Do you have the greater power?

I’m seeing the Bible quite differently these days – it’s coming into a new perspective and I’m seeing things even at my age that I’ve never seen before. I’m seeing something in Matthew, that is so significant for the Church today. It’s challenging me, and I hope it challenges you, to examine exactly what we actually believe – and do!

In Matt 3.11 we find John the Baptist preaching repentance in the wilderness. It’s the beginning of his ministry. He says to the crowds, 3.11, “I baptise you with water for repentance, but He that is coming after me is more powerful than I… He will baptise you with the Holy Ghost and Fire!”

Then in Matt 3.13ff, Jesus comes from Galilee to be baptised in the Jordan by John. As He comes up out of the water, the Holy Spirit comes down on Him and a Voice from Heaven announces, “This is My Beloved Son.”

But Jesus does not commence His ministry straightaway; it struck me that, at this point, John is still the minister, the evangelist, not Jesus, and Jesus is led by the Spirit out into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Matt 4.1.

But then, by 4.12, Jesus hears that John has been put in prison, his ministry is ended, his work done. Jesus recognises this, leaves Nazareth where He grew up and moves to Capernaum by the Sea of Galilee, so that prophecy would be fulfilled that ‘the people by the sea that were in darkness have seen a great light’. And immediately, 4.17, Jesus starts His ministry and begins to preach – in POWER. I’m intrigued by this whole sequence from John to Jesus!

Jesus’ first message is “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand” – repentance and the Kingdom! Repent – because the Kingdom of God is coming! Jesus calls the first of His disciples – now miracles yet – and they follow Him. And He goes all about Galilee, teaching, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, healing all manner of sickness and disease among the people! 4.23!

He’s preaching in a country overrun by foreign empires for hundreds of years – they’re used to being ruled by the Greeks, they’re used to being ruled by the Romans – but Jesus is preaching a totally different kind of kingdom!

Seeing the multitudes, Jesus goes up the mountain and begins to teach them, Chs 5,6 &7. He’s on that mountain a long time! It’s not until Ch 8 that He comes down – still followed by great multitudes, and from here on, Matthew records a whole series of miracles, including the miracle of the sinking ship in 8.23 where Jesus calms the storm and the disciples marvel, “What kind of a man is this that even the winds and the sea obey Him?” John the Baptist saw many come for repentance but never saw this kind of miracle – this is what he prophesied when he said, after him there will come someone more powerful than him! And here He is! Jesus!

We now come to Matt 9.1ff, where they bring a man to Jesus, paralysed and lying on a bed. You know the story: Jesus says to the sick man, “Your sins are forgiven you.” John the Baptist never could say that, because, as the religious leaders knew, no man can forgive sin, only God. So now, to prove that He, the Son of man, has POWER ON EARTH TO FORGIVE SIN – Jesus healed the man, saying, “Get up and go home!” The paralysed man did exactly that, picked up his bed and went – and the crowds that saw it marvelled and glorified God that He had given such POWER unto men!!!

So that you may know Jesus has power…

John emphasised that the man coming after him would have MORE POWER than him. Jesus demonstrated this when He healed the paralysed man, saying, “So that you may know that I HAVE POWER ON EARTH…” God may have Power in Heaven – but He has given this Power to His Son ON EARTH! Demonstrated, not by saying, “Your sins are forgiven”, but by healing the dying man! It was the healing that confirmed Christ’s POWER to forgive sin. So right here, in the early days of His ministry, Jesus has demonstrated, “I HAVE POWER TO FORGIVE SIN.” Power that Gpd alone has.

Now something significant begin to happen. In Matt 10.1 Jesus calls the Twelve and sends them out, giving THEM the POWER to cast out unclean spirits and to heal all manner of sickness and disease.

People don’t understand what distinguishes Christianity from any other religion – it’s GOD’S POWER given to men! The whole message of the Gospel, the whole message of the New Testament is POWER! It’s not prophecy, that’s the message of the Old Testament. The message of the New Testament is POWER. God’s Power. Jesus gave the Twelve Power. Now, they hadn’t yet received the Holy Spirit, but they had received Power.

It traces back to John the Baptist, who prophesied of Jesus, that the One who is coming will have more Power than me. We see from the beginning of His ministry, Jesus has POWER from God to forgive sin and to heal the sick. In Matt 10:1 He commissions His disciples – in preparation for when He’s gone. The final message of Jesus to the disciples, after the crucifixion, after the resurrection, when His ministry is finished, is this in Acts 1:8, “You will receive POWER, after the Holy Spirit is come on you and you will be My witnesses to the ends of the earth…”

When John was in prison, Jesus took over. When Jesus ascended to Heaven, the disciples took over. John the Baptist said, Jesus will be greater than I; Jesus said, the same works that I do, you will do and greater.

Where is that greater power today?

I grew up in the early days of the Pentecostal revival in Britain. All my life I’ve sensed that there’s more POWER than even the great ministers I grew up with had. I received the Holy Spirit when I was still 14, I’ve seen great miracles in my ministry since I was 20, but I’ve never been satisfied. Aged 94 I still want MORE. I want to live like Jesus intended us to live. How about you?