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Again, the power of God is unique in that it depends upon no instrument. True, in the
wonder of His providence and His grace, the Most High stoops to use the humblest of
instruments, but this is not of necessity. With man, the possession of power is not
sufficient; it is useless without material and without instruments. Again and again, God
declares His independence in the exercise of His power:--
"Thus saith the Lord . . . . . I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth
the heavens ALONE; that spreadeth forth the earth BY MYSELF" (Isa. 44: 24).
Job's self-righteousness is beaten to the dust, as the Lord challenges him in the words
of chapter 38::--
"Where wast thou, when I laid the foundation of the earth?" (Job 38: 4).
Another noticeable feature in the exercise of God's almighty power is the apparent
ease with which everything is accomplished:--
"He spake and it was done, He commanded and it stood fast" (Psa. 33: 9).
If we examine the Hebrew sentence: "Let there be light and there was light", we shall
find that the words: "Let there be light" and "There was light" are identical, apart from
the change of tense in the verb "to be". The passage, set out as follows, gives a more
exact idea of the original: "And God said, Light be, and light was" (Even here the close
parallel of the Hebrew is not quite preserved as the English words "be" and "was" have
no similarity in appearance).
What a testimony to the majestic power of God are those recurring words of Gen. 1::
"And it was so." Sun, moon, stars, fish, flesh, fowl, all spring to life and being at His
word. We might pursue this theme for pages. Without the power of God His providence
would be ineffective; without omnipotence the fruitful seasons would lapse, the sea
would not keep its bounds, the sun would fail, the stars would fall. The Lord Jesus
Christ, as the Image of the invisible God, is the One in Whom all power is focused. "By
Him all things consists" (or are held together), and He it is Who "upholds all things by
the word of His power" (Col. 1: 17; Heb. 1: 3).
Power as related to the purpose of redemption is a wonderful theme. It begins with
the birth of the Redeemer:--
"The power of the Highest shall overshadow thee" (Luke 1: 35).
It is manifested in the cross of Christ:--
"Unto us which are saved it is the power of God" (I Cor. 1: 18).
At His resurrection, the Lord Jesus was declared to be the Son of God with power, and
the gospel of Christ became the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth