GREAT POWER AND GREAT GRACE

BY PASTOR DAWSON OQUIST

WITH GREAT POWER THE APOSTLES CONTINUED TO TESTIFY TO THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD JESUS. AND GOD’S GRACE WAS SO POWERFULLY AT WORK IN THEM ALL.

ACTS 4:33 (NIV)

The word power can carry a negative connotation with it. We think of quotes like:

“Power concedes nothing without a demand.”

“Power is always dangerous. It attracts the worst and corrupts the best.”

And “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

History is full of people using power for injustice, selfish gains, and unspeakable atrocities. But we see in the Book of Acts a new kind of power: not one that takes away freedom but offers it to those whom it contacts. This power wasn’t used to force, disenfranchise, or dominate anyone. Instead, this life-giving power was used to show the world the truth that Jesus is alive.

This same power was present in Jesus throughout His life on earth. It is the same power that raised Him from the dead, the same power that was poured out in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost, and the same power that you and I are given when we say yes to Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit. But it isn’t that power alone that changes the world. The key is God’s grace.

You see, the people of that day knew what power looked like; they lived under the rule and reign of the mighty Roman Empire. But to witness a more significant power administered with—not coercion, but grace— was what allowed a ragtag band of fishermen to change the world from the ground up. And it’s what can change the world again.

Moving Forward

This week, make it your prayer for God to endow you with a new sense of both His power and His grace. Step out with boldness. Be gracious to all. Accept that God wants to advance His Kingdom through you.