The Power of God (part 2) - The Parable of a Battery
Introduction. Each time we start our car a portion of the power stored in the battery is used. While the fuel in the tank runs the engine, the “accessories” like lights, radio, starter, or fan are powered by the battery. If we did not have an alternator continually charging it, that power would soon be exhausted. Most of us have experienced this when we leave a car door open and return later to find the car will not start because there is not enough power left to activate the starter motor.
While we may not have made the application, many of us have found times in our spiritual lives where we are energized with zeal, enthusiasm, and anticipation, like that fully charged battery. Everything God has asked us to do is performed with joy and gladness. Yet other times, a weariness can come over us, making many of God’s commands feel more difficult and harder to perform. We are drained, tired, weak and heavy laden, in need of being recharged. Thus, the parable of the battery is an important lesson for all of us to learn, understand and utilize. If we are not watching our energy and zeal, recharging whenever necessary, we can drain all the power of the gospel to energize us.
Jesus used the power of the seed to illustrate this same point. Using four types of soil, Jesus charted how the power within each seed to germinate, grow and produce fruit is impacted by this soil. The hard soil of a path, rocky soil, soil still seeded with last year’s weeds, and good prepared soil are contrasted (Mt. 13:3-9; 18-23). The power of the seed to germinate is destroyed if it cannot enter the soil with the moisture and nutrients needed to supplement and activate its own power. When there are rocks under the soil, the roots are blocked from the power and again its energy is drained. When the weeds grow more quickly, they will block the energy of the light. Thus, the power of each seed must be supplemented by the power of the soil, water, nutrients and sunlight. Since these parables reveal “mysteries” “kept secret from the foundation of the world” (Mt. 13:10-11; 35), there are some profound truths to be learned.
The point of this parable is simple - we must protect our power sources from anything that can hinder them. Likening the heart to the soil, Jesus revealed that the heart must be kept soft, the rocks of doubt and what could lead tribulations to drain us must be removed, The thorns of lust must not be allowed to block the sun of the gospel, becoming powerless to stop the downward spiral into sin. Only when the power of the seed, sown in good soil, has access to nutrients, moisture, and sunshine can it bring forth the fruit it has the potential to produce, and it was revealed so each of us could monitor and fix the things that become broken.
Thus, the power source of the gospel works just like a battery in our car, and as seed with moisture, nutrients, and sunlight. We have to keep our heart soft, remove the rocks, and pull up the thorns so that the fruit of the gospel can be produced. We can’t allow the events in our lives to have a negative impact on our faith, enthusiasm or zeal.
Those things that create discouragement or weariness must be closely monitored and removed before they reach a point where it becomes very destructive to our lives and souls. No one slips away overnight. It takes time for an unmonitored heart to lose the power necessary to remain faithful and productive to God.
Paul knew the gospel was “the power of God unto salvation,” and that if we fully believe it, there is no room for the weakening power of shame. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” (Rom. 1:16). The Greeks had more than one word for “power” and this one exactly describes what a battery does in our car. It is the word “dúnamis” which was only used of things with a power within: “inherent power, power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature”. When Alfred Nobel found the means to easily transport the explosive power of nitroglycerin, he called it “dynamite” because the power could then be transported wherever it was needed. The Holy Spirit chose this word because the power of the gospel can be carried everywhere and used where ever necessary.
The power of God has been placed within the gospel just as it exists in a seed, a battery, or dynamite. While the battery needs cables, the seed needs soil, and dynamite needs a detonator, the gospel needs faith. This faith can give us the power to face any issue that is weakening us. Yet as Naaman long ago felt the Jordan River was a very unlikely source for the power needed to heal his leprosy (2Kings 5), many Christians do not fully grasp the power of faith: “And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1Jn. 5:4-5).
