worldly conditions.  Consider the original disciples who began to live this truth in their lives.   Most of them were uneducated; they hardly had any significant means; they all came from mundane backgrounds; they weren’t the sharpest knives in the drawer.  In fact the Bible describes them this way:

Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you.  Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.   God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important.  As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God (1 Corinthians 1:26-29 NLT).

In spite of what they didn’t have in the way of worldly resources, the power of God allowed them to impact their world in a way that their influence is still felt today.  It is a fallacy to fixate on our own adequacy or inadequacy when it comes to Kingdom business.  It has never been about us nor will it ever be.  The fact that I am indwelt by God’s Spirit and thus have the power of God at my disposal to walk through this life trumps every reason why I should not be able to do great things on behalf of Jesus.  No wonder God told us to fix our eyes on Jesus.  If we keep our eyes fixed on ourselves, we will do nothing for the Kingdom of God, but if we keep our eyes on Christ, then there is nothing we can’t accomplish for Him.

Lord, today I want to be a fool for you.  I pray that you will give me the grace to see only You and then bring on the thing you want me to do.

Check out Gennarino's devotion on this verse at:  Ephesians 1:19.

Ephesians 1:18

By having the eyes of your heart flooded with light, so that you can know and understand the hope to which He has called you, and how rich is His glorious inheritance in the saints (His set-apart ones) (Ephesians 1:18 AMP).

Paul is stating that it is only when our hearts are flooded with light that we can expect to know and understand the hope to which God has called us and be able to comprehend the richness of our glorious inheritance.  It stands to reason, then, that our job is to facilitate whatever it takes to “flood our hearts with light.”  Here are just a few ways that Scripture tells us we will have a clear and illuminated path:

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Psalm 119:105 NKJV).

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing (John 15:5 NKJV).

Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world (James 1:27).

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.²¹ Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work (2 Timothy 2:20-21 NKJV).

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2 NKJV).

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us (Hebrews 12:1 NKJV).

I could probably keep going, but this is enough to chew on for today.  The idea here is that Paul prayed for the believers in Ephesus so that their hearts would be flooded with light, but the believers were also responsible to keep the Word of God as a lamp, to stay connected to the Vine, to keep themselves unspotted from the world, to cleanse themselves from worldly lusts and passions, to renew their minds, and to set aside every sin and weight that would hinder them from receiving the light of God in their hearts.  This is a co-laboring effort.  God has given us a glorious inheritance, but it is up to us to search it out and discover the depth of His love and goodness.  That takes more than a casual effort; it takes a real passion and pursuit.

Lord, today I need you to increase my faith and give me a passion for you alone.

Check out Gennarino's devotional on this verse at:  Ephesians 1:18.

Ephesians 1:17

[For I always pray to] the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, that He may grant you a spirit of wisdom and revelation [of insight into mysteries and secrets] in the [deep and intimate] knowledge of Him (Ephesians 1:17 AMP)

Paul lays out a template for us to use when we go before the Father on behalf of people for whom we pray.   He says that he prays for wisdom and revelation but not just for anything.  Both of these requests are specifically directed towards the purpose of knowing God in a deeper and more intimate way. 

I think many times when we pray for wisdom and revelation we might have our focus on the wrong destination.  While it might be good, it may not be best.  For instance, when I pray for wisdom to know God’s will for my life, that’s a good thing, but the best thing would be to pray for wisdom to know God in a way so personal that it would be obvious what He wants me to do.  In the same way, when I pray for revelation to know what an area of Scripture means so that I can share the truth of His Word with others and apply it to my life, that’s a really good thing.  However, the best thing would be to have the Holy Spirit reveal to me the intimate and deep thoughts and heart of God so that my information would be constrained and filtered through the love that is the essence of God’s being and not just an impersonal lecture.  I think Paul put it this way:

And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2 ASV).

God has promised to give wisdom to anyone who asks:

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him (James 1:5 NKJV).

James, the brother of Jesus, goes on further in his Epistle to describe the kind of wisdom we get that is from Heaven.  He obviously understood this concept that wisdom and revelation which comes from God will bear the fruit of who God is:

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy (James 3:17 NKJV).

Today I will ask for wisdom from God – not for the things that I typically do – but for the ability to know God in a deeper and more intimate way so that I can be a more effective witness to the world for Christ.

Check out Gennarino's devotional on this same verse at:  Ephesians 1:17 

Ephesians 1:16

I do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers (Ephesians 1:16 NKJV).

Paul was a faithful prayer warrior who took very seriously the responsibility of bringing his spiritual children to the throne room of God.  This is an activity worthy of replication.  It is one thing to share the Gospel with people, yet quite another to faithfully pray for them as they “work out their own salvation in fear and trembling…” (Philippians 2:12).  The process of sanctification is the challenge of every Christian.  It is that time between justification – where we are instantly moved from darkness to light, from enemies of God to children of God and from sinners to saints – to glorification – where we receive the “end or our faith – the salvation of our souls.” (1 Peter 1:9).  It is the transition period between now and eternity in which we have to co-labor with God’s Spirit to walk through the treacherous pitfalls of life on a fallen planet earth.

