Day 108: What is the Power We Have Access To?
Yesterday we heard that two of the fundamental truths that we need to know as followers of Christ is that 1) We have been called to hope, and 2) We are Christ’s inheritance – we are His eternal treasure! Today we consider the final fundamental truth and that is we have access to the same power that raised Jesus from the dead to live an entirely new kind of life!
Ephesians 1:19
….and what is the incomparable greatness of his power toward us who believe, as displayed in the exercise of his immense strength. 1:20 This power he exercised in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms…
Right now, in Christ, you have access to the same power that raised Jesus from the dead to live an entirely new kind of life—an eternal kind of life—shaped by the glorious life of Jesus!!! Of all the truths that we have considered in this study, this is one of the hardest to believe. But, this may be one of the most important truths for you to realize. If we desire to live in way that is pleasing to God by faith (that is by placing our ultimate confidence and trust in Jesus) then we have the power to do so. If we desire to be people who reflect His truth, goodness and glory in all that we are and do, we have the power to do so. Consider this”
Romans 6:4
Therefore we have been buried with him [Christ] through baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may live a new life.
We have died and were buried with Christ, spiritually speaking. Just as Christ was raised from the dead and empowered by the glory of the Father, so we too have been “raised” and empowered by this same glory of the Father to live a new way of life. God’s glory is His limitless, powerful beauty and splendor. This “power” enables us to live in the New Way of Jesus.
In another of Paul’s prayers for the Ephesians he says:
Ephesians 3:16
I pray that according to the wealth of his glory (Father God) he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith…
Here it seems that the glorious power of the Father is given to us by means of the indwelling Holy Spirit who desires to make the presence of Christ real in our deepest core—our hearts—through our faith, trust in Him.
Working, living with God’s power does not mean that everything will be easy for us. God’s power is inexhaustible and allows us to do what we could not do on our own. We are not passive in this process; we are not idle. We do work. But, now we work in the strength and the power the Lord provides:
Colossians 1:28–29
Him [Christ Jesus] we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 1:29 For this I toil, struggling with all His power that he powerfully works within me.
First of all notice that just because we have access to God’s limitless power does not mean that things will be easy. As Paul says in the Colossians passage, he toils (“working his fingers to the bone” is the idea), struggling in/with all of God’s power that works within Him. Paul worked ceaselessly to spread the Gospel in places that it had not been heard before. The power that empowered him was that which came through the Holy Spirit who dwelled within him. Earlier in this same letter Paul had prayed:
Colossians 1:9–12
We… have not ceased praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 1:10 so that you may live worthily of the Lord and please him in all respects–bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God, 1:11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display of all patience and steadfastness, joyfully 1:12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light.
Here we discover that we need the Lord’s power to be patient and steadfast, joyfully giving thanks to Him. Notice the similar topic here that we considered earlier in Ephesians 1: “Spiritual wisdom and understanding…” We are being instructed by the Spirit and empowered by the Spirit to live in a way worthy of our calling, bearing fruit and growing. In another place Paul says this:
Philippians 4:12-13
I have experienced times of need and times of abundance. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of contentment, whether I go satisfied or hungry, have plenty or nothing. 13 I am able to do all things through the one who strengthens me.
Here is one of the greatest secrets in all the World: the Lord gives us access to His limitless power so that we can learn to be completely content in Him! At first glance this does not seem to be exactly exciting. But as we think about all of these things and as we mature in our thoughts and wisdom we discover that these are actually some of the hardest things in life: working for the Lord in the midst of a frustrating world, being patient and steadfast in the midst of difficult times, being content whether we have much or little. As we learn to live in the power of the Lord in these “small things,” He is training us now to be read to handle the “bigger things” later.
Learning to live by God’s power in every aspect of life—in the “good times” as well as the “bad times”—is the key to learning to live with eternal significance. The same Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead (see Romans 1:3-4) is the same Holy Spirit who now lives within us, empowering us to live lives worthy of our great Father God.
In this unit, we have discussed the power of the Spirit quite a bit. Is it hard to get your mind around the idea that in Christ, through the Holy Spirit, you have access to the same power that raised Jesus from the dead? Simply give thanks that this is true. Ask the Father to help you realize this truth more and more in your thoughts and desires.
*You can find a complete list of all the MilktoMeat readings here.
