This Day in History: 0000-07-09

July 9 – Ephesians 1:18-23 

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called – His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance. 
I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe in Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now He is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else – not only in this world but also in the world to come. 
God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made Him head over all things for the benefit of the church. And the church is the body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with Himself. 

Understanding. Hope. Identity. Power. These are just a few of the wonderful treasures imparted by God the Father upon His precious children. We have been given access to the very same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead and then seated Him at God’s right hand in Heaven. It’s the same power that gave Jesus the highest honor there is and ultimate authority over EVERYTHING! Let that kind of power sink in a minute. 

Seriously. Think about it. Think about what kind of power it would take, what kind of power God would need to have in order to be able to do something like that. YOU – dearly loved son or daughter of the Lord God Almighty – have access to that SAME power! Friend, if that doesn’t fill you with confident hope, I don’t know what will. 

But just in case it doesn’t, just in case we need a little bit more to push us over the edge, check out the reason this passage gives for why God would use His vast power to do all that and to put Jesus in a place of such authority: For the benefit of the church!!!! He did it for us! To make us full, and complete in Christ. 

Friends, let’s find our identity in these precious truths! Let’s allow our dear and wonderful Heavenly Father to define us. Let’s get out of the way and truly allow that incredible power to overcome our circumstances! Let’s live in the confident hope that is ours as His holy people, His rich and glorious inheritance!