Written
By: Kirk Peterson
The amount of energy that is released when two atoms
touch has produced the most powerful FORCE science has ever shown mankind
with nuclear energy. Modern medicine and
surgery has saved people’s lives from disease and sickness who would have
perished otherwise and showed mankind the HEALING power of science. Though these powers are great, there is
nothing GREATER than the living God!
28I
give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away
from me, 29for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than
anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. 30The Father and I
are one.” (John 10:28-30, NLT)
One of the greatest powers God has shown to us is His
power to give those that trust in Him eternal life. Jesus tells us here in John, that God the
Father has given those who are saved to His son. Nothing is more powerful than God and nothing
can steal those who are called children of God away from Him. No force of evil, no power of science, indeed
nothing in all of creation is more powerful than Yahweh!
Jesus
is Stronger
Recently, my young son Brody (our 4 year old), asked me
if he should be scared of “the bad guys?”
We had taught him about the enemy and his army of demons, and he asked
what I thought was a very good question coming from someone so young. I told him that as a child of God, he had NOTHING
TO FEAR from the enemy, for Our God is greater. As my bible study said, “No matter how strong
evil seems in any situation, Jesus is stronger!”
20But
if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has
arrived among you. 21For when a strong man like Satan is fully armed and guards
his palace, his possessions are safe—22until someone even stronger attacks and
overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings.
(Luke 11:20, NLT)
Power
of Death
The bible tells us that we can tell false prophets and
teachings by looking to the fruit that they produce. It also teaches us to be careful that what we
think is light and truth, might actually be darkness. Some of the best fruit I have seen in this
life, is from Christian men who when facing death--still found joy and peace.
I want to tell you two stories that I fell show the POWER
of Christian hope. The first story, is
about someone in my Bible study. His Mom
had just passed away a couple of days before this particular study, and I was
amazed to see that he truly had joy in his heart at his Mom’s passing. He was happy at a time that most people would
have been broken. You could see that his
faith in God and God’s promises filled him with hope, and that he was grateful that
his Mother got to spend eternity in heaven.
I was humbled, for I knew that in the same situation I would have been
sad and broken--yet here he sat, mere hours after learning that his one and
only mother on this earth had passed away, was left smiling and joyous about
his mother’s death. I think this shows
the very power of Christian hope, and the weight to the Bible’s words that
death has lost its sting by the victory of Jesus Christ our Lord!
The next story is about a man that is closer to God than
anyone else I have met in this life. The
rain was beating down in a torrential downpour of a storm, with a power that was
flooding the very ground before us. We
all stared out into the darkness of the storm and realized that we would just
have to wait this one out. None of us
had brought umbrellas and I even went as far as trying to use a makeshift plastic
shelter (to no avail) to shield us from the rain. This man was in good spirits and was his
typical self, cracking jokes and offering words of encouragement. As he continued to speak, I was amazed to
hear that his daughter was at the trauma hospital downtown and might not make
it through. Having two children of my
own, I was astounded to see his mood be so light and joyful at such a hard time. I told him that it was very obvious that he
was close to God by the way he was living his life at such a challenging time.
54Then,
when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this
Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. 55O death,
where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56For sin is the sting
that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. 57But thank God! He
gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1
Corinthians 15:54-57, NLT)
God’s
Authority
[Jesus
speaking] 28Remember what I told you: I am going away, but I will come back to
you again. If you really loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the
Father, who is greater than I am. (John 14:28 NLT)
God the Father has AUTHORITY OVER ALL THINGS. Jesus himself said that God the Father is GREATER
than even he is. I believe, that
though the Father--Son--Holy Spirit are one, that God the Father has authority
over all things. I believe, the authority
of the Most High reigns over even Jesus & the Holy Spirit. When Jesus said that the Father is greater
than he is, I believe that he was speaking of God’s authority.
The Trinity of God is a concept that is very challenging for
humans to understand, and perhaps is something that is BEYOND us. My friend said his pastor said it this way, “The
Trinity is a HOLY UNION. A bond
between Father, Son and Spirit.” Though
we are all part of God’s family when we trust in Him, I believe the holy union
of God unites The Three as One.
See
Image Here: http://www.whitestonediary.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/god-is-in-control_t_nv.jpg
Jesus
is All Powerful
One of the children in our Bible study asked us how God—Son—Spirit
could be one? I tried to teach them
about the Holy Union of The Three and how that bond united them as One. Also, I spoke of Jesus, having just went over
three lessons in consecutive weeks on the miracles of Jesus--about his power
here on earth. I explained to them that
Jesus was both man & God, and that I believed that AT THE RIGHT TIME he was
empowered with the spirit without limit that enabled him to perform all kinds
of miracles including: healing any sickness or disease, raising the dead back
to life and casting out demons. I said
that Jesus could have destroyed the entire world if he wanted too when he was here
on this earth, and through he had all the same weaknesses we have, he never
fell short of the glory of God.
Jesus teaches us that everything he has is from the
Father. He said that everything he did was
to fulfill the will of God. I believe
that Jesus had ultimate power when he was here on earth, but submitted to God’s
authority and His will to fulfill his mysterious plan. God has already told us what that mysterious plan is. To first give his people the law. Then, to send his Son Jesus to fulfill the
law and transform how He saves his people by Jesus’ sacrifice at the cross--saved
by grace and fulfilling His promise to change our hard hearts and bestow upon
those who believe His Holy Spirit.
Finally, after the Day of Judgment, God will create a new heaven and a
new earth and His people will live with Him forever in the golden city of The
New Jerusalem.
27“My Father has entrusted everything to me.
No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father
except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” (Matthew
11:27, NLT)
3Jesus
knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come
from God and would return to God. (John 13:3, NLT)
38And
you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with
power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by
the devil, for God was with him. 39“And we apostles are witnesses of all he did
throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a
cross, 40but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to
appear, 41not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance
to be his witnesses. We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose
from the dead. 42And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that
Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the
dead. 43He is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone
who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name.” (Acts
10:38-39, NLT)
I hope and pray that those reading this will come to know
that God is Greater. That no matter the
situation or circumstance, that God is stronger!
May the peace of Christ be with you.
See
Chris Thomlin’s Video “Our God is Greater” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlA5IDnpGhc
