Month: September 2023

“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” … “We preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (I Corinthians 1:18, 23-24).

What kind of things come to mind when you think about the word “power”?  Are you drawn to the government realm of military or political power?  Or how about the power of money?  Do you think about the concentration of economic power in the hands of wealthy individuals, corporations, or sovereign nations?  Or what about the world of pop culture?  The idolized status of celebrities breeds an outsized social influence among fans and followers.  It seems on a cultural scale, everywhere we turn someone is trying to bring our thoughts, opinions, actions, and our money under their control, power, and influence.

Maybe it is a function of my age, but lately I am losing interest in all of these cultural powers.  I feel like this world is awash in foolishness.  And over the years and by God’s grace, my response to this foolishness has turned from anger to compassion for a world lost without Jesus.  The world, for its part, is looking at us as the foolish ones.  And this is no surprise.  The Bible acknowledged this response.  “The word of the cross” – the very thing that can save the world – is looked at as “foolishness to those who are perishing.”

But to us, “the word of the cross” is literally the “power of God.”  This is not an illusion.  The cross, for you and me, is literally the power of God.  Somehow, God completely flipped the script on what this symbol represents.  How did God turn a source of shame and humiliation and death into a demonstration of His incredible power?

He did this through the astonishing miracle that Christ accomplished on our behalf through the cross.

How did “Christ crucified” become the “power of God” for us?

THE POWER OF THE CROSS TOOK AWAY OUR SIN.

“Having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” (Colossians 2:14).  The power wielded by the cross is the power to take away our sin.  The cross, and Jesus’ death upon it, is strong enough to hold “the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us”; decrees held against us because of our sin.  No winds of evil are strong enough to blow that certificate off of its nail.  The nail is firm.  The debt is forgiven.

THE POWER OF THE CROSS RECONCILED US TO GOD.

“And through Christ to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross” (Colossians 1:20).  Through the power of the cross, we have been reconciled to God.

THE POWER OF THE CROSS RECONCILED US TO EACH OTHER

“For He Himself is our peace, who has made us (Jew and Gentile) both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that He might create in Himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us (Jew and Gentile) both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility” (Ephesians 2:14-16).  The cross has reconciled us to God and has reconciled us to each other.  The cross of Jesus has brought us together into one body.

THE POWER OF THE CROSS ENERGIZES OUR NEW LIFE.

“And He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness” (I Peter 2:24).  Christ’s death set us free to “die to sin”, be released from its power, and to “live to righteousness”, walk according to the power of the Spirit that lives in us.  Dying to sin – something Christ accomplished for us in His body on the cross – means being set free from sin’s power as our master.

This is just the tip of the iceberg regarding the power of the cross.  But it is a great place to start in welcoming the power of the cross into our lives.

Let’s examine a little further the power of Christ’s divine nature in us.

“His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.  For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world” (II Peter 1:3-4).

Christ’s divine power granted to us is supplied by His divine nature planted in us.  Let’s look at each phrase in this incredible new covenant promise.

“His divine power” … This is the power of God that we talked about way back in our first post on God’s power.  This is supernatural power.  This is divine power.  This is the power of God power.  This is not the power of self-discipline.  This is not the power of a strong personality.  This is not the power of positive thinking.  This is divine power.

“Granted to us” … This divine power was gifted to us.  We did nothing to earn it.  It is completely a gift of God’s grace.  We receive it by believing the gospel message of Jesus Christ.

“Everything pertaining to life and godliness” … The word “everything” is so crucial to this promise.  There is nothing missing for you to live the life of Christ through you.  There is nothing missing for you to enjoy a godly walk in this world.  His divine power never comes up short.  You literally have everything you need for life and godliness; given to you by His divine power.

“Through the true knowledge of Him” … With the focus on divine power and divine nature in these two verses, this phrase can be overlooked.  But it is so important.  Our experience of His divine power in us will be greatest when we walk in the “true” knowledge of Jesus.  What does that true knowledge entail?

These are some things that are true about Jesus.  He is the only way to the Father.  He came to give us His life.  He indwells us.  He is living His resurrected life through us.  There is no separation between us and Jesus.  We are deeply loved, fully accepted, and completely forgiven by Jesus.  When you possess this true knowledge of Jesus, you can rest in His unsurpassed gift of grace and all that He accomplished on your behalf.  The Christian life is no longer a struggle.  It is an unfolding of His divine power dwelling in and living through us.

“Who called us by His own glory and excellence” … It was God’s choice to reveal Himself to the world through Jesus.  And we, as His glorious saints, are folded into God’s glory.  He called us to display His glory and virtue to the world.

“He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises” … His incredible promises are a gift, granted to us.  There is not one thing we have done to earn them.  And they are truly magnificent.  In fact their magnificence, their almost seeming too good to be true, are one reason I think folks fail to believe or embrace them.  But they are true.  The shear amount and power of the promises brought to us though the new covenant and our new identity in Christ is incredible.

