Ephesians 1:19-23
The third clause put forth by the apostle is: “and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.” The word “surpassing” is the Greek word hyperballō and is used four other times in the New Testament (2 Cor 3:10; 9:14; Eph 2:7; 3:19). BDAG defines this as “to attain a degree that extraordinarily exceeds a point on a scale of extent, go beyond, surpass, outdo.” Paul wants the saints to be intimately acquainted with the surpassing greatness of God’s power. “Greatness” means “magnitude,” but this word stands as a hapax legomena, being the only time it occurs in the New Testament. Simpson notes that this word can be used in relation to size, “but might be best understood as a quality.” Being the sole Divine Deity, Paul is speaking of nothing less than the highest grade of power which is stated as being “toward us who believe.”
Paul’s use of “power,” is used five times in this book alone and is found forty more times throughout the remainder of his writings. The word dunamis speaks to “the potentiality to exert force in performing some function,” which can be understood as God’s capability in a matter. Verbrugge states that it means the “ability to achieve” and is used commonly in the LXX in regard to military force. Succinctly put, God Almighty has the most awesome power and ability in existence. Let’s not forget that these three clauses fall under the category of a prayer that a local body of believers in Jesus Christ would be granted the developing quality of wisdom and unveiling (which is only possible spiritually, and therefore a work that can only be done by the Holy Spirit) in a deeper, accurate, precise, and mature knowledge of the Father. His power stands as something that we are desperately in need of being acquainted with, which makes illumination so vital. God’s power is a third of what it is in knowing Him more, deeply, in a way that leaves a lasting impression, redirecting the choices of life from earthly to heavenly. Paxson writes, “The power of which God speaks here is that which is inherently His as God; a power of surpassing, incalculable greatness which reveals the full strength of His might.”
This marvelous power of God is for those who qualify for it, namely, “toward us who believe.” Again, Paul includes himself with the personal pronoun, making this an equal and unified point. It is available to everyone who is “in Christ.” Now, does this mean that the surpassing ability of God has been demonstrated toward believers, or does it mean that those who are “actively believing” are privy to this “surpassing greatness of His power?” I believe that it is applicable to both. When we believe in Christ, we are responding to the presentation of the gospel, namely, our need for a Savior due to the fact that we are helpless sinners that are beyond any other remedy of rescue. At that moment, the power of God “makes us alive” (Eph 2:5) which is something that could never be accomplished apart from God. This wonderful truth stands in the “justification” category and is an undeniable fact. Every person needs the power of God to save them, and it is only God’s power that can save them.
However, in living the Christian life, it is only right to understand that the power of God is seen in greater manifestations for those who are walking in obedience with the faith. Those believers who are holding on to unconfessed sin are not currently in fellowship with God, even though they are still in a permanent and unbreakable relationship with Him. Keep in mind that Paul is writing in regards to blessings that the Church already has simply because they (we) are “in Christ.” Paul’s prayer is that we would come to grips with these fantastic truths, and to do so, we must call upon the Holy Spirit to reveal these things to us, for it is His work. Paul knows from revelation and experience that the deeper that one comes to know God, the greater their steadfastness in hard times, their trust in God’s will when the situation is bleak, and the eternal Hope that carries the believer above and beyond this temporal realm.
Beal and Radmacher write, “If we have become personally acquainted with Jesus Christ, if we know Him with the knowledge Paul is writing about, then we will also experience the power of God in our lives.” Much of American Christianity has been neutered into emotionalism that uses feelings as a gauge for the Lord’s will, but this is not where the Scriptures lead. It is the mind renewed by doctrine, asking for the Spirit’s involvement in illumination that restructures the value system of the believer, elevating them to new heights as they submit to each step revealed.
Finishing verse 19, we read that this is “in accordance with the working of the strength of His might.” With “working,” we have energeia (“energy”) which has an understanding of “the operating activity in some task,” while “strength” is kratos meaning “power exercised in resistance and control (6:10);” and “might” is “ischys, used of bodily strength and muscular force, is inherent, vital power (6:10).”
This means that His power toward believers in Christ has a measurement that has been put on display so that Paul’s readers will know exactly what he is talking about. Paul desires that we should fully affirm and understand the surpassing magnitude of God’s ability toward believers which He operates with precision and force. He wants believers to understand and experience the multi-faceted dimensions of God’s incredible strength and capabilities. This power is a carefully exercised reality that was executed in a worldwide, distinguishable manner that has yet to be disproved- the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ.
