His Power from Beginning to End
A Sermon on Ephesians 1:19
Originally preached July 3, 1955
Scripture
19And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
Sermon Description
Does the Christian need God’s power just a little bit? Is it only God working as He is asked to work that sustains Christians? In this sermon on Ephesians 1:19 titled “His Power from Beginning to End,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones argues in this message that Christians would not stand a single hour if it wasn’t for the power of God. The Christian life is only sustained by the continuing working of God. Dr. Lloyd-Jones makes a compelling case from Scripture that this must be so. If one considers what they are up against in their daily life, they are forced to acknowledge that they are in desperate need for God’s power to work in them. The powers against the Christian – the world, the flesh, and the devil – are tremendous. It is only exceeded by God’s power. It is not enough to simply think one needs power against these forces. This would be difficult enough. There is also a call by God towards holiness and to keep the law of Christ. It is foolish to think Christians will attain perfection and glory on their own power or with little power from God. Rejoice while listening to this powerful sermon on the nature of God’s power working within His people.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul prays for the Ephesians to know the exceeding greatness of God's power in believers.
- This power is essential for believing and continuing in the Christian life. Without it, we are hopeless and helpless.
- We often fail to realize the greatness of our salvation and the power involved in it. We focus too much on forgiveness and not enough on the power of God.
- The power of God was shown in raising Jesus from the dead. The same power works in believers.
- We need to know this power because of the forces against us: the world, the flesh, and the devil. They are powerful and we can't overcome them without God.
- We are called to keep God's commands and live like Jesus. We can't do this without God's power in us.
- God's power is in us and works through the Word and the Spirit, affecting our will and desires.
- God will complete the work he started in us. He disciplines us when we go astray to bring us to perfection.
- We should know this power and calling to find comfort, strength, and assurance. God is working in us until we stand before him in glory.
The Book of Ephesians
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.