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Word of the Week - "Power" From Creation to Completion: God's Power in Our Lives
This week's Word of the Week focuses on the incredible attribute of God's omnipotence, emphasizing that God is all-powerful and free from limitations. Pastor Josh Massaro explores how God's power is evident in creation, describing how He brought everything into existence from nothing and sustains all things. He highlights that while humans may possess some form of power, it pales in comparison to God's ultimate authority and strength. Through scripture, such as Romans and Colossians, we see that God not only creates but also holds everything together and completes the work He starts in our lives. This episode encourages listeners to relinquish their control and trust in God's power, recognizing that true strength comes from Him alone.
A profound exploration of God’s omnipotence unfolds as Pastor Josh takes listeners through the attributes of God, focusing on His all-powerful nature. The discussion commences with the foundational belief that God is the creator of the universe, having brought all things into existence from nothing—known as creation ex nihilo. This act not only highlights God’s unmatched power but also serves as a reminder that human beings, despite their strengths, are limited by their mortal nature. Pastor Josh emphasizes that while we can embody certain attributes of God, such as love and mercy, the incommunicable attribute of omnipotence underscores the vast chasm between human capability and divine strength.
Throughout the episode, scripture is woven into the message, particularly from Romans and Colossians, which elucidate God’s omnipotence and ongoing involvement in creation. Pastor Josh points out that Romans 1:20 illustrates how God’s eternal power is evident in the created world, leading all humanity to acknowledge their accountability to Him. Colossians 1 further reinforces this by declaring that Jesus is the sustainer of all creation, indicating that God's power is not only evident in the act of creation but also in His continuous support of the universe and our lives. This dual role as creator and sustainer is a source of hope for believers, affirming that God is actively engaged in their lives, guiding and holding them together.
The latter part of the podcast invites listeners to consider the implications of God’s omnipotence in their personal lives. Pastor Josh challenges them to surrender their own sense of control and recognize that true strength comes from God. He cites 2 Corinthians 12, where Paul learns that God’s grace is sufficient and that His power is made perfect in weakness. This poignant reminder encourages believers to embrace their limitations, trusting that God’s all-powerful nature will provide the strength needed to navigate life's challenges. The episode concludes with a call to action, inviting listeners to celebrate God’s omnipotence and to reflect on how this understanding can transform their faith and daily existence.
Takeaways:
- God is all powerful, exhibiting omnipotence that is evident in creation and sustenance.
- Understanding God’s attributes helps us live out His love, grace, and mercy.
- Surrendering control to God allows His power to be evident in our lives.
- God, as the creator and sustainer, holds everything together in our lives.
- Our identity as believers is rooted in Christ, who empowers us in all circumstances.
- The assurance of God's power should inspire us to live by faith, not fear.
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Transcript
Pastor Josh here, the word of the week is power.
Pastor Josh:For the next several lessons here in the word of the week, we are going to be studying the attributes of God.
Pastor Josh:These are the characteristics of God that make him God.
Pastor Josh:We can learn these attributes through scripture.
Pastor Josh:Some of these attributes are attributes that we can observe, that we can experience in our own life, and actually, to some degree, live out in our own lives as believers.
Pastor Josh:So, for example, we can experience God's love.
Pastor Josh:We can read about God's love, and we can show God's love to other people around us.
Pastor Josh:We can experience his grace, his mercy, his forgiveness, and to some degree, be graceful, merciful, and forgiving.
Pastor Josh:Now, none of us as human beings can be perfect.
Pastor Josh:None of us as human beings can completely live out these attributes in perfection.
Pastor Josh:That's only God's position, because he is perfect and completely holy.
Pastor Josh:We as human beings are fallible.
Pastor Josh:We are flawed in our limitations as humans.
Pastor Josh:So there are some attributes that are communicable, meaning we can understand them and in some ways live them out in our lives.
Pastor Josh:But there are some attributes of God that what we are as christians, as humans, not able to obtain.
Pastor Josh:And these are the incommunicable attributes of God.
Pastor Josh:Incommunicable attributes are attributes that we cannot obtain because we are not goddesse.
