You Belong to a Victorious King
Day 8 Who Are You — REALLY?: Ephesians 1:19–23
Introduction
Some things in your life have authority over you, and you never voted on any of them. The diagnosis that reorganized your calendar. The number in the account that decides what you’re allowed to say yes to. The name on your phone that changes your posture before you’ve even opened the message.
You don’t have to believe those things are in charge. Your body already treats them like they are.
Paul is about to make a claim about who outranks what. It’s worth knowing he makes it from a prison cell, under an empire that had the legal authority to kill him. Whatever else he is here, he isn’t naive.
Scripture
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. — Ephesians 1:19–23
Reflection
What’s Happening in the Text
Yesterday Paul prayed they’d see God’s incomparably great power. Here he tells them how to measure it — not by imagining something infinite, but by looking at one historical event. The power in question is the power that raised Jesus from the grave and seated him at God’s right hand.
Notice there are two motions. Raised: up and out of the grave. Seated: the work finished, the position taken. Nobody sits down till the job’s done.
Then Paul stacks up every word his world had for spiritual power — rule, authority, power, dominion, every name that is invoked — and puts Christ far above all of it. Not narrowly above. Far. Then he closes the last exit: not only in this age, but in the one still coming. Nothing already here outranks him, and nothing on its way will either.
And then the clause that makes it personal. God appointed Him head over everything for the church. And His authority is not only all-encompassing but also a gift to the church, His body — which includes you.
What This Means for You
Paul is not telling you those powers in your life aren’t real. He’s writing this under guard. He knows exactly what it is to be under something that can decide where your body goes today.
He’s telling you they’re outranked, diminutive in comparison.
That distinction is worth holding onto, because the two get confused constantly. The things ruling your week have reach. They can touch your sleep, your calendar, your body, your bank balance, your mood before breakfast. What they don’t have is rank. Reach is real. You can feel it. It hurts. But rank is the question of who is finally in charge, and that one is settled.
And look at which direction the authority points. Head over everything for the church. Not sovereign over the universe and, on the side, fond of his people. Over all of it, for them. The government of everything under Christ’s rule is oriented toward your good.
Now the honest part, because a promise this large can sour if it’s oversold. Most of us have heard this promise inflated — told that if we’d just believe enough, faith would fix it, and then watched it not get fixed. Paul wrote these words and then stayed in chains. Christ’s supremacy did not unlock his cell. What it settled was the question of who actually governed his life, and that turned out to be the more important question — because a man who knows the answer to it can be in prison and still not be ruled.
The things ruling your week are real, and some of them will still be there tomorrow. They have reach. They do not have rank — and the one who does has defeated the power of sin, death, and the grave.
Grace Note
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. — Romans 8:38–39
Same list. Different question. Not what Jesus outranks — what all the others can’t touch. That’s the supremacy of God’s love for you.
Prayer Prompt
Jesus, I say you’re Lord, and then I spend the whole day negotiating with things that act like they are. The message I haven’t opened. The bill. The thing the doctor said. They don’t ask my permission to run my afternoon. They just do it.
I’m not going to pretend I need them all gone. I’ve asked for that before and lived through the answer being no. That’s not really what I’m after anymore.
What I keep forgetting is that you’re seated. Not straining, not fighting for ground, not waiting to see how this turns out. Seated. And the authority you hold, you’re holding it for people like me.
I don’t need you to clear my day. I need to stop handing it over to things that were never in charge. I know I still need to take care of this stuff. Please give me the wisdom, insight, and creativity to dispatch them and honor you and your rule in my life.
Amen.
Response
1. Written Reflection: Name what’s actually been ruling your week. Be specific and unspiritual about it — the person, the number, the appointment, the habit. Vague lists are easy to dismiss.
2. Kinesthetic: Write one of those names on a slip of paper and set it under something solid on your desk or table — under, not on top. Let a little bit of it stick out from under. Leave it there all day. Every time you notice it, notice where it’s sitting. Then name the one above out loud.
3. Connective: Yesterday you asked for eyes. Ask again today, but point the request at your list, your schedule — that you’d see each thing on it in its actual rank, not the one it’s been claiming. Make priority adjustments, additions, and deletions where necessary.
You are invited to join me as we grapple with the book of Ephesians. Five devotionals each week for six weeks, Monday through Friday. Each day complete with Scripture, reflection, encouragement, prayer prompt, and actionable responses to God’s Word. Please click the Subscribe button below and I’ll send you tomorrow’s devotional directly to your email inbox.
To read all the posts in this devotional series, visit: https://www.thisistheway.live/t/ephesians
© Steve Peschke / This Is The Way