With the heart of a pastor, McCalley notes that,
When New Testament writers wish to express the greatness of God’s love, they point to the death of Christ (Rom 5:8); but when they wish to express the greatness of His power, they point to His resurrection and exaltation into the place of highest authority. And it is very important that believers should understand this power because it is also the power that works within us (Eph 3:20). The believer needs to know the resources at his disposal. The power available is not a bubbling stream but a surging river of life capable of sweeping away all things that would hinder its flow. Paul prays that he himself might come to know Christ and the power of his resurrection (Phil 3:10). It is not the power of a clenched fist but that of a pierced hand that rules the universe.
This magnificent power is identified as the power “which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places” (“heavenlies”- Eph 1:20). This is very much resurrection power, but we should not dismiss the fact that this is also ascension power, with Christ being seated at the right hand of the Father.
It is the same power that God demonstrated in raising Christ from the grave that is the same power that He uses to raise us from the grave of our sin nature into a newness of Life, which is both eternal and abundant (John 10:10b; Rom 6:4). It is also the same power that He will exert is raising our physical bodies at the Rapture if we pass away before He calls us Home (1 Thess 4:15-16). I once heard a pastor say that when Christ walked out of that tomb, we walked out with Him! What a glorious truth; a truly liberating thought! Paul wants for the Church to be taken deep into the precise knowledge of God’s phenomenal power, the resurrection power that God has worked, and will work, in us. Grasping this brings confidence and change to how we spend our time on Earth.
The second aspect to this power that God demonstrated in Christ is ascension power. Many passages speak of Christ’s ascension to the right hand of the throne of God in the heavenlies (Matt 22:44; 26:64; Mark 16:19; Acts 2:33; 5:31; 7:55-56; Col 3:1; Heb 1:3; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; 1 Pet 3:22). This act of power is part and parcel of the fact that He has been given the Name which is above every name (Phil 2:9b). It is a place of high esteem, befitting of One who is deserving honor and praise. It is the “on deck” position of the coming King of YHWH who will assume the throne at the proper time and reign in unprecedented glory for 1,000 years (Rev 20:2-7). Jesus’ ascension it the connecting point between His perfect, salvific work on Calvary and His coming administration of earthly dominance. Let us not be tempted to think that this is a “power similar to that” or a “power like that,” but it is the exact power that has accomplished these things in the Person of Christ that is now toward the saint of God. This is another blessing of the “in Christ” reality.
Now there are some “explanations” that have sought to dismiss the ascension of Christ as the apostles physically saw it. Some may claim a pact that devised a lie to be promoted and some may claim that all of them saw an apparition, but Jesus ascended bodily into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God (Acts 1:9-11). Chafer writes:
Not only has He left the tomb and returned to His native place, but He is exalted above all others, with all authority in heaven and on earth committed to Him; yet His humanity is present too. There is a man in the glory. His glorified humanity is retained forever.
Such is the historical record. Jesus ascends bodily before the eyes of the apostles (Luke 24:41-51; Acts 1:9). The call to Thomas to place his hand in the Lord’s side and to touch the nail prints in his forearms show a tangible Christ (John 20:27). Notice the importance of this fact from Philippians 3:20-21.
For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.
Note that the physical body of the believer undergoes a transformation when the Lord comes for His own at the rapture. This is “into conformity with the body of His glory.” There is no indication that this is a “spiritual” body but would be plainly understood as a physical one. Also, such a transformation is “by the exertion of the power” that is used for the subjection of all things under the authority of Christ. Additionally, it must be observed that at no time between the post-resurrection appearances and the ascension do we find any change in makeup or matter regarding Jesus. He is now, bodily, sitting at the right hand of the Father, scars and all, awaiting the time to establish His earthly Kingdom.
Both resurrection power and ascension power are one in the same as they are both manifestations of physical realities that convey a spiritual reality that has already happened (Rom 6:3-4; Eph 2:6) and guarantees a future physical reality that the saints are awaiting (John 14:3-4; 1 Cor 15:51-57; 1 Thess 4:13-18; 2 Pet 3:13). This is one facet of what is meant when referring to the omnipotence of God.
The subject of the power of God is worth pause and pondering. In the Old Testament, the power of God was usually expressed when God was referred to as the Almighty. We would possibly be familiar with the term El Shaddai (Gen 17:1) which means “the Almighty God.” God has demonstrated His power in the resurrection and ascension of Christ, not only for believers (for the purpose of giving hope- 1 Cor 15:20-28), but also as a testimony to the entire world and all of known history. We see the profound nature of this testimony from the Jewish historian Josephus who writes:
Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works—a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; (64) and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.
As far as we know, Josephus never became a believer in Jesus Christ. However, we see that despite his unbelief, he still documented the power of God being exercised in the person of Jesus Christ through the event of the resurrection. Josephus’ testimony is recorded as a historical event, emphasizing the uniqueness of the Lord Jesus and His rising from the dead.
