The Exceeding Greatness of His Power

2018-08-18

Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, (16) Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; (17) That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: (18) The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, (19) And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, (20) Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, (21) Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: (22) And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, (23) Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. (Ephesians 1:15-23)

When the Christian life is lived out, it bears much fruit. This was true in Ephesus, as Paul thanked God for their faith in Christ and love for others (Ephesians 1:15-16). Paul was a man of prayer, and this section deals with Paul’s thanksgiving for these dear saints, and we can learn much from Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians.

  1. God can impart wisdom, revelation and knowledge of Himself to us. Paul prayed that God would give the Ephesians these things, that they may be enlightened.

    Wisdom: Wisdom is how to apply the knowledge that we have.
    Revelation: This is knowledge that is showed to us by God.
    Knowledge: These are facts and truths that we need to know.

    If we knew all that we possessed in Jesus Christ, we would be much more effective and empowered for Him in this life.
  2. God can enlighten us. This contrasts with the world, “Having the understanding darkened” (Ephesians 4:18). Because we were once unsaved, we need to have a complete repentance in our understanding as to who God is, and who we are in Christ.
  3. We need to know the hope of His calling. We must live with anticipation of His second coming, the great Day of Christ.
  4. We need to know the riches of the glory of His inheritance. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 2:9, “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” John 14:1-6 says that there is a place in heaven prepared for us. We must remember that whatever God has for us in the future surpasses whatever we may experience in this life.
  5. We need to know the power of God that came to us. As we will see in the next chapter, God raised us spiritually from the dead in Christ. God sent His Son Jesus Christ to die, and when He arose and was about to ascend to heaven, the Lord said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18). This means a lot to us who are in the Lord. Being ascended higher than all spiritual powers, we who are in Him also have victory over these demonic forces. His name and authority are greater than all. All things are under His feet (Psalm 110:1).
  6. The ascended Christ is the head of the church. The church is God’s chosen vessel to reach the world for Himself. The risen Christ is the head over it, and we have direct access to Him to live for Him. This body of Christ lacks nothing, and when we are absent from the church, we miss a lot of the Christian life.