The Doxology: ‘Our God is Able’ [PART 2]

THE DOXOLOGY ‘OUR GOD IS ABLE ’

PART 2 — GOD’S PREROGATIVE

Paul now moves from God’s Person to God’s Prerogative — His sovereign right to act as He chooses.

“He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think.”

In the verses leading up to the doxology, Paul addresses predestination, adoption, God’s will, grace, redemption, and God’s glory. These themes all point to one truth:

God is sovereign.

But too often, we speak of God’s attributes in ways that strip Him of His sovereignty. We say:

• “God is fair.”
• “God is just.”
• “God is love.”

All of these are true — but only when understood through the lens of His sovereignty. Because if God were “just” in the way we understand justice, we would all be condemned. Justice demands punishment. Grace gives favour. And favour, my friend, is not fair.

It is because God is sovereign that we can be saved.

THE QUESTION OF EVIL AND THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD

One of the greatest struggles in the intellectual world is the problem of evil. The unbeliever asks:

“How can an all-powerful, all-knowing God allow evil?”

But evil is not unchecked. Nothing happens without God’s knowledge. Nothing happens outside of God’s plan. Nothing happens beyond God’s control.

This is why Paul asks in Romans 9:

“Shall the thing formed say to Him that formed it, ‘Why have You made me thus?’”

The potter has power over the clay. God has the right to do as He pleases.

Do we still believe Romans 8:28?

“All things work together for good…”

Not some things. Not most things. All things.

Even the things we don’t understand. Even the things we don’t like. Even the things we would never choose.

This is God’s prerogative.

THE LIMITS OF HUMAN UNDERSTANDING

We talk about:

• free will
• predestination
• sanctification
• conversion

But do we truly understand them?

Is the sinner free to walk away from the devil anytime he chooses? Or must he fall on his knees and cry out for mercy?

Do we tell people to “give Jesus a chance,” or do we tell them the truth — that they are powerless without Him?

Our shallow understanding of God’s sovereignty often emboldens the unbeliever and weakens the believer. We reduce God to formulas. We reduce salvation to slogans. We reduce grace to clichés.

And in doing so, we forget:

God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think.

THE MAGNITUDE OF GOD’S ABILITY

The Greek phrase “that is able” speaks of inherent, moral, unstoppable power. It is the same word translated “can.”

God can do.

Paul emphasizes this by stacking superlatives:

• above
• exceeding
• abundantly
• above all
• we ask
• or think

He stretches language to its breaking point because human vocabulary cannot contain divine ability.

Charles Spurgeon said:

“Paul had to coin words to express the greatness of God’s power.”

Adam Clarke wrote:

“He is able to do superabundantly above the greatest abundance.”

Creation itself testifies to this. God made everything out of nothing. He feeds the sparrows. He clothes the lilies. He numbers the hairs on your head.

If He can do all that, He can take care of you.

The universe — with its billions of galaxies and trillions of stars — is a whisper of His power. Astronomers estimate the Andromeda Galaxy is nearly 18 quintillion miles away. And that is just one galaxy among billions.

If God can create that, He can handle your situation.

Paul wants us to grasp the magnitude of God’s ability — a God who raises the dead, a God who seats Christ far above all powers, a God whose authority cannot be challenged.

This is God’s prerogative.

CLOSING OF PART 2 — TRANSITION TO PART 3

If God were not sovereign, He could not save. If God were not sovereign, He could not deliver. If God were not sovereign, He could not keep His promises.

But because He is sovereign, He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think.

Now that Paul has established God’s Person and God’s Prerogative, he moves to the next truth:

God’s Power — “According to the power that worketh in us.”