Every Christian has an endless supply of power available in God. Unfortunately, for many, it is an untapped resource. While there are those who feel sufficient in themselves, they have not considered the eternal realm which lies beyond our earthly existence. Anyone who claims to be a “self-made man” has done a poor job following instructions.
Hudson Taylor wrote: “I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked if I might help him. I ended up asking God to do his work through me.” While we need the help of the Lord in everything we do, God’s power is especially effective in working through those who have yielded themselves to His will. The apostle Paul concluded his prayer in Ephesians 3:20-21 with these words: “Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”
Consider the fact that God is able to do “exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask of think.” While His power is limitless, we may be assured that the exercise of His power will be in keeping with His will as expressed in the New Testament of Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, His power is beyond imagination. It is this power that “works within us.” God works through us! God can choose to work through any means at His disposal, but He has chosen to work through His people. And, by doing, so, He magnifies the greatness of His power in earthen vessels (2 Cor. 4:7). The next time we are tempted to complain about our helpless condition, we need to be reminded of the One who is working in our lives. Remember that it is “God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Ph. 2:13).
While the gospel is God’s power to save the believer (Rm. 1:16), it is also God’s power to change our hearts and lives. God is working in our lives to change us into the image of His Son. This transformation comes about slowly and only in those who are willing participants in the process. Paul explains, “But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18).
Upon what power or wisdom do we trust? The great confidence of the Christian is that God lives in His people and works through their lives to accomplish His purpose. All that is needed is a heart that is filled with trust and a life that is compliant with His teachings. This is our source of true strength and unimaginable power
— Glen Elliott —