Notes of Faith November 23, 2025
Empowered
“Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty.
— Zechariah 4:6
I (Matt) remember when my toddler son used to say, “I do it,” even though he really couldn’t do it. But we adults sometimes think that way too, don’t we? We think we can do it ourselves. Jesus said,
By Myself I can do nothing. — John 5:30
If that was true for Jesus, how much more is it true for us? Ready for the good news? Although we are weak, God is omnipotent, which is a theological word for “all-powerful.” In His goodness, He shares His power with us.
God wants to reach the world with the good news about Jesus, so He empowers us by the Holy Spirit so we can participate in His mission.
Yes, we are weak, insufficient, and sinful, but we are also empowered by the Spirit to do amazing and miraculous things for God, especially when we consider that we are not alone in this. We are surrounded by other empowered Christians in the church.
Together as an empowered church, we can do amazing things to fulfill His mission.
Who am I? I am empowered in Jesus. I can be transformed when I embrace that truth.
Empowered in Our Culture
Power in our culture is often defined as influence, wealth, or military might. Unfortunately, power is frequently used as an instrument for evil. People abuse power and lie, intimidate, criticize, or coerce others for their own selfish desires. Corrupt power is found in our governments, schools, gangs that rule the streets of our cities, and sometimes even among church leadership. Power seems to be more important than morality. Few ask what the right thing is, as they greedily grab and fight for what they want.
God’s followers are empowered, but not to use it selfishly or to abuse others. The empowered Christian is asked to sacrificially and humbly serve, using their power for good, not evil. What a difference from the way power is exercised in our culture!
What Does the Bible Say About Being Empowered?
Empowered in the Old Testament
God shares power. God’s power is all-encompassing and unstoppable:
Sovereign Lord, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You. — Jeremiah 32:17
After He created humans, God shared His power and gave them authority to rule over creation (Genesis 1:26). Throughout the Old Testament, God anointed and empowered groups of leaders to help His people — judges, kings, priests, and prophets.
I am empowered in Jesus.
Empowered judges. God empowered judges to deliver the people of Israel from their enemies. Samson, perhaps the most well-known judge, was empowered by God’s Spirit to kill a lion with his bare hands and to overcome the enemy Philistines (Judges 14:6; 15:14). However, Samson struggled with abuse of power along with using it for good. Deborah was another judge who delivered Israel. She prophesied exactly where to go and when to act so that Israel was delivered from the enemy Canaan. Deborah’s victory led to peace in the land for forty years (Judges 4–5).
Empowered kings. Israel’s first kings — Saul, David, and Solomon — were anointed with oil (1 Samuel 10:1; 16:13; 1 Kings 1:39). This physical anointing symbolized the deeper spiritual truth that they were empowered by the Holy Spirit:
Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.
— 1 Samuel 16:13
The kings were empowered by the Spirit to lead the nation and to win military victories (2 Samuel 22:51):
The Lord gives victory to His anointed. He answers Him from His heavenly sanctuary with the victorious power of His right hand. — Psalm 20:6
The king’s anointing and empowering were necessary politically too. Solomon is credited as expanding Israel’s territory and wisely dealing with the neighboring nations (1 Kings 4:34).
Empowered priests. Priests were also anointed to lead, beginning with Aaron:
Anoint them just as you anointed their father [Aaron], so they may serve Me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue throughout their generations. — Exodus 40:15
While the kings led Israel politically, the priests led them spiritually in their relationship with God.
Empowered prophets. Finally, Israel’s prophets were empowered by God to hear God’s message and proclaim it to Israel. Prophets often warned Israel of coming judgment and called them to repent and to keep their faith in God despite difficult times. God spoke to the prophets through the Spirit, which enabled them to speak God’s words to the people, such as the prophet Ezekiel:
The Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard Him
speaking to me. — Ezekiel 2:2
The phrases “this is what the Lord says” and “this is what the Lord commands” appear more than four hundred times in the Old Testament.
Some prophets were also empowered to perform miracles. Moses was able to perform his miracles because he had “the power of the Spirit” (Numbers 11:17). Elisha the prophet even miraculously raised a child from the dead (2 Kings 4:34).
Leaders were anointed and empowered by God to do amazing things. However, they could do nothing — no victory, no miracles, no prophecy — by their own power. These mighty acts were only possible through the Spirit’s empowerment:
Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit. — Zechariah 4:6
Empowered service. These leaders were not empowered by God to selfishly manipulate others or make mini-kingdoms for themselves. No, they were empowered to sacrificially serve the nation of Israel.
I don’t know of anything more countercultural than this commitment to service.
In the ancient culture as well as in ours, those who have power typically want to be served. They want the first-class seats, the power suit, the maid, the servants. God asked Israel’s empowered leaders to serve and sacrifice for others.
Hope for a Messiah. Although God’s empowered prophets warned the Israelites, they rebelled against God and were exiled to foreign lands. The empowered prophets began to talk about the future, when God’s Messiah would lead them. The Hebrew term for Messiah, mashiah, means “Anointed One.” Isaiah prophesied,
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. — Isaiah 61:1–2
The Messiah would be the greatest of all those anointed and empowered by the Holy Spirit, and yet His ministry was to be one of service as He brought salvation, preached the good news, and brought freedom and “justice to the nations” (42:1). Jesus Himself said that He did not come to be served, but to serve. — Mark 10:45
When the Messiah arrived, the Spirit would be given to all people to empower them, not just the leaders (Ezekiel 39:29). All people would be Spirit-empowered and able to hear the Lord’s voice:
Afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. — Joel 2:28
Excerpted from Finding Freedom in Jesus by Dr. JP Foster and Dr. Matt Williams, copyright John-Paul C. Foster and Matt Williams.
As a believer, you have been given all the power you will ever need…the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within you! God is all powerful. There is nothing that is too difficult for Him. Trust Him, depend on Him, ask Him to release His power through you for His glory and name’s sake! You are power-filled by the Spirit of God!
Pastor Dale