To Encourage You

Ephesians 3:20-21 “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

The words above, written by the apostle Paul, were written as a first-person account of the amazing work that God had done in his own life.  Think about what Paul was before he met Christ.  He sums up his former life for us in these words: “For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers” (Galatians 1:13-14).  In essence, Paul was nothing more than a religious terrorist, so like the terrorists that we hear about today.  He hated Jesus.  He hated Christians. He was so sure of himself, so confident of his own abilities, his education, and his purpose in life. He was focused, committed, and sincere.  He was so sure he was in the right about everything. And then he met Jesus and everything changed.  In a moment of time he realized that everything in which he had taken such confidence, everything about which he thought himself so “right”, was all very, very wrong.  When he saw the truth, his world was shattered, for suddenly he saw himself as “the worst of sinners.” How could he have been so wrong? 

And it was the same for so many of the others who eventually became Jesus’ disciples.  Peter, James, and John; headstrong, brash men who expected to live and die as fishermen on the sea of Galilee. Matthew, a despised tax collector, hated by the people for extorting from them more than they owed.  But then they met the Lord.  Every single one of them could testify that Jesus had done things in their lives that were far beyond anything they could have ever asked for (for would they have even known what to ask), or imagine.  Each of them was transformed.  Peter, James, and John – common fishermen transformed into fishers of men.  Paul, a persecutor of the church became a pillar of it.  Matthew, a person whose god had at one time been money, transformed into a person whose focus in life was to lay up treasures in heaven.  The 12 apostles, transformed from a mundane life in this world to founders of the church of the Living God, men whose names are eternally inscribed on the 12 foundations of the new Jerusalem in heaven (Revelation 21:14). 

And that’s the way it is for every believer.  None of us were born into this world as believers. Rather, we were born sinners, “having no hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12). But then, if we have been born again, we have been “delivered . . . from the domain of darkness and transferred . . .  to the kingdom of (God’s) beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13).  We, who were destined to lose everything on the day of our death (for we all know, “we can’t take it with us”) were made “children of God” (1 John 3:2), “heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:17) of all that the kingdom of God is for all eternity.   We have been transformed from those who were destined for loss, decay in the grave, and the second death in hell, to those who are destined for glory with the very glory of Christ (Romans 8:30). And one day, not too far away, we know that “we shall be like Him, because we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).

But while we wait, we have been made new creations in Christ, as is declared in these words from 2 Corinthians 5:17-21: ”Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

Think of it: God has called us to join Him in an eternal work of sharing the message of eternal life with the world.  He has chosen us to live a life that glorifies Him, which is a life that He will reward us for all eternity. And He has chosen us who once were lost but now are found, to go into all the world and preach the wonderful message of eternal life to everyone we meet.  In the awesome providence and power of God He can use the words we share and the life we live as a means by which people hear the message of the gospel and are saved.  It’s an awesome truth. It’s a glorious calling.  But it’s all because of our wonderful God “Who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.”

Praise His wonderful name!