As Paul the
apostle prayed for the “God of our Lord Jesus Christ” to
give to the Ephesians “wisdom and revelation”,
he knew this would be manifested in the area of the “knowledge”
of God. In chapter one and verse
nineteen of his letter, Paul added to this “knowledge of
God” by sharing about “the
exceeding greatness of his power”
where we read:
And what
is the exceeding
greatness of his power to us-ward who believe,
according
to the working of his mighty power,
The
verse begins, “And what is
the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe,...”
Paul began with the words, “And
what” or “which and who” “is
the exceeding greatness” which means
“surpassing, transcending, excelling and over and beyond anything
of magnitude” “of his power”
or “strength, ability, excellence, influence and resources which
belong to riches and wealth” “to us-ward”
which refers to “Paul and the Ephesian church members” “who
believe” or “who think to be true, are
persuaded of, credited to and placed confidence within”. Paul
desired for the Ephesians to “know” just how “great”
the “power” of God
was to those “who rely upon, trust in and cling to” Him.
The
verse continues, “...according to the working of his mighty
power,” Paul added, “according to” or “down from,
through out, toward and along” “the working” which is
the Greek word “energeia” and means “efficiency and operation”
“of his mighty” or “ability, force and strength”
“power” which means “force, strength, might, dominion of
a mighty deed or work of power”. Not only was the “power”
of God filled with “exceeding greatness” toward us “who
believe” , but it also exhibited “the operation” of
God's awesome “force, strength and dominion”.
When
we think through these words of Paul, we should not be surprised at
the “surpassing” “power” of God Almighty. He desires
for us to have “knowledge” that He is “all-powerful”,
and not only is He “mighty” but He is “exceedingly”
and “mightily” powerful. Since this is true, what are we
worried about? What has us so tangled within our minds that He cannot
overcome it? May God Almighty through His Son Jesus help us to have
more full “knowledge” of Him and His “exceeding and
mighty power” in everything we do.
Next
time Paul shares how God set Jesus “at
his own right hand in the heavenly places”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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