A final point in regard to the “power” under consideration is that it is supernatural. This should not be overlooked. This power is God’s power, and never ours. Nor does His power need our power to compliment or complete it in order for its effectiveness to be secured or ensured. The power that Paul desires for his readers to know intimately is only God’s power, and it alone. It is pure power in its purest form. It is perfect power because it is divine. It is power that is tempered in its exercise by goodness only because God is good. He alone chooses how to utilize His power. To expect something other than God’s power in our situation is to presume that something else is needed and that it alone is not sufficient. Can we see the unbelief that easily boils to the surface when we are faced with a matter where our power has been seen to be insufficient time and time again? Paul understands that in order for the Christian to intimately know the power of God, they must be taken deeper in their thoughts about Him and their experience with Him so that they will become increasingly dissatisfied with self and self-power.
Watchman Nee explains:
For God's way of deliverance is altogether different from man's way. Man's way is to
try to suppress sin by seeking to overcome it; God's way is to remove the sinner. Many
Christians mourn over their weakness, thinking that if only they were stronger all would
be well. The idea that, because failure to lead a holy life is due to our impotence,
something more is therefore demanded of us, leads naturally to this false conception of
the way of deliverance. If we are preoccupied with the power of sin and with our inability
to meet it, then we naturally conclude that to gain the victory over sin we must have more power. `If only I were stronger', we say, `I could overcome my violent outbursts of
temper', and so we plead with the Lord to strengthen us that we may exercise more self-control.
But this is altogether wrong; this is not Christianity. God's means of delivering us
from sin is not by making us stronger and stronger, but by making us weaker and weaker.
That is surely rather a peculiar way of victory, you say; but it is the Divine way. God sets
us free from the dominion of sin, not by strengthening our old man but by crucifying him;
not by helping him to do anything but by removing him from the scene of action.
For years, maybe, you have tried fruitlessly to exercise control over yourself, and
perhaps this is still your experience; but when once you see the truth you will recognize
that you are indeed powerless to do anything, but that in setting you aside altogether God has done it all. Such a revelation brings human self-effort to an end.
We see this in Scripture. In 2 Corinthians 12 the Apostle Paul relates his experience in being “caught up to the third heaven” (12:2b). To keep him from boasting, he is given a “thorn in the flesh” (12:7b). Though he prays for its removal, he receives an answer from the Lord:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9b).
This leads Paul to reply:
“Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me” (2 Cor 12:9c).
Paul used this unworldly and revolutionary truth to turn to boasting in his weaknesses. It is only when he is weak that he is truly strong. This truth is the same for you and I as believers in Christ. Our fullness of self will rob us of His divine working in our lives. Until we come to understand Him more, we will not cease to exalt self while pushing away every opportunity for Him to work. God’s power waits at the end of ourselves. We must be prepared to get out of His way every moment of every day.
It is Paul’s thought concerning the power of God in Christ’s ascension that moves forward in speaking of Jesus as being exalted above every “rule and authority and power and dominion” (Eph 1:21a). This list is much more than Paul simply waxing eloquent over Christ’s position in glory. Vincent explains, “These words usually refer to angelic powers; either good, as ch. 3:10; Col. 1:16; 2:10; or bad, as ch. 6:12; 1 Cor. 15:24; Col. 2:15; or both, as Rom. 8:38… Here probably good, since the passage relates to Christ’s exaltation to glory rather than to His victory over evil powers.” The power of God as exercised in the exaltation of Jesus Christ had dramatic results, which placed Jesus in the position of Supreme Ruler (Col 2:10). Alford notes that this “gives the highest and fullest expression of exaltation.” Jesus is the preeminent One (Col 1:18). The realm of His greatness goes beyond the here and now and stretches into all of eternity forward, into the ages. The obedience of Christ and the magnificent power of God opens the door for Jesus to be praised and revered forever.
There may be some rejection of the above concept, but it should be understood that Jesus Christ is perfectly God and has all power and glory attributed to Him in an undeniable fashion. This is something that He has because of Who He is and the relationship that He shares withing the Holy Trinity. However, His faithfulness in carrying out the payment for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2) is rewarded by a unique exaltation. Philippians tells us:
…although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil 2:6-11).
The obedience of the Lord Jesus to the point of His physical death has brought about an exaltation and recognition that was not previously (nor otherwise) possible.
Continuing with the scope of Jesus’ authority, Paul directs his readers to the fact that God has placed all things under His feet. This concept is related to Jesus’ sitting at the right hand of the throne of God and resembles what the psalmist writes in Psalm 110:1, “The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’” This verse is quoted in the New Testament when speaking about the superiority of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:35; Heb 1:13) and was even used by Christ to confound the Pharisees (Matt 22:44; Mark 12:36; Luke 20:43). This concept clearly communicates the Lordship of Christ over all things, being a demonstration of the power of God. We can understand that this will not be a completed fact until He physically assumes the throne of David on Earth (2 Sam 7:8-16; Psalm 89:3-4; Zech 14:9; Luke 1:32-33; Rev 19:20-21). Everything is in place for this event to transpire, save the gathering of believers to Himself to serve as His viceroys in His coming administration (1 Cor 15:23, 50-56; 1 Thess 4:13-17; 5:1-11; Rev 20:4-6).
