“…my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:4-5.
“…the natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” 1 Corinthians 2:14.
Power is a popular and highly sought-after commodity in our culture. Politicians seek it, businessmen seek it, some people seek it over others and rulers seek it. Some spouses seek it. And many find ways to wield it. Power gained by selfish means, or for harmful purposes is not power. It is simply control of others. Control born of intimidation, coercion, force.
Worldly power and the power of God are mutually exclusive. God’s power is the antithesis of worldly power. God’s power comes from our willingness to surrender our wills to God. Our willingness to exchange our desire to lead for our willingness to follow Jesus in surrender and obedience.
How can we be empowered by God? Certainly not by developing some sophisticated, self-made faith. It doesn’t require a sophisticated faith to make a huge impact in our sphere of influence. Rather it is a life that maintains a singular focus on Jesus that creates the biggest impact. Without that focus, and without God’s power, our lives become worthless to God.
But if we are empowered by the power of God, and not some worldly self-acquired power, we have no earthly idea what God is capable of doing in us and through us if we are totally 100 percent committed to him.
“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him.” I Corinthians 2:9
The power of God is exclusively reserved for those who love Him.
Once we commit our lives willingly and completely to God, we can reflect His power in our lives. One of the keys to reflecting God’s power to others is a determination to maintain that singular focus. Our testimony is the message that comes from God. If we master that message in God’s word it will change our lives. We live in a culture that ignores history and dismisses the future and the world is in great peril because of it.
We must also position ourselves to accomplish God’s purpose in our lives. If we will trust Him to do what He says He will do for us and through us, we would eliminate most, if not all, the things we worry about. As we watch the world through “reality” TV lenses, we understand the world’s “reality” causes us to gravitate away from God’s truth and towards the world’s idea of reality, which is nothing like God wants for us. If you don’t trust Him you will never experience His power.
It’s not about us trying to figure things out in the world. It is about trusting God to keep His promises to us….so that your faith would not rest on men but on the power of God.
In addition to developing that critical singular focus we must also discover the basis of a truly powerful life. As scripture tells us, it is impossible to access God’s power by human capabilities; but it is completely and totally accessible to those who love Him. The only way to access God’s power is through the wisdom provided us by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:12 teaches us, “. . .now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the (Holy) Spirit, who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.”
So, we receive the instructions for our life by accessing the wisdom of God. And we access that wisdom by giving up all our worldly intentions, and our worldly wisdom and being completely surrendered to God and the Holy Spirit. Then we can access the wisdom of God. Then we can reflect the power of God. Then we can impact the world around us in the ways God intended for us.
Do you really trust Him? Do you believe He will do what He says He will do?
Sometimes it’s a good idea for us to stop and ponder those questions as we evaluate our impact on our world. Are we impacting the world with God’s wisdom? Or are we gravitating more towards the world and its concept of power and wisdom?