HEY, THAT'S A PERIOD . . .

. . . and you only use periods AT THE END of a sentence!

Yep, putting a period before the end of a sentence, especially in a Biblical quotation, is one of my Pet Peeves! Periods, you know, are a stop sign!

Should you ask someone to quote Ephesians 3:20 without looking it up, they would probably come back with, "He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think" P-E-R-I-O-D! (Ephesians 3:20 is my favorite Bible verse -- no doubt that's why it's one of my Pet Peeves when people put a period where, in reality, there is none!)

Now, if you check that quote against the written word, you'll notice there is no period after the phrase "ask or think." Nope, there's just a comma there while the remainder of the verse qualifies the first part: "according to the power that worketh in us." In other words, the Lord is limited -- yes, I said "limited" -- in what He can do for us by "the power that worketh in us!"

That raises the question of just what power is working in us, any way? Romans 8:9 answers that question very plainly. "But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, IF SO BE THAT THE SPIRIT OF GOD DWELL IN YOU. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his."

Wow! That says it all. If you don't have the Spirit of Christ, you're not a child of God. And if you ARE a Christian, the Spirit of God dwells in you. So what is the power that is working in us as Christians? It's the Spirit of God, the same Spirit that raised up Jesus from the dead. (See Romans 8:11.) And that's one powerful Spirit!!!

Now, let's put those verses in Romans 8:9 and 11 with Ephesians 3:20. If we have the Spirit of God dwelling in us, then and only then is God free to do "exceedingly abundantly above all we can ask or think."

And if you really want to soar to the heavenlies, ask yourself what all your thought processes can come up with! No matter what you can think of, God can do that and "exceedingly abundantly ABOVE" all that!

So don't be guilty of putting a period where there is none, either in this verse or any other Scripture.

Preacher's Kid
P.S. This also applies to Romans 8:28 that we talked about yesterday! Don't quote "All things work together for good" P-E-R-I-O-D! All things work together for good "to those who are called according to His purpose!"