GOD IS ABLE - 21. More than we think

~ Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. -Ephesians 3:20-21

Photographers often use a combination telephoto-wide angle zoom lens, which allows them to zoom in close and then widen the view.  Let's do the same with this verse.

First, the text says God is able to do what we ask. A king named Ahaz was once invited to ask for a sign from God. Very sanctimoniously he said, "Oh, no, I wouldn't test the Lord that way." In response, God said, "I am weary of this! If you won't ask, I will give you a sign Myself," and that's what He did. (Read Isaiah 7:10-14.)  We magnify God's greatness when we ask, because He is able to do it.

But God is able to do not only what we ask but even what we think. The Scriptures say elsewhere, "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4). There might be something you have not even been willing to voice aloud in your prayers, but God is able to do even that.

And He is able to do all that we ask or think. Nothing is excluded. "Is there anything too hard for Me?" He asked Jeremiah (32:27). And He is able even to do above all that we ask or think. When Solomon asked for wisdom, the Lord gave him wealth and longevity as well (1 Kings 3). He is the God who gives generously.

But the passage says God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think. Here Paul is practically making up his own Greek; he joins together three terms to create one word that means something like "beyond out of overflowing." There is no way to measure God's ability; there is no container that can capture or limit His strength.

This power is His, but the text also says this power is at work right now in the followers of Jesus. That doesn't mean we are invincible or that we always receive a "Yes" to our prayers.  If it meant that, then we would be God! But it does mean that God never runs out of resources, and His strength is never sapped. Unto this God, the God who is able, be glory.