Greatness of His Power

Key Thought | God’s power is not just above you—it is within you, waiting to be acknowledged and lived from.

Key Scripture | “Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.” –‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭1‬:‭15‬-‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Today we tackle the third part of Paul’s prayer for the church of Ephesus. One of the things I love about this book is that Paul doesn’t just mention these ideas—he digs deeper as he continues to write the letter to the church.

So let’s start here: When was the last time you elevated God’s power in your mind?

“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.”—‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Paul isn’t telling us to ignore the realities of this life or become so heavenly minded that we’re disconnected from what’s in front of us. Not at all. He’s showing us that the only way to rightly see this life is by first setting our minds on what is above.

Part of that shift in perspective is learning to elevate “the greatness of His power.”

As a card-carrying charismatic, I grew up in a church that had a high view of God’s gifts, what we often called the “power gifts.” There was a strong focus on those expressions of His power. But looking back, I can see that while I focused on one aspect of His power, I was almost completely unaware of another: His sovereignty.

Sovereignty | His supreme authority. His rule. His complete control.

For some reason, we don’t often meditate on this, but we should. Because if God’s got it…I don’t have to.

Now that doesn’t mean:

• Everything that happens is good. It means that He can use it for good.
• People don’t have real choices. In fact, it means that people can have real choices, but I can still be secure and not fearful.
• God causes evil. God does not cause it, but He can use it for my good and the good of others.

Another big idea in Scripture is that God does not cause sin or condone it. But He is able to use it because He overcame it.

Somewhere along the way, we’ve made the mistake of putting God on equal playing ground with the devil. It would do us some good to remember that many may think the supreme leader is a dude in Iran, but our God has never been defeated.

What I love about Paul’s prayer is that he’s not just pointing to God’s external power but is speaking to us internally. The same power that raised Christ from the dead now lives in you through the Holy Spirit. 

You’re not stronger than you think you are. You just have the supreme leader, and He chose to make His home in you. While the world is crazy and loud, we have a guest in our house, which means peace was never meant to be found externally. It was always meant to be discovered internally, because He is there.

It’s almost unthinkable that the God of the universe is living within us, and yet we rarely slow down enough to acknowledge Him.

““Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.”—‭‭Revelation‬ ‭3‬:‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Do you hear that? It’s a knock from your guest bedroom door. The Holy Spirit doesn’t want to remain a guest in your life. He wants to be known, welcomed, and lived with.

So maybe today isn’t about learning something new. It’s about becoming aware of what’s already true.

Take a moment. Slow down. Acknowledge Him.

Open the door.

Prayer | Lord, open my eyes to the greatness of Your power. Lift my perspective so I don’t reduce You to what I can understand or control. Remind me that You are sovereign, undefeated, and fully present within me through Your Spirit. Teach me to live aware of Your power, not striving in my own strength, but resting in Yours. Amen.

Reflection | Am I living aware of the power of God within me, or am I still trying to carry what was never mine to hold?

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