Pastor Josh:And so God is perfectly holy in the concept of his holiness.
Pastor Josh:We can never be perfectly holy on this side of heaven.
Pastor Josh:It is his holiness imparted unto us that gives us the righteousness in our own lives.
Pastor Josh:And so the attribute that we're going to be studying here today is the attributes of God's all powerful nature.
Pastor Josh:Some of us, as humans, can have physical power, some of us can have positional power, but none of us can have an all powerful nature.
Pastor Josh:We all have limitations.
Pastor Josh:And when what we can see through scripture is that God has no limitations.
Pastor Josh:And so the theological term for this is omnipotence.
Pastor Josh:Omnipotence just means all powerful.
Pastor Josh:God is all powerful.
Pastor Josh:Now, where we can learn about that in scripture is starting in Genesis, chapter one, creation, right?
Pastor Josh:God created this world out of nothing.
Pastor Josh:The theological term for that is ex nihilo, out of nothing.
Pastor Josh:God spoke this world into existence from nothing to something.
Pastor Josh:And actually, that something as originally created was perfect.
Pastor Josh:It was good, and we marred it by sin in our own nature, in our own human nature.
Pastor Josh:And so God is perfectly powerful, completely powerful, not limited by anything of this world, not limited by himself, not limited by mankind, not limited by evil.
Pastor Josh:And in Romans chapter one, we actually see this explained here in the New Testament.
Pastor Josh:Romans, chapter one.
Pastor Josh:Paul is explaining that all human beings are responsible to respond to God in his power because we all as humans witness his creation.
Pastor Josh:And so just that general revelation of witnessing his creation should bring us to the point of understanding that there is a creator out there.
Pastor Josh:There is an all powerful God who brought something out of nothing.
Pastor Josh:Romans chapter one, verse 20 says, for the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and godhead, so that they are without excuse.
Pastor Josh:And so there's no one who has an excuse because we can all look out and see in general revelation, this creation that God brought about.
Pastor Josh:That's his all powerful nature.
Pastor Josh:Now, that's not enough to save us.
Pastor Josh:We have to understand that there is a creator out there and then understand what's called specific revelation, revelation from the word of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Pastor Josh:And so we then search after this all powerful God and we find Jesus and we know that it's the holy spirit that stirs our heart to know this truth.
Pastor Josh:But as we can see in this case, the all powerful nature of God is described here in Romans chapter one.
Pastor Josh:Another passage of scripture that talks about God's all powerful nature is colossians.
Pastor Josh:Colossians, chapter one.
Pastor Josh:And we can see it in verse 16 and 17.
Pastor Josh:Verse 16 and 17 is talking about the all powerful nature of God.
Pastor Josh:If you go back to verse 15, it says, who is the image of the invisible God?
Pastor Josh:Now this is talking about Jesus and his godhood, that Jesus is God.
Pastor Josh:And so it says that in verse 16, for by him were all things created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
Pastor Josh:All things were created by him and for him.
Pastor Josh:And he is before all things and by him all things consist.
Pastor Josh:The idea that is here is that basically God is holding everything together.
Pastor Josh:Now he is the creator.
Pastor Josh:And so that's one element of his all powerful nature, is that he is the creator, something out of nothing.
Pastor Josh:God is a creator.
Pastor Josh:But then we see also here that God is a sustainer in his all powerful nature.
Pastor Josh:So he doesn't just create something and let it go like a clock maker creates his clock and then sets it in motion and steps away and isn't involved in that life.
Pastor Josh:He, God is a God who is concerned about our lives and he is involved in our lives.
Pastor Josh:He's present in our lives.
Pastor Josh:And so it says here, yes, he is the creator, but he is also the sustainer, verse 17 of Colossians, chapter one.
Pastor Josh:And by him all things consist.
Pastor Josh:And by him all things are held together.
Pastor Josh:What an amazing truth that is.
Pastor Josh:And what an amazing truth that we can trust in, in our lives is that God is a creator.
Pastor Josh:He created us and he saved us, but he also holds us together in our lives.
