Series: Experiencing God’s Riches
HE IS ABLE
Ephesians 3:20-21
Last year I preached a series of messages called “Lies Satan Tells.” I addressed many of the lies that Satan uses to keep men from being all that God created them for. One of these lies was, “God is not able to help me with all of my problems” and the rampant belief of this lie is one of the major reasons for the mess so many lives are in today. Belief in this lie forces us to handle problems with our own solutions or with the world’s solutions...
I. THE TRUTH/FACT OF HIS ABLENESS
Now unto him that is able
“Able: (dunamai NT:1410, "to be able, to have power," whether by virtue of one’s own ability and resources, e. g., Rom 15:14; or through a state of mind, or through favorable circumstances, e. g., 1 Thess 2:6; or by permission of law or custom, e. g., Acts 24:8,11; or simply "to be able, powerful," Matt 3:9; 2 Tim 3:15, etc
(from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
A. He is able because of His Person (Creator)
(Jer 32:17) Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:
B. He is able because of His Power
(Mark 10:27) And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible .
(Luke 1:37) For with God nothing shall be impossible.
* Able to Save to the Uttermost
(Heb 7:25) Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
* Able to keep that which I have committed to him
(2 Tim 1:12) For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
* Able to help them that are tempted
(Heb 2:18) For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.
* Able to Subdue all things unto himself
(Phil 3:21) Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
With God there is no BIG problems, only small
II. THE EXTENT OF HIS ABLENESS
to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think,
“exceeding abundantly: huperekperissou
- perissos: exceeding some number or measure or rank or need 1. over and above, more than is necessary, superadded: Matt 5:37 2. superior, extraordinary, surpassing, uncommon: Matt 5:47
(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, Electronic Database. Copyright © 2000, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc.)
- huper: above, over, abundant
• superabundantly; beyond measure; exceedingly; 1 Thess 5:13
(Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, Electronic Database. Copyright © 2000, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc.)
• : an extraordinary degree, involving a considerable excess over what would be expected (this series differs from the series in 78.31 primarily in emphasizing the excessive degree) - ’extreme, extremely, to an extreme degree, to a very great degree.’
(from Greek-English Lexicon Based on Semantic Domain. Copyright (c) 1988 United Bible Societies, New York. Used by permission.)
He is able to do...all that we ASK....
He is able to do...all that we ask OR THINK
He is able to do...ABOVE all that we ask or think
He is able to do...ABUNDANTLY above all that we ask or think
He is able to do EXCEEDING abundantly above all that we ask or think
III. THE ADMINISTRATION OF HIS ABLENESS
according to the power that worketh in us,
(Eph 3:16-17) That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and
grounded in love,
• God’s ableness through us is conditioned on the power that works within us, therefore this promise is not for everyone but those who are His.
• For those who are His children, saints, then the very power that created and sustains the world resides within them
IV. THE FRUIT OF HIS ABLENESS
Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
CONCLUSION (Poem written at my father’s sick bed one week before he went home to be with his Lord)
MY GOD IS ABLE
He is able to Speak and create day from the darkest
of night
He is able to Take a filthy sin stained heart and
make it the purest of white
He is able to Number the stars in the sky and
call them all by name
He is able to Make Balaam’s donkey talk and
make hungry lions tame
He is able to Turn water into wine and Egypt’s
rivers into blood
He is able to Open the gates of heaven and
cause a great flood
He is able to Part the Red Sea and let the
Israelites pass through on dry ground
He is able to Take a few unlearned men and turn
the world upside down
He is able to Make an orphan girl queen of Persia
and lowly shepherd boy a king
He is able to Forgive a prodigal son and give him
a new coat and a ring
- Did I tell you that my God is able?
He is able to Bring water from a rock and make
manna fall like dew
He is able to Turn back the sun and to make
all things new
He is able to Bring down a giant with a slingshot
from a lad
He is able to Turn troubles into blessings and
bring good from the bad
He is able to Feed a multitude with only fives
loaves and two fish
He is able to Love and serve even the one who
betrayed Him with a kiss
He is able to Spit upon the ground and give a
blind man his sight
He is able to Summon the hornets and put ten
thousand to flight
He is able to Drive out a legion of demons and give
a wild man back him a life
He is able to Give a Son to a virgin, and open
the womb of a 90 year old wife.
- Yes, I will tell you again that my God is able
He is able to Walk on the water and even make an
ax head float
He is able to Help Peter walk on the water when he
got out of the boat
He is able to touch a leper and make his skin as
white as snow
He is able to Raise a little girl from the dead
after stopping a woman’s flow
He is able to Calm the stormy skies and still
the angry waves
He is able to Cry out with a shout and open all
the graves
He is able to Save to the uttermost a thief on
the cross
He is able to Give hope to the hopeless when
all things seem loss
He is able to defeat hell, death and the grave
through the might of His power
He is coming again for His own, maybe even this hour
- I’ll remind you one more time that my God is able. John Raulerson, 8/7/06
