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EPHESIANS - Be Filled With The Spirit
Meditations, Reflections, Prayer and Questions over the Epistel to the Ephesians
Part 1 - The Prayers of the Apostle at the Beginning of his Letter for the Churches in and around Ephesus (Ephesians 1:3-23)
B - Thanksgiving and Intercession of the Apostle Paul for the Saints in Ephesus (Ephesians 1:15-23)

How does the power of God and the strength of His might show itself in Christ´s followers? (Ephesians 1:19-20a)


Ephesians 1:19
1:19 “and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ” (Eph. 1:19-20a).

The power of which Paul here speaks is the power of God, which proved itself when it resurrected His beloved Son from the grave, when it took Him to heaven, when it enthroned Him, and when it gave to Him all power in heaven and on earth. The Lord Jesus had already prophesied before the Sanhedrin that He would sit at the right hand of the Power, whereby with the word “Power” He meant God Himself. In this manner the Lord Jesus revealed who God is, namely, the power that created and maintains everything. In Greek the word standing for power here is “Dynamis”, which means dynamite, albeit no dynamite that destroys, but rather a constructive, healing power, just as it was alluded to in the Old Testament: “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts” (Zech. 4:6). The Lord Jesus solved this enigma in that He said to His disciples: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me…” (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit is the power of God, which proves itself when it is put into action for a witness to the victory, the kingdom and the glory of the Lamb of God. Thus the Holy Trinity is the concentrated power of God, which does not just function like steady current (110 volt) or alternating current (220 volt), but like three-phase current (330 volt), used when excessively great demand for power and achievement is present. In trying to describe this reality, we can say: Our God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are in themselves the primary power, the authority and the omnipotence.

Yet the risen Lord limited the outworking of His power, which He made clear to Paul: “And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, `My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.` Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ´s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:7-10).

Paul clearly described the experience he had with the power of God during his life in ministry, and also while he suffered deprivation while in prison. He portrayed the strength that worked in and through him as “the exceeding greatness of His power”. It did not flow through him without his personal will, but rather, as a result of faith, and not just his alone, but also through the faith of his team and his churches. He wrote that the power of His might was effective in us and not just in him. Perhaps it is necessary to here mention the healing of the sick in the name of Jesus, the raising of the dead in Troas, the casting out of demons in Ephesus, the founding of the churches, the breakthrough of the kingdom of God into the demon-infested Hellenic society, as well as the hard struggles with the antichristian spirit of the synagogues. Paul described these spiritual battles in detail at the end of this letter, which pointed back to his broad experience and suffering. In writing of these, he was not describing defeats and failures, but of victories in the name and in the power of Jesus Christ (Eph. 6:10-20).

Prayer: Father in heaven, You are the elementary power from which the entire creation came into being. Your Son Jesus has received from you all authority in heaven and on earth. The Holy Spirit is Your power, whom the Lord Jesus entrusted to us. Teach us to trust Your power and not to nourish depressive inferiority complexes. Let Your power be awesome in the love of Your church and in the victory of Christ over the powers of darkness. Amen.

Questions:

  1. What is the mystery of the power of God?
  2. How is the power of God made mighty in our churches?

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