Where’s the Power?

Meditations for Ragamuffins

July 24, 2023

Where’s the Power?

“He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.”

1 Peter 2:24 

In Romans 8, after identifying almost a dozen obstacles, difficulties and adversities in life, the Apostle Paul declares, “overwhelming victory is ours through Christ” (Romans 8:37). So how is the overwhelming victory coming in your life? For me, sometimes it seems it is not me, but all the obstacles, difficulties and adversities in life that are winning the overwhelming victory. More often, I identify with Paul’s metaphor that I am like a fragile clay jar (2 Corinthians 4), rather than being more than conquerors as the NRSV renders Romans 8:37.

Of course, the spiritual reality is not either / or: it is both / and. There are times when we will be more than conquerors, winning an overwhelming victory over the issues in our lives. Even when we are feeling more like fragile clay jars, we know that through the power of Christ within us, we are not defeated. “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9).

The Holy Spirit baptizes us into the life of Christ so that as Peter stated (above) “we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed” and thus have “become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). This is the power that leads to overwhelming victory. This is the power to make real in our lives the truth that when we get knocked down, we are not destroyed. The power is in our new life in Christ that enables us to be dead to sin and live for what is right.

My Takeaway: “What shall we say about such wonderful things as these?” Thanks be to God “for Christ Jesus who died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us” (Romans 8:31a & 34b).

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2023 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.