Supernatural Enablement
We are to draw continually on
God's supernatural strength and power
to enable us to walk worthy
of our great calling in Christ.
Here now is Gene Getz:
This Principle actually comes
from the whole biblical story.
Really from Genesis to Revelation
because the Bible, and the experiences
that are described in the Bible,
relate to God's supernatural
intervention in our lives.
It's supernatural. And this great truth
in God's strength and power
is really what makes Christianity unique.
This is what sets Christianity off
from secular humanism.
It's supernatural.
And here, Isaiah underscored this Principle.
The data for this Principle,
the biblical background for this Principle.
He understood God's strength.
He understood God's power.
And so if you read Isaiah 40:10,
this is what we read--
God's Strength and Power:
See, the Lord GOD comes with strength,
and His power establishes His rule.
His reward is with Him,
and His gifts accompany Him.
Isaiah understood that.
That's foundational to everything
we're going to read hereafter.
Not just in Isaiah but in the
whole biblical story.
Isaiah also understood God's compassion.
His forgiving heart.
...He protects His flock like a shepherd; ...
How does He protect His flock?
Like a shepherd.
It's His power.
It's His divine presence.
...He gathers the lambs in His arms
[and He] carries them in the fold of His garment.
He gently leads those that are nursing.
And as you read the rest of
chapter 40 here in Isaiah,
Isaiah reminds the children of Israel
who God really is.
His strength. His power.
And that's why I call this
next section from Isaiah--
God's Supernatural Power and Strength:
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Yahweh is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the whole earth.
He never grows faint or weary;
there is no limit to His understanding.
He gives strength to the weary
and strengthens the powerless.
Youths may faint and grow weary,
and young men stumble and fall,
but those who trust in the Lord
will renew their strength;
they will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary;
they will walk and not faint.
Wow!
The whole focus is on God's power,
God's strength, that He wants to give us.
To enable us to follow Him
and to walk in His will.
Now the immediate fulfillment here is
in relationship to the Babylonian captivity.
And the fact that they're going to be
released from the Babylonian captivity.
They're going to go back.
They're going to try to rebuild the walls.
They're going to face their enemies.
And of course, Nehemiah came back
under God's supernatural leadership
and answers to prayer.
And they rebuilt those walls
in an incredible 52 days.
In spite of all of the hostility,
the threats, the psychological warfare.
The literal threat of wiping them
off the face of the earth.
And we read in Nehemiah 6--
it's marvelous, marvelous testimony
to what God did through these people:
The wall was completed in 52 days,
on the twenty-fifth day of the month Ellul.
When all our enemies heard this,
all the surrounding nations
were intimidated [and] they lost their confidence, for...
And notice why. Notice why
as Nehemiah records it:
...[the enemies of Israel] realized that
this task had been accomplished by our God.
It was supernatural.
God was at work--giving them strength,
giving them power.
Giving them the ability to face
all of that resentment
and all of those threats.
Now it didn't mean that they weren't busy,
active, using all their skills.
It's a marvelous study in Nehemiah.
He had a plan.
He designed the plan.
It was strategic.
He was a strong leader.
But he balanced the human,
he balanced the divine.
And I love that one section
where they were incredibly threatened.
They were surrounded by their enemies.
And they didn't take off their clothes.
They worked day and night.
They had a sword in one hand
and a trowel in the other.
And all the time they were talking to God.
Asking for divine strength and power
to be able to complete the task.
So you see that God uses our human ability,
our thinking, but we can't achieve the things
He wants us to achieve without His divine power.
His Divine blessing.
His strength.
And when you get in the New Testament, of course
we see this built in a marvelous way.
Paul's letters, for example,
when he wrote to the Ephesians.
I love this prayer. Paul said:
I pray that . . . you may know what is
. . . the immeasurable greatness of His power...
And by the way, that word translates in English,
"power," comes from the same basic word
as we get the word "dynamite"--"dunamis:"
...[God's] power to us who believe,
according to the working of
His vast strength.
And that's another synonym
in the Greek text for power.
There are about four words that he uses
in this passage that relate to
God's strength and God's power.
In 1:20 of Ephesians:
He [God] demonstrated this power
in the Messiah by raising Him
from the dead and seating Him
at His right hand in the heavens.
It was God's power that
raised Jesus from the dead.
And it's God's power that transforms us
and seats us in the heavenlies with Jesus Christ.
Even at this moment in our lives.
The same power that raised Jesus Christ
from the dead is the power that is at work
in our lives when we're born again.
Amazing!
In Ephesians 3, again continuing his prayer, Paul said:
I pray that He may grant you,
according to the riches of His glory,
to be strengthened with power
in the inner man through His Spirit. ...
And I love the context here
because basically, he's not just talking
to me or to you. He's talking to all of us
when he talks about the inner man--
individually, corporately.
The Spirit of God dwells within us.
To give us the strength to live
and to do what God wants us to do.
Here's one of my favorite verses.
Sort of a culmination to what Paul
is building here in Ephesians 3:20:
Now to Him who is able to do above
and beyond all that we ask
or think according...
To what? According to what?
...the power that works in us--
to Him be glory in the church
and in Christ Jesus to all generations,
forever and ever. Amen.
And then finally in Ephesians chapter 6,
as he comes to the end he says:
Finally, be strengthened...
Again there's that word, a synonym for power.
...Finally, be strengthened by the Lord
and by His vast strength.
You see, that's what Isaiah was talking about.
Even among the children of Israel.
And so we have this great theme
from Genesis to Revelation.
So here's the question:
What are some of the challenges
in our lives as Christians when we need
God's supernatural strength and power?
Well my first answer to that is: All the time.
We really do need His strength all the time.
It's so easy.
I find it so easy, when I'm feeling good,
things are going well,
is to operate in my own strength.
Not to back off and say: Lord, I feel good
about what I'm doing here and thank you.
And it's encouraging
and we're making progress.
But Lord, without Your strength
we can't culminate this.
We cannot achieve your goals.
Now of course, when we're in the ditch
or we're in trouble.
And by the way, God says:
Hey, come to me when you're in trouble.
Be specific.
You know, don't hesitate about anything.
I'm interested. I want to help you.
And so we need Him especially
when we're discouraged.
Let's not be ashamed to go to Him.
We may need to begin with confession and say:
Lord, I've been really strong
and I've been doing well
and I forgot to even talk to You.
But now I really need You.
Thanks for understanding.
When we're filled with grief.
Wow, those times hit us.
Tragedies hit us.
God understands that.
That's when we really need God's strength.
When we're facing temptation.
That's what we need God's strength.
We need to go to Him. We need His power.
When we're captives to sin.
Particularly when we are taken captive,
held captive, in bondage.
Wow, we need God's strength to help us.
And when we're weak mentally.
I don't know about you
but I get that way every once in a while.
I can't think straight about an issue.
And I need God's strength to help me
think that through.
And physically.
And obviously, as we get older,
we really need God's strength
in terms of our physical being.
So here's the Principle, not only
from Isaiah, but from the whole biblical story:
We are to draw continually
on God's supernatural strength
and power to enable us to walk worthy
of our great calling in Jesus Christ.