The Word of God and the Power of God
You know neither the scriptures nor the power of God. (Mark 12:24)
Mark 12:18-27; Jer. 4:22, 5:21; Ps. 62:11-12
What Is God Saying?
Here (Mark 12:18-27), the Sadducees are talking with Jesus. Well, they are not talking but trying to get Him into a corner to bolster the premises of their disbelief in such things as immortality, heaven, spirits, and angels. They claimed they knew the Scriptures. They respected the Mosaic law. They could point to the fact that there was no evidence of immortality in the early books of the Bible. One thing that was especially ridiculous to them was this talk about the Resurrection. They must trap Jesus, this new teacher who was gaining in the popularity polls.
They brought forward an exaggerated case of seven brothers who died. Each successive brother married the childless widow of his preceding brother, according to the law of Levirate in Deut. 25:5-10. ‘Now tell us, great Teacher, whose wife will she be in this heaven you are always talking about?’ Jesus answered by saying that they had a mistaken idea of heaven, a false understanding of Scripture, and were total strangers to the power of God.
Jesus said, "You say you know the Scriptures, but you don't. God said in these Scriptures, 'I am the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and Jacob.' Does that sound like one who is the God of the dead? No, you are wrong. He is the God of the living" (Mk. 14.27). Isaiah wrote, ‘From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear; no eye has seen a God besides thee, who works for those who wait for him" (Isa. 64:4). Read Paul's words of beauty and hope found in I Cor. 2:9. God is preparing a place far beyond the puzzle posed by the Sadducees who would rather quibble than believe, who would rather test the teacher than accept His words.
How Does This Apply To Us?
This fact shines: if we don't know Scripture and respect it as God's loving and wise communication, if we are just hearers and not doers, we will miss the power of God. They go together—not knowing (not listening, not caring, not accepting) Scriptures and not experiencing God's power in our lives. Ignorance of the Word and lack of power go hand in hand.
Pray With Me
Dear Lord, You have revealed Your perfect desire and plan to us by Your Spirit. We may read it clearly in the written Scriptures and the living Christ. I thank You, Lord, for repeatedly showing me that God's power and the Word of God go together.
• To search Your Word is to find Your power.
• To receive Your Word is to accept Your power.
• To believe Your Word is to be filled with Your power.
• To obey Your Word is to move with Your power.
• To speak Your Word is to persuade with Your power.
O God, it is wonderful to know how, through faith and obedience, Your power becomes my power. There have been times when my heart was open, but the Book was closed. Other times, the Book was open, but my heart was closed. Now, Lord, I count on this—power comes when the Book and the heart are open.
Let me not fall into the same error as The Sassucess: hearing but not doing, reading but not heeding. I don't want to be acquainted with God's living, powerful Word; I want to experience it. Since in Jesus Christ the Scriptures come to life, and through Jesus Christ, I may know the power of God, my prayer is in His name. Amen.
Moving On In The Life Of Prayer
• Make sure your heart is not closed when the Book is open.
• Make sure the Book is not closed when your heart is open.
As we continue in prayer, we must ask for a better understanding of the Word. Power in prayer and power in life, the power of God, power from God goes hand in hand with knowing the Scriptures.
