“In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. On the fifth of the month-it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin -- the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, by the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. There the hand of the LORD was upon him. I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the north -- an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. The center of the fire looked like glowing metal…” (Ezek. 1:1-4, NIV.)
“There the hand of the LORD was upon him” – is translated in New Living Translation as, “…I felt the hand of the Lord take hold of me.”
God’s Word Translation renders it, “The power of the Lord came over Ezekiel.” And according to Everyday Bible, the translation I was reading just after our place (Legaspi City, Philippines) was hit by more than 170 kph wind of typhoon “Milenyo” last September 27:
“Then he felt the power of the Lord.” Verse 4 begins, “When I looked, I saw a stormy wind coming from the north…”
When I was reading it, I remembered just what happened the previous night -- while the typhoon was raging, I went out from the house and quickly secured some of our properties outside. When I returned inside and tried to close door, I just couldn’t do it! The force of the wind battering the door was too strong! I shouted for help from the other members of my family and only then that we were able to shut the door.
I felt and saw the “power” of the typhoon. Our door located at the upper part of our house was pulled out and carried away by the wind!
How about God’s Power? Have you “felt the power of the Lord”?
Moses experienced it. Let’s listen how he along with the Israelites related it in a song.
“Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: ‘I will sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is his name. Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh’s officers are drowned in the Red Sea. The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone. Your right hand, O LORD, was majestic in power. Your right hand, O LORD, shattered the enemy. In the greatness of your majesty you threw down those who opposed you. You unleashed your burning anger; it consumed them like stubble. By the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up. The surging waters stood firm like a wall; the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea. The enemy boasted, `I will pursue, I will overtake them. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword and my hand will destroy them.’ But you blew with your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters. Who among the gods is like you, O LORD? Who is like you--majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? You stretched out your right hand and the earth swallowed them. In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling. The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philistia. The chiefs of Edom will be terrified, the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan will melt away; terror and dread will fall upon them. By the power of your arm they will be as still as a stone--until your people pass by, O LORD, until the people you bought pass by. You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your inheritance--the place, O LORD, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, your hands established. The LORD will reign for ever and ever’" (Ex. 15:1-18).
King Jehoshaphat of Judah also acknowledged God’s Power. When a vast army came to make war with Judah, he prayed:
"O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, `If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’ But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you" (2 Chron. 20:6-12).
And how did God unleash His Power?
“As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. The men of Ammon and Moab rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another” (2 Chron. 20:22-23).
He caused the enemies of Judah “to destroy one another.”
“When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also articles of value-more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it” (2 Chron. 20:24-25).
Indeed God’s Power is so Great. “Say to God, ‘How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you’” (Ps. 66:3).
In Numbers 11:23, we read: “The LORD answered Moses, ‘Is the LORD’s arm too short? You will now see whether or not what I say will come true for you.’"
God’s Word Translation renders the first part, “Is there a limit to the Lord’s power?...” In the New Living Translation, we read: “Is there any limit to my power?” We read in the New American Standard Bible, “Is the Lord’s power limited?”
His Power is not limited. It is not limited by nature, nor by men. Even “those who walk in pride he is able to humble.”
Consider the King Nebuchadnezzar who once said,”Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?" (Dan. 4:30.)
But after God dealt with him – removing his sanity and then restoring it after a certain period (Dan. 4:31-34), Nebuchadnezzar declared:
“Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: ‘What have you done?’ At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble” (Dan. 4:34-37).
In God’s Word Translation, we read verse 34: “At the end of the seven time periods, I Nebuchadnezzar, look up to heaven, and my mind came back tome. I thanked the Most High, and I praised and honored the One who lives forever, because His power lasts forever and His kingdom lasts from one generation to the next.”
Instead of limiting His Power, God wants to display it. Through Moses, He told Pharaoh: “But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth” (Ex. 9:16).
We read in Psalm 106:7-8, “When our fathers were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, to make his mighty power known.”
Consider also Romans 9:22, “What if God, choosing to show his wrath and MAKE HIS POWER KNOWN, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath-prepared for destruction?”
During the New Testament period, God’s Power was promoted and manifested by and through Jesus Christ, who performed many miracles – healing the sick, raising the dead, calming the storm and even driving away demons (e.g. Luke 4:31-37).
Now, let’s notice what happened to those who were made aware of God’s awesome power.
In Exodus 14:31, we read: “And when the Israelites saw the great power the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.” The Israelites “feared the LORD and put their trust in him…”
We read 2 Chronicles 20:29, “The fear of God came upon all the kingdoms of the countries when they heard how the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel.”
And in Daniel 4:37, we also read: “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.” Nebuchadnezzar worshipped God and was humbled – he “feared the Lord.”
During this time, God’s Power is being felt also by those who are being called to salvation.
We read in Romans 1:16, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:18, 22-24: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God… Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
Are you also experiencing the Great Power of God?
PRAYER: Our Almighty God, we bow down before You and acknowledge Your Great Power. We praise and thank You for what You can do with our life – choosing and calling us to belong to You in spite of our insignificance. May more people experience and rejoice in Your Awesome Power. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.