Just as a battery connected to an alternator will continually add power, the gospel will always add power to our heart. That is the difference in all the hearts of Jesus’ parable. The good and honest heart used faith to remove the hardness, rocks and thorns. If we always want to be energized, our greatest concern should be how to learn to use the gospel and our faith. A simple, yet profound truth reveals exactly how faith can be strengthened and used to do these things: “So then faith comes from (ex) hearing, and hearing through (dia) the word of Christ.” (Rom. 10:17). Since “ex-” is “source” and “dia” is “means /agency,” faith is the source of power and hearing is the means and agency by which we receive it.
This is the exact point of transmission. The constant power is within the word of Christ. But before we hear it, that word and the power it contains remains there. As the words move from the page into the heart, the power in the gospel is now the power we can draw from within our heart. The more we hear, the more faith is produced, and the more faith we produce the more power we can access whenever we need it.
The power of the word of Christ needs our willing participation. Those who do not allow the power of God unto salvation to pass from the gospel after entering our ears are the one Jesus revealed as the hard heart of the wayside. There are thus two ways to hear the gospel. Those who hear foolishness are the hardened path. Those who fully believe and trust in what God has revealed to us have the good and honest heart. God’s power has free course and we are being saved: “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.” (1Cor. 1:18).
The power that could come “from” (ex - origin, source cause) faith can be shorted and cut off from the heart. This is exactly what happened to all those who came out of Egypt. Though they saw the ten plagues and heard God speak from Mt Sinai, it never brought the same power into their hearts as it did Moses and Aaron along with Joshua and Caleb. It did not profit the rest because they refused to hear and make the connection. “For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.” (Heb. 4:2). When we contrast this with Paul’s praise to those in Thessalonica, we clearly see this point: “For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works (energéœ - energizes) in you who believe.” (1 Th. 2:13). The word of God can only “effectively work” and “energize” those who believe!
Conclusion. Whenever we feel this fatigue and weariness, it is a clear sign that the power that exists within the Word of Christ and the hearing that keeps that power of faith strong and energetic within our own heart is no longer operating properly. If it were our battery, we would open the hood and look at the cables, if we still couldn’t see the problem, we would take it for diagnosis. We can’t leave it as-is because it will only get worse. This article has been written to help us see that the power brought by faith is just as vital and when we see it weakening, we must try to fix it ourselves. Yet if that fails, we must seek help. We cannot bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ if we won’t let others know of the burdens we are carrying.
While we may not have made the application, many of us have found times in our spiritual lives where we are energized with zeal, enthusiasm, and anticipation, like that fully charged battery. Everything God has asked us to do is performed with joy and gladness. Yet other times, a weariness can come over us, making many of God’s commands feel more difficult and harder to perform. We are drained, tired, weak and heavy laden, in need of being recharged. Thus, the parable of the battery is an important lesson for all of us to learn, understand and utilize. If we are not watching our energy and zeal, recharging whenever necessary, we can drain all the power of the gospel to energize us.
Jesus used the power of the seed to illustrate this same point. Using four types of soil, Jesus charted how the power within each seed to germinate, grow and produce fruit is impacted by this soil. The hard soil of a path, rocky soil, soil still seeded with last year’s weeds, and good prepared soil are contrasted (Mt. 13:3-9; 18-23). The power of the seed to germinate is destroyed if it cannot enter the soil with the moisture and nutrients needed to supplement and activate its own power. When there are rocks under the soil, the roots are blocked from the power and again its energy is drained. When the weeds grow more quickly, they will block the energy of the light. Thus, the power of each seed must be supplemented by the power of the soil, water, nutrients and sunlight. Since these parables reveal “mysteries” “kept secret from the foundation of the world” (Mt. 13:10-11; 35), there are some profound truths to be learned.
The point of this parable is simple - we must protect our power sources from anything that can hinder them. Likening the heart to the soil, Jesus revealed that the heart must be kept soft, the rocks of doubt and what could lead tribulations to drain us must be removed, The thorns of lust must not be allowed to block the sun of the gospel, becoming powerless to stop the downward spiral into sin. Only when the power of the seed, sown in good soil, has access to nutrients, moisture, and sunshine can it bring forth the fruit it has the potential to produce, and it was revealed so each of us could monitor and fix the things that become broken.
