The Promise of More!
“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us …” Ephesians 3:20 (NIV)
The promise in Ephesians 3:20 is really a benediction to one of the most powerful prayers that the Apostle Paul prayed for the church at Ephesus beginning in verse 14 through 19 where he writes,
“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
Then in a doxology of praise he closes his prayer with this promise: “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)
This is a promise pregnant with hope! I love the phrase immeasurably more! God delights in doing more than we could ever imagine! The Amplified Bible translates it even closer to the original language and intent like this:
“Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]”
The New Living Translation uses the phrase infinitely more! Doesn’t this promise blow you away! Think about it for a moment - God is able to do immeasurably more, infinitely more, superabundantly, for over and above all that we dare ask or think, infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes or dreams! So why not claim this promise and live in the hope of a God far greater than the limitations we impose on Him. This was Paul’s desire for the church in Ephesus and it is God’s desire for the church today! Don’t limit God! Let your mind imagine the vastness of His glory and the immense power of His ability to accomplish His purpose in your life! It will explode your faith with possibility! And as if that were not enough, He is able to accomplish this through His power that is at work where? – WITHIN US!
The word in the original language for power in this verse is the same word used in chapter one and verses nineteen and twenty. The Living Bible paraphrases that verse in another prayer that Paul prays for the church and describes it as “… His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead …” It is resurrection power! The word in the New Testament is “dunamis” from which we get our English word, “dynamo” or “dynamite.” It is a divine dynamic that can create explosive change in our lives and in our world!
As you claim this promise today, I challenge you to pray Paul’s prayer over your life and whatever impossibility you’re facing today. Let the Holy Spirit light the fuse for God’s explosive power to transform your thinking, your character and your life into the likeness of the Lord Jesus so a watching world may witness what God can do through a life wholly committed to Him!