The Flying Inkwell

The Flying Inkwell

“How We Obtain the Power of God”

“How do we obtain this power?” This question engages a very crucial understanding for Christian faith and spirituality. How one answers this question will reveal the foundation of your theology as a Christian. We might think about obtaining this power by believing God places it in our possession, as a force that we use and direct at our personal discretion. It is like the force of Star Wars. It is like a pill that Alice took to grow bigger. We take it when we think we need it. Or, it might be like an “energy bar” we eat when we need to complete our spiritual training session. It could be considered a serum to cure a contracted spiritual disease or ingested as an antidote when the Devil inflicts us with his poison. In this model, we think of the power as a substance given to us, separate from God’s person, which we internalize and use when we want. It is like indoor plumbing. We turn it on and off as needed and pour out more when the job is larger. We “channel” God into the areas of ministry and life that we deem appropriate.

However, a more biblical way of understanding the power of God exists. We can see God as the power. Rather than we taming God, and using Him for our own needs, we should respect Him as a wild and sovereign ruler of the Universe. It is God who controls His own Spirit. He does not give us our own personalized “tank” or “liter” of Spirit. The “Lord is the Spirit.” We must never sever the work or power of God away from the Person of God. When we trust in the power of the Lord, we trust that he will act to do what needs to be done. We are helpless in ourselves. We are weak and frail. God is mighty to save. We have power only when we trust in God. God does not break off a piece of His power and give us some. When we look to His power, He “keeps” all his power, and brings ALL of it to bear on the situation.

He has won the victory through His death and resurrection. He has overcome the world. When we trust in the Lord and in His mighty power, we believe in this work of redemption. We are powerful in that we are in Christ by faith. As we look to Him, we cannot fall for He is “able to keep us from falling, and to present us faultless before his glory with exceeding joy.” The former model of obtaining God’s power is man-centered and flawed, no matter how sincere. We must not choose this model. The latter model is God-centered and based upon the teaching of Scripture. This is the biblical picture of God’s power.

Being strong in the Lord means to allow God to be the power in your life. It is not to “get” God’s power and use it for oneself. We are not to be the one using God’s power. It is God who is the power and only He can use it wisely, justly and victoriously. That is why the Apostle follows the call to “be strong in the Lord” by telling us to “put on the whole armor of God.” That is how we become strong in the Lord. We put on the armor that is God himself. Paul was drawing on the passage from Isaiah 59:16, 17:

And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.

Isaiah speaks of the armor that God wears when he won the battle for our salvation. What Isaiah envisioned became incarnate in the Person of Jesus Christ. Jesus was God in all of His armor, warring against the enemies of righteousness. He “brought salvation” by the power of his mighty arm. Jesus was the “arm of the Lord” or the power of God revealed to us (Isaiah 53:1). Jesus, clothed in his own righteousness, was impervious to the attacks of sin and Satan. As God’s helmet of salvation, Jesus protects all believers from the Serpent’s fatal blows. Jesus is God’s armor for the believer. “Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (Romans 13:14 NIV)

Each piece of the armor Paul describes is a symbol of the mighty work of Christ that He performed on our behalf. How wondrous is God’s grace! What a mighty fortress is our God. Take heart, fellow Christian, that the Lord is your strength. Be strong in Him. When He clothes you with Himself, you will be invincible. “Therefore put on the full armor of God. So that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” (v. 13)