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Realizing the presence, promise, and power of the Kingdom of God.
ReVision

'You Shall Receive Power' (The Kingdom Turn, Part 5)

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you…” Acts 1.8

The rip current of secularism

The Kingdom turn brings a new perspective on life, so that those who come to faith in Jesus Christ view their lives, and live them, from the vantage point of eternity. The more we realize the abundant blessings that are ours in Jesus Christ, the greater our passion for Him becomes, as love for Him re-organizes all the other loves of our life.

The Kingdom turn establishes a new priority in our lives – the joyous, burning desire to glorify God in all we do. And this translates into concrete pursuits that bring the reality of the Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy into all the relationships, roles, and responsibilities of our everyday lives.

So when we’re swimming with the current of the Kingdom of God, we know peace and joy greater than anything else in life can bring.

But we need always to be mindful of the rip current of this secular and materialistic age. Wave after wave of the Kingdom of God is washing up on the shores of time through the lives of those who have made the Kingdom turn. But our secular age flows earnestly in exactly the other direction, and it can carry the unwary far from the shores of righteousness to a dangerous floundering amid the flotsam and jetsam of materialism.

So how do we overcome this constant and strong power that wants to deprive us of the righteousness, peace, and joy of the Kingdom of God?

By the constant and stronger power of the Holy Spirit.

Real power

Jesus promised His followers that, when they have made the Kingdom turn, they will enter into a new realm of power, a power that can overcome every obstacle, even the strong pull and allure of our secular and material age.

The power of the Spirit works within the followers of Christ to make us willing and able to enter and fulfill the pleasure of God. Now understand, we are not naturally inclined to such. Left to ourselves, the rip current of secularism makes us self-seeking, short-sighted, and things-oriented in every area of our lives. The Spirit of God breaks this strong tendency by showing us Jesus, capturing our passions, and engaging our minds for seeking Christ and His Kingdom.

This is real power, but it’s not automatic. The Spirit of God dwells in all who truly believe in Jesus Christ, but not everyone who believes in Jesus experiences that power in the way God intends.

God intends His power to transform us, from self-centered, floundering sinners, into Christ-centered, Christ-like waves of truth and grace. The Spirit exercises this power as we seek the Lord Jesus in His Word and walk in obedient faith to bring His Kingdom and glory to light in our lives.

This is power that can make everything new in our lives, and through us, everything new in the world around us. This is exceeding abundant power – like you’ve never known before – and it can turn our everyday lives into a big-surf adventure of riding the waves of Kingdom progress.

But you must dare

This power is available by faith. As we read God’s Word and learn more about His Kingdom agenda, by faith we resolve to submit to that Word, and to carry out its guidance in every area of our lives.

Paul says exceeding abundant power is available to us for bringing glory to God by realizing more of His Kingdom progress in our lives. The problem is not that the power is not available. The problem is that we too often get tangled up in the rip current of our secular age, and we don’t dare to think that our lives can break free of this, or to ask God’s help in enabling us to do so (Eph. 3.20).

If you’ve made the Kingdom turn, and you know that power exists to help you rise above the puny, paltry promises of our secular age, then you’ll begin to believe it, and to ask for it in every situation of your life.

Next steps

What specifically will it mean for you to think and ask for the power of the Spirit to work in your life today? Write a prayer to carry with you that will remind you to ask for what God is able to give you in the power of His Spirit.

Additional Resources

Download this week’s study, The Kingdom Turn.

T. M. has written two books to complement this eight-part series. You can order The Kingship of Jesus by clicking here, and The Gospel of the Kingdom by clicking here.For a brief study of what it means to pursue culture every day for the glory of God, order T. M.’s book, Christians on the Front Lines of the Culture Wars by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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