Piling Up Words for God’s Power
Scripture — Ephesians 1:27-20 (NRSV)
I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.
Focus
We join the Apostle Paul in praying that we might understand and experience God’s power in truer and deeper ways. We yearn to know in our daily lives – including our work – the power of the resurrection.
Devotion
Words are fantastic tools for communication. But sometimes our words fail us. When someone has done something unusually wonderful for us, “thank you” seems so inadequate. “Thank you very much” also seems pretty weak. Often, we end up heaping words on top of words to convey the magnitude of our gratitude: “Oh, thank you so much. I am very, very, very, grateful. This is great. I appreciate what you did for me. Thank you.”
In Paul’s prayer in the first chapter of Ephesians, he does something very similar to this. Paul prays that we would know God better, including the hope we have in God and the fact that we are God’s treasured inheritance. In verses 19 and 20, Paul adds one further request, “[I pray that you may know God better] and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead. . . .” Notice the heaping up of words having to do with power: “the immeasurable greatness of his power” and “the working of his great power.” Why is Paul piling up the synonyms here? Because he wants to underscore the exceeding greatness of God’s power, the power revealed to us through the resurrection of Jesus.
To put it more casually, God’s power is really, really, really, really great. God’s power exceeds our ability to grasp it or to represent it adequately in words. Yet Paul’s prayer assumes that we can, in some genuine way, actually know God’s power. We can experience it, at least to an extent. We can understand it, at least in part.
Thus, we join the Apostle Paul in praying that we might understand and experience God’s power in truer and deeper ways. We yearn to know in our daily lives – including our work – the same power that raised Jesus from the dead.
Reflect
When you think of God’s power, what comes to mind?
How have you experienced God’s power in your life?
Where in your life right now would you like to see God’s power at work?
Act
Jot down a list of ways you have experienced God’s power in your life. Ask the Lord to help you remember. Then, use this list to thank God specifically for the ways you have experienced divine power.
Pray
Almighty God, the word “almighty” doesn’t represent your might adequately, but it does point in the right direction. You are powerful. You are energetic. You are mighty. You are strong. Help me, I pray, to know you as a God of incomparably great power. May I live today, and every day, in light of this knowledge. Let your power be at work in and through me. Amen.
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the High Calling archive, hosted by the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Knowing the Power that Raised Jesus from the Dead .
Mark D. Roberts
Senior Strategist
Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Strategist for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders,...