September 14 2025

Sunday September 14

“That You May Know…”

“What is the Exceeding Greatness of His Power”

Ephesians 1:19-23

19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His 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 age but also in that which is to come. 22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Today, we need to remember as believers, we are at war. We're not at war with people. We're not at war with ideas and philosophies. My friend, we are at war with spiritual forces in the heavenly places. And Paul reminds us of that in Ephesians 6:10-18. “We do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers, and spiritual wickedness in the heavenly places”. This spiritual wickedness in the heavenly places, the devil and his forces, are out to rob you. Jesus said, the thief, who is the devil, has come to steal, to kill, and to destroy you.

The devil wants you to be robbed of your wealth in Jesus Christ. Now, he can't take that wealth from you, but he can make you think you do not have access to that wealth, and for you to feel like you're weak. Even like the people of Israel when they were in Egypt, they were stronger and mightier than the Egyptians. But the Pharaoh dealt shrewdly with them, deceived them, and thinking that they were weaker than the Egyptians, and put them in slavery. And that's what's happening to believers today. We have lost the sense and the knowledge of our wealth, our power and strength that we have in Jesus Christ.

No doubt that is why Paul prayed right off the bat here in chapter 1 for these Ephesians, “That they may know”. “That the eyes of their understanding would be open…” Did you see that? This is for us today also! That you may know, that you may know what the hope of your calling. That you may know the riches of the glory of your inheritance. And then the verse 19. “That you may know what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of His mighty power which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places”. 

In the Old Testament the people measured God's power by His acts of creation. Please read Isaiah 40. Almost the entire chapter is devoted to God’s creative power and strength. “Who made these things”? God would answer His own question.  "I made these things. I'm the God who created the heavens and the earth, and you need to know who I am." And the nation of Israel measured His power by His acts of creation. They also measured God's power by His acts of power and His miracles at the Exodus when He delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt. The 10 plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, and even the defeat of the enemies in the promised land. And the people would look back and say, "What a mighty and powerful God we have."

But today, we can also measure God's power by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The power of His resurrection was not only the fact that Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and that He rose again the third day. And also in the truth that God has highly exalted Him when He raised Him from the dead and set Him at His heavenly places (vv. 21-22). Jesus is not only our Savior, He is also our Sovereign (Acts 2:25-36). He is the sovereign God. There is no authority, power, human or in the spirit world that's greater than that of Jesus Christ, the exalted Son of God. He is “far above all” and no future enemy can overcome Him because He's been exalted “far above all” powers. Oh, how important it is for us to know this.

But how does this apply to you and me today? In Ephesians 1:22-23, Paul explains the practical application. Because we are believers, we are in the church, which is Christ's body—and He is the Head. This means that there is a living connection between you and Christ. Physically speaking, the head controls the body and keeps the body functioning properly. Injure certain parts of the brain and you handicap or paralyze corresponding parts of the body. Christ is our spiritual Head. Through the Spirit, we are united to Him as the members of His body. This means that we share His resurrection, ascension, and exaltation. (Paul will amplify this later.) We too are seated, in the heavenlies (Ephesians 2:6), and all things are under our feet.

No wonder Paul wants us to know "the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward"! Apart from this power, we cannot draw on our great wealth in Christ. Yes, today our war is not with people all these crazy things going on in America today. Our war is a spiritual war. It can only be fought through the power of the Holy Spirit and the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ claiming and knowing that we stand strong in Jesus Christ. We don't really fight the battle. He fights the battle. He is our Joshua. We believe this because of His resurrection and the fact we're connected to Him and we are His body. He is the one who does the warfare, and He binds the strong man. He sets the captive free. He gives us liberty in Himself.

May the Lord help us believe and apply this to our lives. We fight the battle on our knees in prayer! Are you experiencing His resurrection power in your life today?

God bless!