Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29, NIV)
Everybody’s looking for power in their golf game. It starts on the tee, of course. But when you’re standing in the fairway, you need to make a committed swing with meaningful impact there as well. And it’s a powerful thump from the sand or the thick greenside rough that will send your ball where you want it to go.
In golf, power comes from an efficient combination of torque, lag, and timing. Muscle is an aid to power, but by itself this expected source is almost meaningless. I’ve seen players drub a ball into submission, but rarely into the hole!
In the same way, we often throw the term power in the wrong direction when we speak of spiritual matters. For instance, there is “the power of prayer,” an expression that never actually appears in Scripture. Doubtless, prayer has an important place in the relationship between men and God. But prayer neither produces nor provides power; prayer calls on the real power.
Where the word of God does attribute real power is to God—as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
And what we learn from Jesus’ exchange with the Sadducees in Matthew 22 is that we do well when we know the power of God. These men had come to Jesus with another of their convoluted questions and he responded by telling them that they could not answer the question themselves because they did not know the Scriptures themselves nor the power of the one who had delivered those holy words. It is a rebuke we want to avoid for ourselves!
So how do we learn of God’s power?
We might begin, ironically, in prayer. Ask the Lord to reveal through his word and his work his power to your spiritual eyes. The Lord is at work all the time, but many do not recognize what he is doing because they have not asked him to make them increasingly aware of his ways.
We might continue in study. Read extended sections of Scripture—particularly in the Old Testament histories, in the Gospels, and in Acts—with eyes open to what God has done. Be assured of this: What God has done, he can do. And what he can do, he may do again. By biblical study of God’s powerful work among his people, we prepare our hearts to recognize his power for today.
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Jeff Hopper
April 30, 2012
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