Know Who You are in Christ-Ability to do Greater Things

July 19, 2024

Know Who You are in Christ-Ability to do Greater Things

Not only did the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ give us the gift of eternal life but it provided us with the opportunity to do great works for the Kingdom of God. There is no doubt about it; Jesus’ Earthly ministry was powerful as He operated in the full influence of the Holy Ghost: healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out demons, and all other miraculous deeds that were unfathomable.

His physical presence in the World was completely undeniable! Everywhere He went God’s Word was being preached with authority, evil spirits had to submit to Him, and people were able to bear witness to His agape love. The works of Jesus spread like wild fire everywhere that He went because He moved in such great power and authority.

He was the full representation of a Father’s love for His children as He moved with compassion wanting nothing more than to set captives free from the chains of bondage that the devil had us entangled in. There are so many instances that highlight his compassion, mercy, and grace but perhaps the most influential one was when He called Saul and turned him into the Apostle Paul.

You can find this conversion in the book of Acts 9:1-19. It was such an unbelievable transformation that the people around him struggled to believe that it was genuine. As we read the Holy Bible we can see the life of Saul, turned into the Apostle Paul, and then into a bondservant of Jesus Christ. Paul’s main goal was exactly what the Lord told us to do and that is to preach the Gospel to everyone everywhere, Matthew 28:16-20.

We are all called to fulfill the Great Commission which is to make Disciples. We are to speak the Word of God with boldness as true believers of our Lord Jesus Christ. Time is so short and we cannot afford to live our lives as closet luke warm Christians where the people around you don’t even know that you are saved. The devil is a liar!

How does one go about spreading the Word of God bravely if they are naturally shy or reserved? If you are a born again believer than you have the free gift of the Holy Spirit living on the inside of you. He is the Spirit of Truth Whom will give you power, guide you, and lead you in the right direction.

The Power of the Holy Spirit

After the Lord died and rose again He revealed Himself to His disciples before He ascended to Heaven to sit at our Father’s right hand. One of the main messages that He gave His disciples was to wait in Jerusalem so that they could receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, Acts 2:1.

The reason why this is significant is because the Spirit of God is our Helper, helping us do the work of ministry. It was necessary for Jesus to die on the cross at Calvary in order for us to receive the promise and free gift of the Holy Spirit. John 16:7 reveals, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”

Here we can see that the words of Jesus Christ are disclosing to us the fact that in order for Him to send the Holy Spirit to us He had to fulfill His death, burial, and resurrection. Why is this so important? The reason why this is vital for all followers of Jesus Christ is because the Holy Spirit is the One that will give us the power to do greater works, greater miracles, and overall greater things than what Jesus did during His time on Earth.

We can see what this actually means in Acts 1:8 and it states, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Another example is found in Isaiah 61:1, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”

We can conclude with these passages of Scripture that the Holy Spirit gives us divine power to do great things in Jesus’ Name. Some of those things include but are not limited to spreading the Good News of the Gospel, declaring liberty and freedom to those that are bound, casting out demons, healing the sick, and raising the dead, Matthew 10:8.

In other words we should be doing all of the miracles of Jesus and greater things because of our belief in Him. John 14:12 reveals to us, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” The key words that we want to take a look at from this direct quote from Jesus Himself are the words “greater works than.”

The Greek word for “greater works than” is “megas” which means: used of intensity and its degrees, greater things than these. This powerful passage out of the gospel of John is disclosing to us what Our Lord Jesus expects from us. He expects us to use His ministry as an example of the great works that we should be doing as Jesus’ followers.

Let’s take a look at the verses of Scripture that gives us an idea of the kinds of things that we should be doing as Christians in the Kingdom of God.

Matthew 10:7-8

“And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.”

This is a direct quote from Jesus Christ revealing to us what He expects us to do as believers. We are to preach the Gospel with boldness to everyone around us with no exceptions, heal the sick, cleanse the lepers (ones affected with leprosy), raise the dead, and cast out demons. Then he goes even further by stating that we should be doing these things freely meaning coming from the bottom of our hearts without expecting anything in return.

Jesus is our example of how to live as Christians in the Kingdom of God and His ministry consists of all of the things that He is commanding us to do. I am going to list some passages of Scripture below that describe exactly what the Lord did during His Earthly ministry.

Preaching the Kingdom is at hand

Matthew 4:17 “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Mark 1:15 “And saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

Matthew 10:7 “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Heal the sick

Matthew 4:23 “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.”

Matthew 8:14-15 “Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them.”

Cleanse the leper

Matthew 8:3 “Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.”

Raise the dead

Luke 7:14 “So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother.”

Mark 5:41 “Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, “Talitha, cumi,” which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.”

John 11:44 “And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”

Cast out demons

Luke 11:14 “And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; and the multitudes marveled.

Luke 4:35 “But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.”

Mark 5:8 “For He said to him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!”

These are just some of the many examples of the miraculous signs, physical healings, spiritual authority, and the power that was revealed through the ministry of Christ. He commands us to do the same and this fact is revealed to us throughout the entire New Testament.

He provided us with the gift of the Holy Spirit Whom will give us the power to carry out every one of these works that will progress the Lord’s Kingdom. Unfortunately we don’t walk in the power that Jesus Christ died for us to have and so we remain sick, we remain bound and oppressed, and we don’t share the Good News boldly!

Conclusion

The death, burial, resurrection of Jesus Christ that He completed on the cross at Calvary has afforded us so many blessings. He made it clear that we would do greater things than He did during His time on Earth. We have the power through the Holy Spirit to do everything that Jesus commanded us to do without exception.

The problem is that the majority of Christians have one foot in the world and one foot walking upright in the Lord’s eyes. That will not work when you are trying to do greater things for the Lord. Living a life of repentance and purity is what will close every open door to the enemy preventing him from getting in the way of you moving powerfully for the Kingdom of God.

Also, don’t forget to check out my other blogs:

Know Who You are in Christ-Power Over Word Curses

Know Who You are in Christ-There is Power in Your Words

Know Who You are in Christ-You Have Authority

Know Who You are in Christ-You are a New Creation

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Fight Back

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Feed Your Spirit

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Renouncing

Breaking Spiritual Strongholds-Confess and Repent

Recognizing Spiritual Strongholds

What are Spiritual Strongholds?

The Spiritual Laws of God-Poverty Part 1