We also see that God the Father has granted God the Son the right to be the Head of the church. The metaphor for the body is used throughout Scripture is speaking about the Church (1 Cor 12:12-27; Eph 1:23; 5:23, 30; Col 1:24; 2:19) and Christ is always understood to be the Head of the Body (Eph 4:15; 5:23; Col 1:18; 2:19). In Ephesians 5:22-33, Paul states “This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church,” signifying the intimacy that the Head of the Church has with the Body, which is His Church. Jesus is the Supreme Lord of the Body of Christ and as the Body, the saints are to submit themselves to Him in all matters. The church has no other head, no other husband, and no other master. Because of His exalted position, we are to look to Him for all guidance in conducting our lives and especially the matters within the Church, “which is His Body” (Eph 1:23). Christ alone is the believer’s “wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Cor 1:30b).
“The fullness of Him who fills all in all” is interesting. Marshall states, “The last phrase is ambiguous and may equally mean that Christ is filled with the power of God. However the difficult language be understood, it enhances the omnipotent position and influence of Christ through whom God’s power is at work in the lives of believers.” The “fullness” of Christ is the Church, His Body. Speaking of being the “fullness,” this concept does not point to the idea of completing Christ. To say this would be to imply that Christ is incomplete and thus, lacking in some way that only the Church can fill. To understand “fullness” is to see that in and through the Church, Christ has placed His fullness. Just as God demonstrates His fullness in Christ (John 10:31; 14:9; Col 1:19) and God was thus manifested in the Person of Jesus Christ, so the Body is the passive recipient of the fullness of Christ, meaning that “the church now embodies, expresses, and mediates that glorious presence to the world.” This is in conjunction with our earlier observance of the voluntary submission of the Son to the Father (See notes under Eph 1:17-18). Robertson affirms this understanding when he writes:
All things are summed up in Christ (1:10), who is the πληρωμα [plērōma] of God (Col 1:19), and in particular does Christ fill the church universal as his body. Hence we see in Ephesians the Dignity of the Body of Christ which is ultimately to be filled with the fulness (πληρωμα [plērōma]) of God (3:19) when it grows up into the fulness (πληρωμα [plērōma]) of Christ (4:13, 16).
In Christ is the fulfillment of all things. As His Body demonstrates His fullness to the world, all things in the world will be reconciled to Him and through Him for all things are for Him (Rom 11:36; Eph 4:10; 2 Cor 5:17-19).
Paul’s prayer has given way to praise, as it should. The Christian who prays for the spiritual well-being of others will be privy to glimpses of the Lord’s greatness that will bring about doxology. Beal and Radmacher write, “The mighty power of Jesus should lead us to constant worship with the deepest astonishment, admiration, and awe. How amazing that we should be privileged to stand united to the one who has dominion over all and yet one with whom we enjoy a loving personal relationship.”
Paul’s prayer being transformed into a doxological outpouring speaks to the readers about what prayer should lead to. This section contains the essential elements of worship: It speaks of who God is and of what God has done. These are the only motivations for acceptable worship in this life, for God is the only One worthy of being praised. Here is a summary of Paul’s prayer and praise:
Who God is
- The God of our Lord Jesus Christ (1:17)
- The Father of glory (1:17)
- He can reveal more about Himself (1:17)
- He is a God who can enlighten the human heart (1:18)
- He has immeasurable power (1:19)
What God has done
- He has called all believers to a hope (1:18)
- He has given all believers an inheritance (1:18)
- He has used His resurrection power on believers in Christ (1:19)
- He has demonstrated His power in the resurrection and ascension of Christ (1:20)
- God has exalted Christ above all celestial beings (1:21)
- God has given Jesus a name that is greater than any other name forever (1:21)
- God has put all things under His feet (1:22)
- God has made Christ the Head of the Church (1:22)
Who God is and all that God has done deserves immediate praise!
Paul’s heart for these dear believers is that they would develop a deeper understanding of the Father through the enlightening work of the Spirit. His work of imparting wisdom and revelation would unfold greater heights of steadfastness in affirming their calling, inheritance, and the power of the Father toward them. “The basis upon which the Holy Spirit carries on the subjective work in the believer, is the objective truth of his eternal completeness in the Lord Jesus Christ: crucified, buried, risen and ascended.” Only “in Christ” and through His completed work are these things true and certain for all who believe.
This prayer is biblical, inspired of God, and is right to be upon the lips of every saint.