Many Christians focus their prayers and efforts solely on the unbeliever.  This is not bad, just incomplete.  Our prayers and times of ministry should always include supplication for and encouragement to those who are already in the faith and especially those who are on front-line ministries, where the attacks of satan are so much more pronounced and brutal.  We should all be praying for those believers who head up ministries that are having an impact around the world.  We should be training and discipling those new believers that are within our immediate sphere of influence.  We must never put on the back burner our responsibility to be effective in ministry – both inside and outside the walls of our churches.

Today, I will be faithful to thank God for and pray for those people the Lord puts on my prayer list who are making a difference in this world for His namesake.  I will also seek an opportunity to encourage and minister to the people in my life who know Jesus and will be on the look out for anyone God puts in my path today who doesn’t yet know Him.

Check out Gennarino's devotional on this same verse at:  Ephesians 1:16

Ephesians 1:15

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints (Ephesians 1:15 NKJV)

It is noteworthy that Paul has heard about two very intangible aspects of the Ephesian believers – faith and love.   It is disturbing, however, to note the message to this church in the book of Revelations:

“To the angel of the church of Ephesus write,
‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: 2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary.4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. 6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate (Revelation 2:1-6 NKJV).

When we view these two perspectives of the church in Ephesus through the lens of hindsight, it becomes clear that the believers had stepped off course.  They had once been a church known for their faith in Christ and love for all the saints, but became a church that got fine focused on doctrine rather than on Jesus.  It had taken them from being a church whose faith in Jesus had made their mission about loving one another to a church whose mission consisted of defending the faith by calling out false prophets.  This is a powerful reminder that no matter how important doctrine may be, it will never set us free.  It tends to bring us into bondage when it is devoid of God’s Spirit that transforms it from “do’s and don’ts” to loving kindness, grace, and mercy.

As a person who has been blessed with the gift of a prophet, I am also precariously perched to always fall on the side of the law, which Scripture clearly reveals does not give life:

After all, the Law brings death, but the Spirit brings life (2 Corinthians 3:6b CEV).

If I am to be a good steward of the gift God has given me, I must make sure that I never get too focused on the law, but stay completely fixated on Jesus, so that I will walk in truth AND grace - not a balance, but a fullness of both.

Today, I will ask God to keep my eyes focused on Jesus – not just what He said, but what He did and who He is.


Check out Gennarino's devotional on this same verse at:  Ephesians 1:15

Ephesians 1:14

 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory (Ephesians 1:14 NKJV).

The Amplified Bible states it this way:

That [Spirit] is the guarantee of our inheritance [the firstfruits, the pledge and foretaste, the down payment on our heritage], in anticipation of its full redemption and our acquiring [complete] possession of it—to the praise of His glory.

This lends itself to the idea that we have not yet been fully redeemed, but are awaiting our redemption at a future time.  This is fortified by the following verses:

And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us (Romans 8:23 NLT).

… Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls (1 Peter 1:8-9 NKJV).

Paul and Peter are both highlighting a very important concept for us, as believers, to grasp.  Salvation is an on-going process that is past, present and future.  Our past salvation is the justification that we received when we first believed.  We were translated from the Kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of Light, went from being sinners to saints, and went from being enemies of God to being adopted into His family.  We were made righteous by the blood of Christ in that one moment in time. 

However, that was the beginning of the process.  We are currently in the middle of the process – the here and now of salvation which is sanctification.  That’s what Paul refers to in his letter to the Philippians:

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:12-13 NKJV).

We are currently called to co-labor with God by simply getting out of His way so that the life of Christ that dwells in us by the power of His Spirit can have full reign in our lives. 

Then there is the future aspect of salvation, which is the redemption of our souls and bodies or what theologians call glorification.  There is coming a point in our future – whether it is the return of Christ to us, or our return to Him via our physical death here on earth – when we will experience the full and final work of salvation.  We will be complete, whole and walking with Jesus. 

As I ponder these three phases of salvation – past, present, and future – I realize that each has a poignant place in the life of a believer.  Our salvation past reminds us of the great grace and mercy of God; our salvation future keeps our hope alive; but it is our salvation present that – if we are doing it right – will keep us humble as we recognize that we are truly the branches and without being connected to the vine, we have no shot at walking in the holiness we are called to walk, which the Bible makes painfully clear is way beyond what most of us settle for:

Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did (1 John 2:6 NLT).

Today, I will ask God to work in me to do will and to do His good pleasure and then I’ll try to get out of His way.

Check out Gennarino's devotional on this same verse at: Ephesians 1:14.