(Isa 49:22-26b; Acts 19: 11-20; Luke 11:14-26)
Prayer : Lord I feel very unworthy and incompetent to speak about your wonderful power. But, here in this holy place, I came and stand before you and your people expecting your mercy and grace. Bless your people, bless all of us. And may all the words of my mouth be acceptable in your side, o Lord, our rock and redeemer. AMEN!!
The chosen theme given to me is ‘The Power of Jesus is revealed in the works of Jesus’. We will make our focus not on any of the selected texts, but only on the theme – “The Power of Jesus.”
This theme is very interesting topic. And it would be a very fascinating topic particularly for people who have come across various power encounters with God and who had a number of experiences of direct intervention of God in their life.
The theme - ‘The Power of Jesus’ has several corresponding terms or phrases which can be used as synonyms for this theme, such as - ‘the power of God’, ‘the power of the Holy Spirit’, ‘the power that comes from heaven’, and ‘the heavenly authority given by God’.
In MT 28:18; just before he was ascended into heaven, Jesus make known to his disciples by saying that, ‘all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me’. But nearly contrary to this declaration, he also expressed his concern in relation to his authority vested on him. He said, in John 5:9, ‘the son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the father doing; for whatever the father does, the son does likewise’.
Therefore the power, we are going to talk about or the power given to Jesus is indeed - the power of God and of the Holy Spirit.
However, as found in the scripture, this power is described in various ways;
• As Supreme. Ephesians 1:20-21 (1 Peter 3:22 says - Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.)
• As Unlimited. (Matthew 28:18 says - And Jesus came and spoke unto them, saying, all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.)
• As powerful over all flesh. (John 17:2 says - As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.)
• Over all things. (John 3:35 says - The Father loved the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. Ephesians 1:22 also says - And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church)
• As Glorious. (2 Thessalonians 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power)
• As Everlasting. (1 Timothy 6:16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen.)
• And as Able to subdue all things. (Philippians 3:21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.)
Moreover, this same power is also EXHIBITED in & through;
• (through)Creation. (John 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made. John 1:10 He was in the world and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.)
• Upholding all things. (Colossians 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. & Hebrews 1:3)
• Salvation. (Hebrews 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever lived to make intercession for them.)
• His teaching. (Matthew 7:29 he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.)
• Working miracles. (Matthew 8:27 But the men marveled, saying, what manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!)
• Enabling others to work miracles. (Matthew 10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.)
• Forgiving sins. (Matthew 9:6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then he said to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto your house.)
• Giving spiritual life. (John 5:21 For as the Father rose up the dead, and quickened them; even so the Son quickened whom he will.
• Giving eternal life. (John 17:2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.)
• Raising the dead. (John 5:28-29 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.)
• Raising him-self from the dead. (John 2:19-21- Here Jesus speaks of the temple of his body. John 10:18 No man take it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.)
• Overcoming the world. (John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.)
• Overcoming Satan. (Colossians 2:15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. & Hebrews 2:14)
• Destroying the works of Satan. (1 John 3:8 For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.)
And if we go little further to other records, it also has been mentioned as - the heavenly power which is already exhibited, or the power which is to be revealed in and through the life and works of Jesus is already prophesied by the prophet Malachi (Mal. 4:2. Says - “Unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings.”)
Therefore, as Jesus has started his ministry, the prophecy made by the prophet Malachi has come true. He came to earth as the Son of God, with power over life and death. He could healed the sick, opened the eyes of the blind, caused the lame to walk, and also has a power to rise the dead. His name was becoming very popular as they gave a new name as - the man of miracles, with full of power who “went about doing good things.” (Acts 10:38)
Therefore, the man who has power and authority, who revealed this power through his life and works, and the one whom even the winds and the sea obeyed was Jesus.
So friends, as we continue to take our special focus / investigation on this particular theme, I would like to bring out some of the amazing or marvelous facts which are very impressive for God’s people.
These selected points will become our focal points for tonight;
1. The power which had been revealed through the life and works of Jesus has its root in the baptism of The Holy Spirit (MT 3: 13 says – Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. V 16 says – When he had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. V 17, and a voice from heaven said, “This is my son, the beloved, with whom I am well pleased”
Though there is no a clear hint on this particular passage that tell us that Jesus is being empowered by God by the time he got baptism. But undeniable thing which was happened and which is also very clear was - before the heavenly power was being vested on him, he has gone though (or received) the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
The reason why we need to acknowledge this event of Jesus’ baptism is, this event has very significant position in our Christian life; because, the Holy Spirit is the basic source and foundation, from where many people got their heavenly power to perform miraculous works of God in their ministry.
And it is in fact- without this experience, no one can have a successful ministry, and it is rightly to say, there can be no possibility for triumph/success even for people who sacrificed / dedicated their life for the ministry of God.
People who received empowerment from God are people who are having being baptized by the Holy Spirit.
2. After the baptism of the Holy Spirit, Another significant point, we could point out from the life and works of Jesus is - before the power of Jesus is being revealed, Jesus has gone through very difficult situation, i.e. – his great temptation and trial.
And one thing I would like to add more while focusing on this experience is – This temptation and trail faced by Jesus was happened not while he was in his very comfort zone / situation but it had happened when Jesus was in a desert. (Mt.4:1ff).
This experienced also has very significant positions for us – as recorded by the gospel writers, Jesus has started his ministry only after he encountered with the devil.
