Sabbath 6/16/18 Alfred Station Seventh Day Baptist Pastor Ken sermon “The Greatness of His Power”

Sabbath 6/16/18 Alfred Station Seventh Day Baptist Pastor Ken sermon “The Greatness of His Power” Ephesians 1:19-23


Intercessory prayer is a blessing during worship service. Intercessory prayer should be part of the Christian walk. We should always be praying for one another. It should move into worship of God. Intercessory prayer is not silent prayer.
Verse 19 in our text says we should know the greatness of the Power of God. We can ask the question, how great is God’s power? Anybody look at Genesis chapter 1? God said let there be light and there was light. Scripture says with His finger, God flung forth the stars. The children of Israel were up against the Red Sea with Pharaoh’s army coming. How great is our God? Great enough to open the sea and let the children of Israel walk across on dry ground. Then when Pharaoh’s army tried to cross over, God closed it off and drowned them. How great is the power of our God!
What we have in this scripture is a “piling on” We have three words: Power, Strength and Mighty.
  • Power: Power shows the explosive of God’s power. The explosiveness that happens with God’s power. In fact we know from that word we get our word dynamite. BOOM! Up it goes!
  • Strength: Strength shows the stamina and stability of God’s power.
  • Mighty: Mighty shows the energy of God’s power.
We come back to that question in the 20th verse. How great is God’s power? Paul says let me tell you how great God’s power is. God’s power raised Jesus from the dead! It raised Jesus from the dead! In Corinthians it tells us that Jesus had to really be raised so our preaching would not be in vain. In Romans it says Jesus was declared to be the Son of God by the Resurrection from the dead. Jesus was dead, buried and rose again. The power of God was demonstrated in the Resurrection. I have been next to loved ones who had just passed away. I want to know the power of raising someone from the dead. As Pastor, I’ve stood at the deathbed of some very dear saints. I didn’t think it was their time to go but God knows better. I would have liked to have been able to raise them from the dead. But you see the power that is in the resurrection is the Power of God.

Scripture says that something happened with Jesus. We know it as the Ascension. But it says Jesus was taken and raised to sit in exaltation on the right hand of God. On the right hand of the throne of God. That was part of His power. The right hand of God, sitting on the right hand shows that the power is from God. In Psalms 110:1 it says “the Lord said to my Lord, sit on my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool to you.” This scripture was talking about our Messiah. Jesus mentioned this scripture to the Pharisees. Peter mentioned this scripture also and we find that the right hand is there.

Scripture tells us more about the power that happened when Jesus was exalted in the 21st verse. It gives this bottom line. It says that Jesus was exalted far above all rulers and authorities. Far above all powers and dominions. Now I don’t believe that these are earthly people. These are supernatural people. I get a hint of that in the book of Daniel in the 10th chapter, in the 13th verse. It says Daniel had been praying and he wanted to understand a vision. An angel appeared and said that he had been stopped by the prince of Persia until Prince Michael came to help him. This is a hint of what’s going on here with the supernatural listing. Then again in the book of Jude where they are fighting over the body of Moses with Satan. Prince Michael pulls rank and says “the Lord rebuke thee” to Satan. Michael pulls rank on Satan!!

Another hint is in Romans chapter 8 where it says nothing will separate you from the Love of God. Nothing will separate you from the Love of God in Christ Jesus Our Lord. Nothing! Now two of these nothings are powers and principalities. In Ephesians chapter 6 it says we struggle not against flesh and blood but against powers, principalities and rulers in dark places. There we have a full list of the ranking that is talked about in today’s scripture. Jesus is high above everything and whatnot!! He’s high above the whatnot in New Testament age and high above the whatnot in any age to come. We previously talked about the Three Ages. The Age that was, the Age that is and the Age that is to come. The borders between them get sort of get fuzzy and bleed into one another. The Age that is has Grace and the Age that was had Grace. Jesus’s name is higher in this Age and in any Age to come!!

Verse 22 & 23. It says all things are placed under His feet. All things are put under Jesus’s feet. Jesus is in Charge. Jesus is the Ruler. Jesus had been Exalted by God. Jesus is the Head of everything in the universe and cosmos. Jesus is given as a gift to us by God, for our Salvation.

John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. That whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting Life.

AMEN
 
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