Pastor Josh:Another passage of scripture that I'm reminded of when I think about that is in Hebrews, chapter twelve.
Pastor Josh:Hebrews, chapter twelve, verse two.
Pastor Josh:Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Pastor Josh:And so, yes, God is a creator, he is a sustainer, but he's also the finisher, the completer.
Pastor Josh:What an amazing truth that is, that what a work that God starts in our life.
Pastor Josh:He completes it.
Pastor Josh:Philippians, chapter one.
Pastor Josh:Philippians, chapter one, verse six.
Pastor Josh:Another verse that speaks of this completion, this finishing of a work.
Pastor Josh:It says, being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
Pastor Josh:That is a truth that we can take heart in, that we can have confidence in, that we can have hope in, that God is a creator.
Pastor Josh:He is the author and finisher of our faith.
Pastor Josh:So God created a way for us to understand him.
Pastor Josh:God created us in his image.
Pastor Josh:God created us in a world that was perfect, and yet we marred it by sin.
Pastor Josh:But yet God still created a path for us to understand his grace and his mercy.
Pastor Josh:And so he is the one who creates it.
Pastor Josh:He is the one who sustains it.
Pastor Josh:Thank the Lord that he is holding us together.
Pastor Josh:Thank the Lord that it is not me who is in control of my own life, but it is God who is in control of my life.
Pastor Josh:And so he is the creator, the sustainer.
Pastor Josh:And then, as we see, the completer, the finisher, the author and finisher of our faith.
Pastor Josh:That is an amazing, amazing truth to know about God.
Pastor Josh:And not just to know about God, but to believe about God.
Pastor Josh:We know that even back in Hebrews, chapter one, verse three, it says, who, being the brightness of his glory, in the express image of his person and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high.
Pastor Josh:And so this is speaking of the power of God.
Pastor Josh:This is speaking of his all powerful nature, saving us, sustaining us, and completing the work that he has for us in our lives.
Pastor Josh:And so what can we learn from this.
Pastor Josh:What can we learn and understand and apply in our lives when it comes to the area of God's omnipotence?
Pastor Josh:Well, it's this that we are not in control, that we must relinquish control from our life so that God's power can be seen and understood in our lives and through our lives.
Pastor Josh:Second Corinthians, chapter number twelve.
Pastor Josh:Paul is dealing with a struggle, a thorn in his side.
Pastor Josh:And most of you are familiar with this passage.
Pastor Josh:He asked three times for it to be removed, and God responds with essentially a no.
Pastor Josh:And so what happens is in verse number nine, God speaks to Paul and he says, my grace is sufficient for thee, for my strengthen, or my power is made perfect in weakness.
Pastor Josh:And so then Paul's response is, well, most gladly, therefore will I glory, rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Pastor Josh:And so what this means is that we relinquish what we think is the power of our own lives and say, you know what, Lord?
Pastor Josh:I will be weak, I will be humble, I will be broken, so that your power can be seen in my life, so that I can be used by your power.
Pastor Josh:This is a difficult thing.
Pastor Josh:This is a difficult process to go through.
Pastor Josh:But what the Bible says is essentially this.
Pastor Josh:As a Christian, we die to ourselves, we die to our wants, we die to our fleshly desires and even into the fact of our own control in our lives.
Pastor Josh:And so if God is all powerful and God loves us and God has what's best for us in our life, then what that means is that there is a surrender, a submission that comes with understanding God's power.
Pastor Josh:The more we understand God's power, the more we trust in God's power.
Pastor Josh:The more we believe in that truth in our lives, the more we are going to live by faith.
Pastor Josh:We are going to live in trusting God to overcome our issues in our life, trusting God to give us the things that we need to do for his work in our life.
Pastor Josh:Philippians 413 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Pastor Josh:That's not a verse to say, I can do whatever I want.
Pastor Josh:And God's going to bless me.
Pastor Josh:It's God's going to let me come to a place in my life where it might be good or it might be bad.
Pastor Josh:But if God's brought me to this, he's going to give me the power to get through this.
