September 22

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. — 1 Cor 4:20 BSB

It is through the Word of God, in the hands of the Spirit, that the kingdom of God is set up in the soul. All of God’s people agree on this: they have no more true religion than they have inward spiritual power. And all of the living family of God, each in their own way, long for the manifestation of this divine power in their souls. Those under the law, burdened by their sins, sigh for relief, and they desire that relief to come with divine power—a power that can cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Those who have tasted that the Lord is gracious, but have lost their first love, long for the power to revive their souls. Those struggling with powerful temptations and base desires cry out for power to deliver their feet from the snare of the fowler. Those whose hearts have become hard need the power to soften them. The doubting and fearful need the power to give them faith. The backslidden need the power to return. And those sinking in despair need the power to swim.

By "power," I mean something solid, real, substantial, heavenly, and supernatural. We measure the power of an engine by its horsepower. But who would build a powerful engine merely to break sticks or pick up straws? We measure power by its effects, proportioning one to the other. Likewise, the Holy Spirit—the God of all power and might—would not put forth his mighty hand to do trivial things in the soul. His work is worthy of God. It is a “work of faith with power,” because it springs from the God of power.

The God of Israel is not a Baal who sleeps and needs to be awakened or who is too far away to help. He is “a very present help in times of trouble.” Through this secret power, false hopes are swept away, rotten foundations are destroyed, self-righteousness is put to an end, and the soul is helped to lean on the Lord. This power is not noise and ranting, but the still, small voice of Jesus within the soul.

The people of God don’t need outward noise; they are seeking that secret voice of atoning blood in their conscience, which speaks better things than the blood of Abel. The inward whisper of heavenly love, sounding in their souls—not the earthquake of terror, nor the fire of divine wrath, but the still, small voice of pardon and peace—brings them to bow before the Lord and cover their faces in reverence. Just as the Queen of England doesn’t need to shout to give her commands, where the word of a king is, there is power—whether it’s from an earthly monarch or the King of Zion. We desire not noise, excitement, and religious show, but inward feeling—the very kingdom of God set up in our hearts.