Sabbath: The Power of the Exalted Jesus
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Sabbath Afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study: Ephesians 1:15-23; Ephesians 3:14-21; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; Deuteronomy 9:29; 1 Corinthians 15:20-22; Psalm 110:1.
Memory Text: Through the Holy Spirit, believers may know “what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:19-20, NKJV).
Human beings, it seems, are always reaching for more power. Auto manufacturer Devel Motors, for example, showed off the prototype of its Devel Sixteen, a vehicle with a 16-cylinder, 12.3-liter engine producing more than 5,000 horsepower. Or, if that is not enough, consider the Peterbilt semi-truck that sports three Pratt & Whitney J34-48 jet engines. Boasting 36,000 horsepower, the truck does a quarter mile in 6.5 seconds and regularly hits 376 mph before deploying its two parachutes.
In contrast, Paul prays that believers in Ephesus, under temptation to admire the various powers and deities of their culture, will experience through the Holy Spirit the immensity of the power God makes available to them in Christ. This divine might is not measured in horsepower, or magic, but is seen in four cosmos-shifting, salvation- history events: (1) the resurrection of Jesus; (2) His exaltation at the throne of God; (3) all things being placed in subservience to Christ; (4) Christ being given to the church as its Head (Ephesians 1:19-23).
In considering these four events, believers may begin to grasp — and experience — the vast scope of the power God exercises on their behalf.
Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, July 15.
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There are a couple of examples of power that spring to mind. In my youth, I watched the launching of the Apollo rockets to the Moon. The power of the engines of the Saturn rockets was so great that there was an exclusion range of 4 km around the launching pad. Typically a Saturn V first-stage engine burned for 168 seconds and then it was discarded a mere 42km from where it started.
On the other hand, one of the most powerful engines I have seen is the Rolls-Royce Trent engine that powers an Airbus A380. I sat right next to 4 of those engines as it flew 14000km from Sydney to Dubai. I even fell asleep for part of that time. And a few hours after landing in Dubai, they turned the aircraft around and flew it back to Sydney. With careful maintenance, they have been doing that for years.
There is burnout power and there is maintainable power. Perhaps we need to understand that with respect to our spiritual power. We will see what is important in this weeks study.
Thanks for an object lesson that will stay with me.
Eph.1:22-23 - ”And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”
Eph.3:17-19 - ”… that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height – to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
1Cor. 15:21-22 - ”For since by <b<man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.”
What does ‘being filled with all the fullness of God look/feel like’; how are we to understand and experience this Truth? Is it giving us a warm, fuzzy feeling like a blanket covering us in which we curl up into a ball, protecting us from the world, or does it endow us with the power to stand up and declare the life-saving Truth of God’s power in the face of all adversities the world will through against God’s faithful servant - His messenger?
I am looking forward to learning more about the ‘immensity of the power of God’, and how “The Power of the Exalted Jesus” is applicable for our life!
[Moderator's Note: Please keep comments length in check. Succinctness is a blessing.]
Why and how did God exalt Jesus? Jesus is one of the Godhead, what does his exaltation mean? Jesus was God, is God and will be God for eternity.
The power of Jesus has never been any less, "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made" (John 1:3 -NIV). The Word of God continue to affirm the power of Jesus, " For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together" (Colossians 1:16-17 - NIV).
The exaltation of Jesus by God the Father was an act of appreciation to Jesus for being the only one who able to save mankind.
"Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of the one who was sitting on the throne. There was writing on the inside and the outside of the scroll, and it was sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel, who shouted with a loud voice: “Who is worthy to break the seals on this scroll and open it?” But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll and read it. Then I began to weep bitterly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll and read it. But one of the twenty-four elders said to me, “Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne, has won the victory. He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals” (Revelation 5:1-5, NLT).
The act of Jesus humbling himself to save mankind greatly pleased God the Father and therefore Jesus's name was exalted above all names in heaven and on earth (Philippians 2:2).
"Who, being in very nature[a] God,did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature[b] of a servant,
being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:6-10, NIV).
The salvation that we have been called into, which is only found in Christ Jesus is a life of humility and surrender as Jesus did to the will of God the Father. As God exalted Jesus due to humility and surrender, so likewise, God will exalt us if we can humble ourselves and obedient to his perfect will.
"But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted"(Matthew 23:12, NLT).
For one to be humble, demands great power, divine power. We need the power of the Holy Spirit to subdue our self exaltation, pride, arrogance and pompous nature. This is the real power which is needed in great measure in our families, in churches, communities and the world at large. We need to cry more and more for a contrite heart and humble spirit (Psalms 51:17).
The power which Paul tells the Ephesians that they in Christ, is one which can only be obtained by acknowledging our spiritual bankruptcy and utterly powerless.
"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly" (Romans 5:6, NIV).
Thanks and glory be to God who has richly blesses us in his Son Jesus Christ. Now we are not powerless. In Him we have this blessed hope that burns within our hearts, hope in the coming of the Lord.
It's His power (not our power)
It's a mighty power that worked in Christ.
That power raised Christ from the dead and seated Christ at the right hand of God.
A wonderous, mighty power is available! The mightiest power ever displayed on this earth was when God raised Jesus Christ from the dead.
Think of it -- Satan and all of his demons were aligned in full battle force when Jesus lay in the tomb. We think of that 100 Roman guard, that was nothing compared to the evil forces determined to keep Christ in the tomb.
Think of the magnitude of sins Jesus carried on the cross. All the heinous as well as respectable sins of all ages crushing down upon Him. How could He rise again?
If he could have kept Jesus from rising from the dead, Satan would have been triumphant. But all his hosts could not keep Jesus in the grave. HE AROSE, Christ arose a victor over all evil, death and the grave! Satan is a defeated foe.
And so Paul writes with great eloquence, and praise, to make the point that God's power in raising Jesus from the dead was an exceedingly great display of power.
Paul carries the thought further.
Comparing mankind who are without Christ, dead in their sins.
Trapped in their sins with no hope. Slaves of sin and satan, with seemingly no chance of escape
Paul is not praying that God would give us this mighty power, but rather that the eyes of our understanding would be enlightened to know that this power is here for us, to work in us, to raise us up out of the deadly strangle hold of evil into newness of life, if we believe in Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 2:1-6 we read -- we who were dead in our sins, God raises us up and seats us with Christ in the heavenly places. His point here is that the same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at God's right hand is the power that raises us up from the deadly pits of evil unto newness of life in Him.
It is only in Christ -- through this incomparably great power that we are saved.
So why are we so often weak when it comes to resisting sin.