Pastor Josh:And so I encourage you here, as you listen to this podcast, to think about what it means to have a God who is all powerful, who is invested in your life as the creator, the savior, the sustainer and the finisher, the completer of your faith.
Pastor Josh:Man, that's exciting for me because there's so many times in my life that I look to other things for my power.
Pastor Josh:Maybe it's my physical strengthen, maybe it's my finances, maybe it's the political climate around me, maybe it's my job, maybe it's my house, maybe it's whatever it is that I look to as my power or my strength.
Pastor Josh:But folks, really what it is is that if we are a believer, our identity is in Christ.
Pastor Josh:Therefore, the power that we see in our life that God gives us is the power through us.
Pastor Josh:But it's ultimately sourced in God.
Pastor Josh:Like I can tell you that.
Pastor Josh:The Bible does say that we will receive power.
Pastor Josh:And that's an exciting thing.
Pastor Josh:We're not powerless as Christians.
Pastor Josh:It's just not our power.
Pastor Josh:It's God's power.
Pastor Josh:Ephesians, chapter three, verse 20.
Pastor Josh:Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that worketh in us.
Pastor Josh:And so God is going to do things above what we could ever ask or think.
Pastor Josh:But what is it according to?
Pastor Josh:It's not according to our power.
Pastor Josh:It's according to the power that worketh in us from him, through us.
Pastor Josh:So it's his power, not our own.
Pastor Josh:It's his strength, not our own.
Pastor Josh:It's his confidence, not our own.
Pastor Josh:It's his victory, not our victory.
Pastor Josh:Now we get to be beneficiaries of that, but the source of that is not our own willpower, it's not our own physical strength, it's not our own spiritual strength.
Pastor Josh:It's the strength or power that God imparts to us as believers.
Pastor Josh:And so his power is clear through the believer who is trusting in him.
Pastor Josh:It's God's power that continues to hold us in our grace and in our forgiveness.
Pastor Josh:He is that sustainer.
Pastor Josh:And so if you could take anything with you, take this.
Pastor Josh:God is all powerful.
Pastor Josh:He has proven his power.
Pastor Josh:And in his power there's creation and there's power.
Pastor Josh:There's salvation and there's power, there's sanctification.
Pastor Josh:In his power there is sustaining strength.
Pastor Josh:And ultimately he is the completer.
Pastor Josh:He is the one who is going to finish the work that he has started in you.
Pastor Josh:And one day we know that his power will be proclaimed by all in heaven for all eternity.
Pastor Josh:Revelation, chapter 19.
Pastor Josh:It says this in verse one.
Pastor Josh:And after these things, I heard a great voice of much people in heaven saying, alleluia.
Pastor Josh:Salvation and glory and honor and power unto the Lord our God.
Pastor Josh:There will be a day where all understand God's power.
Pastor Josh:It should be today.
Pastor Josh:But unfortunately, there are many people that are going to doubt God's power.
Pastor Josh:But we know that there will be a day where there is an undeniable aspect of God's power shown to all of this world.
Pastor Josh:And we are going to be the ones who are going to be proclaiming for all of eternity, he is powerful.
Pastor Josh:He is all powerful.
Pastor Josh:And so that's just one attribute of the many attributes of God that we can celebrate and worship as believers.
Pastor Josh:So if there's anything else that we can think about here in this study, we can think about this, that God is all powerful and that he is present in our life and that he is praise worthy.
Pastor Josh:So we'll come back next week with another attribute of God that we can celebrate, that we can worship.
Pastor Josh:But I encourage you, if you've enjoyed these studies, please like our podcast.
Pastor Josh:Please leave a review if you would like.
Pastor Josh:If you feel like God's leading you to do that, or I would just encourage you to share this podcast with a friend or a family member.
Pastor Josh:We would love to have more and more people involved here in the Middletown Baptist church podcast.
Pastor Josh:Well, we hope you have a wonderful week.
Pastor Josh:We look forward to talking to you next week in the word of the week.
Pastor Josh:God bless you.
Pastor Josh:Take care.
Pastor Josh:We'll talk to you soon.
