Tuesday, April 22, 2014

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.


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