When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He told them: “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

–Parallel Verses:
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭1‬:‭18‬-‭23‬
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

When I was in high school, I was a hurting and broken young man. My mom had just died of cancer, my dad had remarried and our family dynamics were challenging. I remember nights where all I could do was to just sing the old hymns and cry a bit. Sad as that may sound, I still had a hope in Jesus. I knew that he would be with me and use me in spite of these circumstances. He had shown himself to me before and he was a faithful friend.

One day at church, I met a young woman a bit older than me. She was hurting and in real pain. Her family situation was much tougher than mine. And so I prayed for her and God gave me a song to share with her, which I did. Here are the lyrics I remember to this day (35 years or so later):
Peace be still,
The Father loves you;
Peace be still,
He knows your name,
And he calls, come quickly …
Into the shadow of my wings.

God loves us individually. God knows our name. Of all the billions and billions (maybe even trillions) of people who have ever lived, he knows me by name, Joe. He knows your name too. And he wants you to come close to him. He doesn’t care where you have been in life. He doesn’t care how disgusting and gross your sin and shame is. He wants to protect, restore, heal, equip and use you for his purposes, which are good.

And when we commit our lives to Jesus and make him Lord and Savior, repenting of our sins, he places his POWERFUL SPIRIT into our hearts. This Spirit and its power is the “same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead”. And it is the power Jesus granted his disciples here in Luke 9: to proclaim the good news of the gospel of Jesus, to heal the sick, with authority in this mission to cast out demons and perform miracles. When I was younger I used to watch He-Man. And one of the tag lines in this show, when he transformed into the superhero was: “You’ve got the Power!”

I think sometimes we forget the power we really have been granted to live for Christ. He has given us his incredible power to do good, to bind up the broken-hearted, to set the captives free, to encourage those in dispair, and to declare and claim his victory over sin, darkness, deception, evil and death. We get to and are called to usher in a kingdom of righteousness, truth, light, goodness, and life!

Join me today, my friends, let us live in this truth and be “amped-up” Christians who are spiritually taking ground in the power of Christ Jesus!

All praise to you God! All glory is yours Jesus Christ! Spirit, I commit to serve you well today and follow your lead into greatness!