If You Only Knew How Powerful You Are!

Do you live as an eagle or a chicken? A lion or a mouse? A king or a slave? It depends on what you know. Ephesians 1:16-23 paints a breathtaking story for us of what God accomplished through Jesus’ death and resurrection and Paul’s prayer is that our understanding will be flooded with light so that we can truly see how exceptionally powerful we are in Christ Jesus. One of the things he prays for in verse 19 is that every child of God would

know the power of God that is “to us-ward who believe.” That is, that each of us would know the amount of power that is available to us for carrying out God’s will for our lives; the amount of power that is in us to work for us and through us in every situation we face in life; and the amount of power that is available to us at all times to live truly successful and victorious lives.

Paul describes the power for us the best he can but he declares that really it is past human understanding. That is, language is inadequate to describe it. He uses a Greek word that can be translated “surpassing greatness, vast, unlimited and immeasurable.” The power available to us who believe is so vast that it is inadequate just to call it great. It is immeasurable—you cannot quantify it. It is unlimited—it has no ending or maximum point to it. It can never run out or be exhausted.

Furthermore, Paul says, this is the same “mighty power” God exerted to raise Jesus from the dead when all of hell tried to keep Him in the grave—it is therefore resurrection power; to lift Jesus up to heaven when all of hell tried to keep Him under—it is therefore ascension power; to exalt Him far above principalities and powers and every name that is name in heaven and on earth when all of hell tried to keep Him in subjection—it is therefore dominion power. Paul’s prayer is that all believers in Christ would know that God has placed resurrection power, ascension power, and dominion power in them and that this power is available to them all the time to accomplish His purpose for their lives.

Furthermore, according to Ephesians 1:22-23, God has put all things “under His feet” and made Him the Head of the Body, which is the Church. Note, all things are placed not just under the Head of Jesus, but under the feet of Jesus too. Now, the last time I checked the feet were part of my body and in the lowest position physically. So, if you are a part of Jesus’ body, even if you think you occupy the lowest position in that body, all things are in subjection to you in Christ!

You say, if this is so, how come I am living such a powerless, ineffectual and defeated life? Listen to me, an army of sheep led by a lion will defeat an army of lions led by a sheep any time and any day. Why? Because if lions think and act like sheep, no matter how loud their inherent roar might be, and how strong their jaws and muscles, they will respond to their enemies like sheep and run in fear rather than stand and rule. The problem is, if a king thinks and acts like a mere slave, then even a powerless enemy can make him afraid and cause him to fall apart mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. And as long as believers continue to see themselves as nothing more than guilty sinners, or at the very most, forgiven sinners, they will always operate in powerlessness and a defeated devil will still triumph over them.

So what is the answer? Believers need to know by revelation who they are and what they have in Christ Jesus! They need to see that the Son of God became the son of man so that the sons of men can become the Sons of God. Their hearts and minds need to be flooded with the revelation that they are are now the Sons of God, invested with the power of God and the full authority of Jesus Christ to use His immeasurable power to enforce His will on this earth.

What should you do? I suggest you take the prayer recorded for us in Ephesians 1:15-23, and begin praying it for yourself and other believers daily. And meditate continually on the Gospel, which is the message of God’s unconditional love and grace, received by faith in the finished work of Christ. As you pray and meditate consistently on the message of grace, the Holy Spirit will open your eyes and you will come to know progressively and personally that power which surpasses human understanding.

If you only knew how powerful you are, your days of walking in fear and defeat would be over!

This power is to those who believe. To believe practically is to live in accordance with. So stop arguing with God’s Word, stop disqualifying yourself, and start living in accordance with this truth—your spirit is enthroned with Christ and you are wearing the garments of spiritual royalty.