HEAD OVER ALL THINGS -- Monday:
"And He has put all things under His feet and has made Him the Head over all things for the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all" (Eph 1:23, NRSV).
Jesus is the "Head of the church" and the "Savior of the body" (Eph 5:23). He is responsible for "bringing many sons to glory" (Heb 2:10), and bring them He will! He has been given "power over all flesh" to do so (John 17:2)! He has been exalted over all opposing forces so God's purpose will not fail of fulfillment. His personal zeal will accomplish this (Isa 9:7).
Christ is not the "Head over all things" for the Jews, but "FOR the church!" It is the "church" which Jesus "loved," and for which He died (Eph 5:25). God has given Jesus to the church in this capacity; as "Head over all things." And why so? So that He might give it "eternal life" – eternal life in its fulness, as well as its firstfruits sense. There are inimical powers that are determined to bring us down; but Christ is their Head. He has already utterly defeated them, triumphing over them in His cross (Col 2:15). He will see to it that all who trust in Him will also experience final and complete victory over all the power of the enemy.
This means "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it" (1 Cor 10:13) Working through your faith, the enthroned Savior will open the door of escape, so you may become strong through testing and not be overcome by it. It takes "all power in heaven and earth" to accomplish this! Deliverance from temptation is a far greater accomplishment than men are prone to think!
THE MINISTRATION OF GRACE AND PEACE. Grace and peace come to us from God and Christ – from God by purpose, from Jesus by authority. "Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior" (Titus 1:4, NRSV). "Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father's Son, in truth and love" (2 John 1:3, NRSV). Grace is God's favor, and it comes to us because Jesus has received "power over all flesh."
When grace is received, we are well pleasing to God. We are also effectively taught "to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly" (Titus 2:12, NRSV). Peace keeps our hearts and minds from being dislodged by the onslaughts of the devil. We are stabilized by it, thereby being equipped to make progress even though confronted by apparently insurmountable odds. "And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Phil 4:7, NSRV). It takes an exalted Christ to accomplish this!
How glorious is the announcement of Christ's exaltation. "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto Him" (1 Pet 3:22). This is power to bring eternal life to us. It is power to bring to us "all things that pertain to life and godliness" (2 Pet 1:3). He gives "eternal life" to us by giving us an understanding of God (1 John 5:20), by manifesting Himself to us (John 14:21), and by enabling us to "lay hold on eternal life." His power can rest upon us, sustaining us, and enabling us to hold up under great affliction (2 Cor 12:9). Because He has been exalted, His "mighty power" can work within us for God's glory (Eph 1:19).
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for an all-powerful Savior.