Thus, the power source of the gospel works just like a battery in our car, and as seed with moisture, nutrients, and sunlight. We have to keep our heart soft, remove the rocks, and pull up the thorns so that the fruit of the gospel can be produced. We can’t allow the events in our lives to have a negative impact on our faith, enthusiasm or zeal.
Those things that create discouragement or weariness must be closely monitored and removed before they reach a point where it becomes very destructive to our lives and souls. No one slips away overnight. It takes time for an unmonitored heart to lose the power necessary to remain faithful and productive to God.
Paul knew the gospel was “the power of God unto salvation,” and that if we fully believe it, there is no room for the weakening power of shame. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” (Rom. 1:16). The Greeks had more than one word for “power” and this one exactly describes what a battery does in our car. It is the word “dúnamis” which was only used of things with a power within: “inherent power, power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature”. When Alfred Nobel found the means to easily transport the explosive power of nitroglycerin, he called it “dynamite” because the power could then be transported wherever it was needed. The Holy Spirit chose this word because the power of the gospel can be carried everywhere and used where ever necessary.
The power of God has been placed within the gospel just as it exists in a seed, a battery, or dynamite. While the battery needs cables, the seed needs soil, and dynamite needs a detonator, the gospel needs faith. This faith can give us the power to face any issue that is weakening us. Yet as Naaman long ago felt the Jordan River was a very unlikely source for the power needed to heal his leprosy (2Kings 5), many Christians do not fully grasp the power of faith: “And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1Jn. 5:4-5).
Just as a battery connected to an alternator will continually add power, the gospel will always add power to our heart. That is the difference in all the hearts of Jesus’ parable. The good and honest heart used faith to remove the hardness, rocks and thorns. If we always want to be energized, our greatest concern should be how to learn to use the gospel and our faith. A simple, yet profound truth reveals exactly how faith can be strengthened and used to do these things: “So then faith comes from (ex) hearing, and hearing through (dia) the word of Christ.” (Rom. 10:17). Since “ex-” is “source” and “dia” is “means /agency,” faith is the source of power and hearing is the means and agency by which we receive it.
This is the exact point of transmission. The constant power is within the word of Christ. But before we hear it, that word and the power it contains remains there. As the words move from the page into the heart, the power in the gospel is now the power we can draw from within our heart. The more we hear, the more faith is produced, and the more faith we produce the more power we can access whenever we need it.
The power of the word of Christ needs our willing participation. Those who do not allow the power of God unto salvation to pass from the gospel after entering our ears are the one Jesus revealed as the hard heart of the wayside. There are thus two ways to hear the gospel. Those who hear foolishness are the hardened path. Those who fully believe and trust in what God has revealed to us have the good and honest heart. God’s power has free course and we are being saved: “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.” (1Cor. 1:18).
The power that could come “from” (ex - origin, source cause) faith can be shorted and cut off from the heart. This is exactly what happened to all those who came out of Egypt. Though they saw the ten plagues and heard God speak from Mt Sinai, it never brought the same power into their hearts as it did Moses and Aaron along with Joshua and Caleb. It did not profit the rest because they refused to hear and make the connection. “For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.” (Heb. 4:2). When we contrast this with Paul’s praise to those in Thessalonica, we clearly see this point: “For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works (energéœ - energizes) in you who believe.” (1 Th. 2:13). The word of God can only “effectively work” and “energize” those who believe!
Conclusion. Whenever we feel this fatigue and weariness, it is a clear sign that the power that exists within the Word of Christ and the hearing that keeps that power of faith strong and energetic within our own heart is no longer operating properly. If it were our battery, we would open the hood and look at the cables, if we still couldn’t see the problem, we would take it for diagnosis. We can’t leave it as-is because it will only get worse. This article has been written to help us see that the power brought by faith is just as vital and when we see it weakening, we must try to fix it ourselves. Yet if that fails, we must seek help. We cannot bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ if we won’t let others know of the burdens we are carrying.