Many commentators also hold that, the trial and temptation faced by Jesus was the commencement of his ministry that made and enabled Jesus to keep him fit for exercising his heavenly power.
Therefore the implication we have from this happening is that- there can be no possibility to experience, or there is no way for us to receive and exercise the heavenly power, if we fail to stand still in the midst of trails and temptations.
3. Another amazing fact, we can see while focusing on the power of Jesus is – This power does not have boundary.
Even though there are some exclusive expressions that tell us the reasons why Jesus came for us (for example, In Mk 2:17 Jesus says - “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." And LK19:10 which says- the son of man came to seek out and to save the lost). It is likely that - these two passages mentioned Jesus as the one who came only in favor of sinner and the lost.
But, a carefully investigation on the life and works of Jesus could tell us that, the power which had been revealed through the life and works of Jesus has no boundary. The reason why we could say about this is – the same power which is revealed among particular individuals, within community was also being revealed in the public, among the Gentiles, the blinds, lepers, and marginalized people.
Therefore, one of the interesting facts we could found from here is – the power we are talking about was given not exclusively, but this power has also been given to anyone as need arise or according to God’s will. In fact, this power was a power which is expectable for all; it is also the wonderful power that made available for all.
4. The power we are talking about is also a power that has a power not only to heal, but also a power that has a wonderful power to forgive our sins.
In another words, this power is a redeeming power that can forgive a sinner and all our transgressions (in Mk 2:10 ‘Jesus heals a Paralytic’ –when the scribes were questioning in their hearts, thinking whether Jesus has a power/authority to forgive sin- Jesus said, you may know that the son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins, then he said to the paralytic – “ I say to you, stand up take your mat and go to your home”.
Eph 1: 7-8 also tell us that - In Him we have our redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
The power vested on Jesus was given to forgive the sinners, to heal our wounds, and to redeem our souls.
5. Another significant point we could found while focusing on the power of Jesus, is – This power was given neither to destroy nor to ruin. But it has been given to inspire, motivate people, and to give hope and encouragement. It is a wonderful power to forgive, accept and transform people (I Pet 1:3).
One of the uniqueness of this power is - the power we found in this world which is vested to someone and exercised by someone is often being exercised by someone to destroy, to ruin, and to discourage people. But the power we see in Jesus was given not to discourage, but to heal, to forgive, and to accept sinners and even the outlaws. It was also a power that can be enjoyed by everyone; that gives hope, setting free and enabling a sinner to praise the name of God.
6. Another wonderful and very amazing thing we should not fail to notice at this very moment is - This power is made perfect in weakness.
In 2 Cor 12:8-10 when Paul has made an appeal to the Lord to remove his thorn, the Lord said to him, “my grace is sufficient for you, for the power is made perfect in weakness” Therefore Paul simultaneously declared by saying, “so, I will boast all the more gladly of my weakness, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me”.
Therefore friends, the power of Jesus we are talking about at this very moment is totally different from the power we found in this world.
The power which has been arrogantly exercised by people of this world is originally shaped up by human ability, political power, money, wealth, status, qualification, dangerous or sophisticated weapons, human might and potentiality…but the power we are talking about and which is in Christ Jesus is not like the power we found in this world for this power is make perfect in and through weakness.
This evidence is clearly mentioned, if we recollect the account of the passion of Jesus – when Jesus was on the cross, He was made unable to exercise his power or he was made too weak, as if lacking ability to exercise his power. But here, this was not the end. But, in order to make perfect the power vested on him, God has another plan.
Therefore, as we have seen from this passion account, the process of his weakness was still remained till the death body was being laid inside the tomb. But what has come in the next few days was becoming very wonderful, this human mind could not be able to perceive or fully understand the extraordinary power revealed by God through resurrection.
Therefore friend, human weakness before the throne of God, and surrendering ‘one’s own self’ in the almighty hands of God is something that can open the door for heavenly power.
7. Lastly, It would be incomplete unless I point out this significant point – that is: Though Jesus was given all authority and power; the power that can heal, forgive, to raise the death, to cleanse the leaper, etc Another wonderful and incredible thing we could found from his very true nature is that – He could make humbled him-self;
Though he was made perfect, having an extraordinary power, he could make himself emptied, making him-self nothing and taking the form of slave.
As found in - Phil 2:7-8; He humbled him-self, becoming obedient servant even to the point of death- and even to his death on the cross. The extraordinary power vested on him was made limited on the ground of his humbleness and his obedience to God the father.
In Mt 26: 39, it also has been mentioned, it says - and going a little far, he threw himself on the ground and prayed, “My father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want”. In V 42- again he went away for the second time and prayed, “My father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”
Friends, this is all about the power of Jesus we can say in this very moment, the perfect man whose power is exhibited in all his marvelous work was the one who emptied and humbled him-self. His power and the way he exercising his power was very unique and wonderful. No one could fully understand the amazing fact of this power, the power which is exhibited - as;
- Extraordinary but made perfect in weakness
- Supreme and wonderful but made available for all
- Amazing and inexplicable but acceptable for everyone
- Incredible but revealed without restrain, limitation or boundary
This power is the power we are enjoying and experiencing till today, only by God grace. And this power is also the power which God has been revealing and is still working among the church, among us.
Therefore, let the name of our almighty God be praised among us, among his people for his amazing and wonderful power.
May God bless us…AMEN!
(Holy Communion Service Sermon on 15th, March, 2015 at Mission Church, Serampore)
