Paul David Tripp - Do You Believe?: 12 Historic Doctrines to Change Your Everyday Life

Debbie never thought parenting would be this hard. It was exhausting and discouraging. It seemed like somehow every day she was confronted with her inability to get her children to desire to do what was right. She had read all the best Christian parenting books, but she still struggled with her powerlessness. At times it was a burden that was almost too hard for her to bear.

Tim was a business wiz; he was successful and accomplished, but he was frustrated. The more he developed his businesses, the more he felt like his work was negatively affected by forces over which he had no control. Whether it was the decisions of politicians, a downturn in the economy, or a weather event, Tim was always dealing with messes he didnt make. With all his success, Tim still had moments when he felt powerless.

Ron accepted the call to be the pastor of a church that had existed for over a hundred years. The glory days were over and revitalization was needed. Ron was excited at the thought of this church being a bright gospel light in its community once again. But it didnt take long for him to hit the wall of peoples deeply held thoughts and attitudes about their church. Never in his ministry had Ron felt such resistance. He had never seen so many people walk away from a ministry he led. He knew the vision he was holding out was right, and he knew he had communicated it well, but he had no ability to reach inside of people and change their hearts and minds. As a pastor, Ron felt more powerless than he ever had before.

Between the already and the not yet, in this sin-marred world, powerlessness is a universal human experience. Some experience it as physical weakness, others as relational dysfunction. Some are keenly aware of cultural chaos, while others feel most powerless in parenting or marriage. We feel powerless in the workplace, in church life, or with friends and extended family. Some experience it when attempting to deal with the past, while others fear the future. Somehow all of us long for change we cant create or for control that we will never have. All of us have things that make us sad and that we cannot alter, and all of us feel called to do things that seem beyond our individual ability to do.

It is therefore vital for all of us to understand the comfort and calling that is to be found when we apply the truth of Gods boundless power to the situations, relationships, and locations of our daily lives. What follows is not an exhaustive list, but these seven truths will help you begin to understand the helpfulness of living in light of Gods omnipotence.

1. We are all tempted to doubt the power of God. Whether its supplying our material needs, working in the hearts of our children, rescuing our marriages, protecting us from temptations seduction, keeping church leaders spiritually healthy, or providing opportunities to have hard but much-needed conversations, we all struggle at times to entrust our needs to the care of our Almighty Lord. Now, let me make it clear here that trust in the power of God is not passive. We do not sit around waiting for God to intervene. Believing that God is always active, unleashing his omnipotent power for the sake and good of his children, results in stepping out in courage and hope into situations you would otherwise have been paralyzed by or avoided. You are not alone in this struggle.

Sarah and Abraham had staked their entire life on one single promise of God: they would have a son, and through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed. But now they were both old, and Sarah was decades beyond her childbearing years. The thought of Gods promise still coming true made her laugh. So God said to Abraham, Why did Sarah laugh and say, Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old? Is anything too hard for the L ord ? (Gen. 18:1314). Sarahs problem was not what she thought about her own power, but what she failed to believe about the power of God and how he exerted it for his covenant children.

After generation upon generation of slavery, God heard the cries of his children in Egypt and was coming to deliver. He sent Moses to communicate Gods promise of freedom from captivity to the Israelites. You would think they would have been filled with joy, but they werent. Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery (Ex. 6:9). Two things were in the way of Israel having hope in the power of God. First was their situation. They had been in slavery so long and it had been so hard; they had given up hope that things could ever be different for them. Second was their hearts. When Scripture says that their spirits were broken, it means that they were so deeply discouraged that they were unable to muster up even the faintest of hopes. Some of you have been in difficult situations for so long that youve let go of any hope that things can or will change. Some of you have broken spirits. Youre so discouraged that you cant even muster up the words to pray anymore. I plead with you to keep reading. Resist letting your theology become a meaningless abstraction. Fight letting the hardships of life in this fallen world crush your heart and its ability to have hope. God hears your cries. He knew what your address would be, and he has made the most amazing provision for you. Keep reading.

It is one thing to believe in the almighty power of God, but it is another thing to live out your belief in the situations, relationships, and locations of your daily life. If you fail to trust in the exercise of Gods almighty power on your behalf, you will avoid dealing with things that you assess are outside of the range of your personal power. Or you will try to do things that you do not have the power to do. When it comes to the power of God, Scripture has wonderfully encouraging things to say to all of Gods children. Being a child of God means you are no longer left to the limited resources of your own power. No matter what youre facing, here is what you need to remember: God acts in power on your behalf and gifts you with power that is divine. Consider these encouraging words from the apostle Paul:

... and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. (Eph. 1:1923 )

Ephesians 1:1523 is a prayer that believers would know the hope into which they have been saved. We all hook ourselves to some kind of hope. Some of us are struggling because weve hoped in the wrong things and some of us have practically given up hope altogether. Paul knows that the people to whom he is writing would struggle as we do. So Paul prays that the believers in the Ephesian church would understand the tremendous hope that is now theirs as the children of God. I too think so many of us live in the throes of discouragement and anxiety. If you look around and listen carefully, you will see that many of us have a hope problem.

So what is this hope for which Paul prays, and does it have any practical application to the hard and discouraging things we face in our daily lives? The hope of every believer is resurrection power right here, right now. The same power by which life was breathed into Christs dead body is now yours as his child. Paul wants you to know that Gods power is not some abstract theological thing; it is your hope right now, no matter who you are and what you are facing. Yes, you, the one reading right now, have been blessed right here, right now with the same power that raised Christ from the dead. It is ultimate power, bigger than anything you face inside or outside of you.