Powerful

One of my favorite passages of Scripture is in Ephesians 3. The language is so tightly packed with meaning that we might easily miss it.

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. (Eph 3:20-21)

It is the end of a prayer Paul offers at the end of the chapter, so it is to "Him" -- the Father (Eph 3:14). What is it that Paul is ending with about "Him"? "To Him be glory." (Eph 3:21) Not us. Not anyone else. Him. What glory? "In the church and in Christ Jesus." What quantity of glory? "Throughout all generations, forever and ever." Lots and lots of glory.

So what does Paul say that provides such glory to God? He speaks of God's power at work in us. Well, that's nice, I guess. No, not "nice." Huge! This power that Paul is referencing is so massive that Paul runs out of description. Our Bibles translate it "far more abundantly beyond," but the structure of the language itself is strange. The Greek phrase is hypér hyperekperissou pâs. (I know ... "It's all Greek to me, Stan. You're not helping." But follow it for a moment.) If you look you'll see "hyper" and "hyper" side by side in the first two terms. Now, let me think. What do you suppose "hyper" means? It is, of course, exactly the source of our English "hyper" -- "beyond, above." So, what about that "hyperekperissou" thing? Well, that word adds "perissou" to "hyper" winding up with "hyper-abundantly" or "superabundantly." You see? Paul ran out of superlatives. "God is able to do more ... no, wait ... far more ... nope, not good enough ... superabundantly far more that anything ..." ("pâs"). Big, bigger, biggest.

It doesn't end there. So God is able to do superabundantly far more than any what? Superabundantly far more than anything you can ask or think. You can come up with whatever you might ask and He can exceed that. You can dream but not ask and He can exceed that. Really, really, really big. Superabundantly far beyond your wildest imagination.

It doesn't end there. This power ("dunamis") that God has that vastly exceeds your wildest imagination is "at work within us." Not merely around us. Not just "available." Not theoretical. This "superabundantly far more beyond all" power is currently at work in every believer.

Therefore there can be no sense in which we are powerless. There is no lack of capability in what we can do for God's glory. God's power is not general; it is personal. For you. And me. I suppose the thing to do, then, is to get to work, right?