Sunday, June 14, 2015

approaching His Throne of Grace

artwork by Tamara Peterson
As I pondered Tamara Peterson’s beautiful work of art posted on her Artful Story —Journaling Facebook page, this Scripture came to mind…Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16)…Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience... (Hebrews 10:22)...
A powerful image for a time of communion, singing along with the beautiful new hymn Seas of Crimson by Bethel Music…Where there was sin, Your love rushed in, Where sin runs deep, Your grace runs deeper, For all enslaved the ransom paid, Light of the world, Yours is the power… power...power in the blood of Jesus Christ... led me to a word study on the word power from Ephesians 1:20-21...
Amplified: which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His [own] right hand in the heavenly [places], far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named [above every title that can be conferred], not only in this age and in this world, but also in the age and the world which are to come.

NLT: that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come.

Phillips: that power is the same divine power which was demonstrated in Christ when he raised him from the dead and gave him the place of supreme honor in Heaven—a place that is infinitely superior to any conceivable command, authority, power or control, and which carries with it a name far beyond any name that could ever be used in this world or the world to come.

Wuest: which might was operative in the Christ when He raised Him from among the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places over and above every government and authority and power and lordship and every name that is constantly being named, not only in this age, but also in the one about to come.



Power: dunamis from dunamai means to be able, to have power, refers to power, especially achieving power. It refers to intrinsic power or inherent ability, the power or ability to carry out some function, the potential for functioning in some way (power, might, strength, ability, capability), the power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature.


Dunamis is the implied ability or capacity to perform. It conveys the idea of effective, productive energy, rather than that which is raw and unbridled. Note that words derived from the stem duna—all have the basic meaning of “being able,” of “capacity” in virtue of an ability.

Theologian F.B. Meyer has said, “It is power. It is His power. It is great power; nothing less would suffice. It is exceeding great power, beyond the furthest cast of thought. This is the power which God used in our redemption, which He uses in our preservation, and which He will yet use in our glorification.”
 
Greek scholar Kenneth Wuest explains, “It is the good news of salvation energized by the Holy Spirit. Our word “dynamite” is the transliteration of this Greek word, but not its translation. Dunamis does not refer to an explosive powder. The Greeks knew nothing about gunpowder. The gospel is not the dynamite of God. It is a sweet and loving message of mercy and grace which the Holy Spirit in sovereign grace makes operative in the heart of the sinner elected to salvation before the foundation of the universe. God is able to do for us and answer our prayers according to the efficiency, richness, and power of the working of the Spirit in our lives. This latter is determined by the yieldedness of the believer to the Holy Spirit. Thus, the saint determines what God is able to do for him. In His inherent ability, there is no limit to what God can do in and through the saint. But the saint limits the working of God in and through him by the degree of his yieldedness to the Spirit."

During the bomb raids of World War Two, thousands of children were orphaned and left to starve. The fortunate ones were rescued and placed in refugee camps where they received food and good care. But, many of these children who had lost so much could not sleep at night. They feared waking up to find themselves once again homeless and without food. Nothing seemed to reassure them. Finally, someone hit upon the idea of giving each child a piece of bread to hold at bedtime. Holding their bread, these children could finally sleep in peace. All through the night the bread reminded them, "Today I ate, and I will eat again tomorrow." In much the same way, I hold the bread and the cup of communion with the same trust. By His stripes, I am healed; as He is, so am I in this world; I am the righteousness of God in Christ...approaching His Throne of Grace with confidence...my heart sprinkled by the precious blood of Jesus Christ...with full assurance, I am trusting Him with my eternity, and I am trusting Him for my next piece of bread...

Previous posts from Ephesians Chapter One…
Ephesians 1:3-4

Ephesians 1:5-6

Ephesians 1:7

Ephesians 1:8

Ephesians1:9-10

Ephesians 1:13-14

Ephesians1:15-17

Ephesians 1:18-19


Weekly LinkUps…






34 comments:

  1. Thank you, Beth! A favorite Scripture, a favorite source for music, and a favorite Greek word...all in the same post! Praying dunamis "dynamite" power for you as you begin this new week!

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    1. Elizabeth, thank you so much for your encouraging comments...many blessings to you ❤️

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  2. Thanks Beth for reminding me that God is all powerful.

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  3. Love the image of the child holding tightly to the piece of bread bringing peace... and the comparison of our clinging to our bread (the body of Christ) and the cup bringing the same peace. :)

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    1. Amen! I so agree with you, what wonderful peace there is when we rest in the finished work of our Savior ❤️

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  4. Such peace and hope and encouragement here!

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    1. Thank you so much ... Love, love, love those three words...many blessings to you ❤️

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  5. Love the WW2 analogy. Such comfort and strength projected in this piece. We are neighbors again at CoffeeForYourHeart.

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    1. Thank you, Christie, truly all is grace...many blessings to you!

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  6. Gorgeous - the whole thing! From the artwork to the worship and communion to the Word... I love it!

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    1. Karrilee, I so appreciate your always-encouraging comments...many blessings to you ❤️

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  7. Love all of this - the artwork, the quotes, and different variations. Beautiful.

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    1. Deborah, thank you so much for your encouraging words! Many blessings to you ❤️

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  8. I love the story of the children holding bread at night. It reminds me of how I hold tightly to scriptures when I cannot sleep because I am filled with fear--and soon, the fear is replaced by the power of the Spirit.

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    1. Thank you so much for sharing your heart with me. Many blessings to you ❤️

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  9. Beth, This is my first time to your blog. Trusting for the next piece of bread...love that.

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    1. Micah, thank you so much for stopping by and leaving such an encouraging comment. Many blessings to you ❤️

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  10. Beautiful. Thank you for this adventure in power. I am compelled to lift him high after reading this. Cheering you on from the #RaRalinkup with Purposeful Faith.

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    1. Kelly, your always-affirming words are such an encouragement to me and so many others at the #RaRalinkup with Purposeful Faith ❤️

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  11. THRONE OF GRACE are three mighty words. And the fact we can approach it ... wow, truly amazing. Thanks for linking up at #ThreeWordWednesday.

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  12. Beth, thank you for sharing this. I've been studying in the Books of Exodus and Leviticus and seeing how powerful God was for the Israelites is such a wonderful reminder He is the same God and has the same power for even me. I can't wait to spend more time reading over your previous posts. Thank you for linking up with Thankful Thursdays.

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  13. Hello Beth, I read the beautiful story at the end of your writing. So beautiful.
    Thank God for the daily blessings He gives us.
    Be Blessed Friend.

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    1. Ifeoma, thank you so much, many blessings to you, friend ❤️

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  14. Here from Still Saturday. A wonderful post on one of my favorite verses!

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  15. Thank you for sharing this beautiful post with us at Good Morning Mondays Beth, I appreciate that you take the time to stop by. Blessings

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    1. Terri, it is a joy to share with such sweet sisters in Christ each week! Many blessings to you ❤️

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  16. Beautiful and your story about the bombing raids during WWII stole a piece of my heart. To think that one piece of bread would bring those children peace and confidence that they will have food the next day. You tied everything together speaking of your confidence in approaching the throne of God and it left me with reassurance that being His child is what I need to approach each day with my own confidence. Barbie and I are blessed to have you as part of The Weekend Brew community. Weekend Blessings!

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    1. Mary, your kind words warm my heart...you are so detailed and specific in your encouragement, you make me want to "listen longer" (a compliment a dear friend gave me many years ago). It is such a blessing to me to feel as though I am a conduit our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can flow through with His power and His love to meet others at the point of their need...He is so good, all the time...many blessing to you and Barbie, I love being part of The Weekend Brew community!

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