God is Able to Do What?
11/25/2017 ..
40 Days of Prayer has been one of Saddleback’s most life-changing campaigns! We’ve learned the importance of praying frequently, earnestly, and specifically. We’ve come to understand how our humility and God’s healing go hand-in-hand. We’ve been encouraged to pray with others—“where two or three gather in my name, I am in their midst” (Matthew 18:20). And we’ve been reminded of God’s promises—“I tell you the truth, my Father will give you anything you ask for in my name” (John 16:23).
But this past weekend, our guest speaker, Pastor H.B. Charles Jr., wove it all together when he “shocked” us into the realization of one truth: prayer changes nothing. Rather, it is God who changes things so yes, pray and pray a lot, knowing God’s power is behind every answer. He even went onto say, “And the best way to learn about prayer isn’t to study prayer, but to study the God who answers prayer.”
Who is this God who answers prayer? Why, he is a God who is worthy of our praise, one who is “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think . . . “ (Ephesians 3:20).
According to the Believer’s Bible Commentary by William MacDonald, the extent of God’s ability can be seen in the way Paul “pyramids” his words:
Able
Able to do
Able to do what we ask
Able to do what we think
Able to do what we ask or think
Able to do all that we ask or think
Able to do above all that we ask or think
Able to do abundantly above all that we ask or think
Able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think
How encouraging it is to see the word, “think,” added to Paul’s doxology (an expression of praise to God). Not only does this imply God is able to answer our prayers in the most surprising of ways—past our figuring out—but also in ways beyond our ability to articulate the very thing we’re asking for! What a loving caretaker and tender anticipator of every single need, want, and desire, for he is “greater than our hearts, and knows everything” (1 John 3:20).
So as we head into the Christmas season, let us humbly, boldly, expectantly, and daily go before our grace-filled, strength-giving, prayer-answering Father in heaven.