“By them you may become partakers of the divine nature” … One of the most powerful and specific promises of the new covenant is your new nature.  When you believed the gospel message of Jesus Christ, you were given a new nature.  Your new nature is inclined toward God, aligned with His ways.  And because it is divine, your new nature carries with it God’s divine power.  Your new righteous nature is wired to live a righteous life.

“Having escaped the corruption that is in the world” … The corrupt nature that is in the world is no longer your nature.  You have escaped from the old and have been clothed with the new.  You are a partaker of the divine nature.  You are not deity.  But you contain the deity!

These two verses have such a great message.  I encourage you to seek the true knowledge of Jesus.  As you do, you will mature in grace and the divine power of His divine nature in you will energize your walk with Him.

“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him” (Acts 10:38).  One could interpret this verse as everyone that Jesus healed was in some way oppressed by the evil one.  And He healed them as One “anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power.”

Jesus has the power to overcome Satan, and defeating Satan and his work were part of Jesus’ mission on earth.  “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil” (I John 3:8).

Without Christ, the world is under the power of Satan.  “We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (I John 5:19).  But we are not without Christ.  As the verse states, “We know that we are of God.”  Though we are no longer under Satan’s power, we are still affected by his power as we navigate this fallen world.  So how do we overcome his power?

In a promise that seems too incredibly good to be true, we overcome with the same exact power that Jesus used to defeat Satan.  This promise is just mind blowing to me.  “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence” (II Peter 1:3).  You have the same power as Jesus to overcome the evil one.  His divine power has given us everything we need to live in godly ways.

So what does this look like in our daily lives?  When Satan fills our mind with lies about our failures, our sin, our guilt, we have the power to say, “No, I am only listening to the truth about God’s love, acceptance, and forgiveness.”  When Satan tempts us to sin, to follow after the flesh, we have the power to say, “No, this sin is not who I am.  I choose to walk according to the Spirit’s leading in righteousness.  I will walk by the Spirit’s power.”  Do you see the pattern?

We are not helpless, we are not destined to succumb to Satan’s lies and temptations.  Satan, our accuser, was defeated at the cross.  His fate is sure.  Our victory is assured.  May you walk in that victory today and boldly say with the apostle John, “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (I John 4:4).

It wasn’t a minor thing that Jesus walked out of that grave two thousand years ago.  It was a feat that required great power, something only the power of God could accomplish.  It took God’s power to roll away the stone, breathe life into a dead body, and bring forth the resurrected Jesus.

This is the power that declared Jesus to be the Son of God.  “Who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:4).

And this is the same Spirit of holiness and the resurrection power He brings to us that energizes our own Christian walk.  “But since the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11).

“Life to your mortal bodies” comes from His indwelling Spirit.  It is the resurrection life of Jesus living through us.  It is living in line with the treasure of Christ in us.  “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves” (II Corinthians 4:7).  Mortal bodies and earthen vessels may sound powerless and mundane.  But they contain the deity Himself.  This Spirit of power is from God and not from ourselves.  It is the power of God bringing the ability to live His supernatural life in this earth suit we wear.

Paul described it this way, “And may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection. “ (Philippians 3:9-10).

We are back to where we started, the power of the resurrection.  What does it mean to “know Him and the power of His resurrection”?  Christ filled us with resurrection power the moment we believed the gospel and received the Holy Spirit.  This happened.  This is truth.  But knowing this power can be a process.

We only know this power as we put it into practice.  We only experience this power over sin, power over feelings of shame and guilt and failure, power over fear, power over all kinds of things we have talked about before when we walk according to the Spirit and see His power in action in our lives.  As we mature and grow in grace this power becomes more real in our lives.  Our faith, God’s grace, His Spirit, the God of hope in us are working together to empower the resurrected life of Christ in us.  May you rest in the resurrection power of Jesus today!

“And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all” (Acts 4:33).

“For I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me, resulting in the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed, in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ” (Romans 15:18-19).

The apostles preached in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Paul preached in the power of the Holy Spirit.  We share the message of the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Have we been deceived into thinking that we need elegant words or sharp logic or compelling apologetics to share the message of Jesus Christ?  Has our church hierarchy inadvertently contributed to this attitude with its focus on seminary training, public speaking skills, and celebrity pastors?  You, yes you, are qualified to preach the gospel.  Because you carry in you the same Spirit of power that the apostles possessed.

You have what it takes to share, proclaim, teach, and explain the message of the gospel; the message of grace.  “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to human standards, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong” (I Corinthians 1:26-27).  This is us.

If you have believed the gospel message of Jesus Christ, Christ Himself is living His life through you.  The Holy Spirit is teaching you.  Christ is guiding you.  The Father is empowering you.  You are qualified to proclaim grace to those God brings into your circle.  (And thanks to the internet, that circle is getting bigger and bigger.)  Never be ashamed of what training or expertise you lack.  You are fully qualified to announce the good news!

The apostle Paul summarized it this way, “My message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God” (I Corinthians 2:4-5).  Our message does not rest on the wisdom of men.  It rests on the power of God.

Or put another way, “For the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power” (I Corinthians 4:20).  Our message does not rest on our words.  It rests on the power of God.  May you walk, rest, and preach in the power of the Spirit!