They Taught You The Wrong Definition of Power, Here's The Real One | Eric Thomas 2026

APOC Ministry

Eric Thomas

Christianity, Spirituality, Religion & Spirituality

4.9 • 900 Ratings

🗓️ 5 April 2026

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Most people spend their entire life chasing power and never actually get it — because nobody ever showed them what real power looks like. It doesn't look like the loudest person in the room. It doesn't look like the biggest title, the biggest stage, or the most followers. And it definitely doesn't look like domination. In this message, Pastor Eric Thomas breaks down one of the most overlooked moments in scripture, John 13, the foot washing, and reveals that Jesus gave His most powerful lesson not from a pulpit, not in a temple, but at a dinner table. With His enemies sitting right there. The message? There is a POSTURE to power. And until you understand it, you'll keep performing power instead of actually walking in it. ET covers: → Why everything most people were taught about power is backwards → The foot washing — why Jesus did it outside the church and what that means for you → The difference between Meek = Weak, Strong = Pride, and Power Under Purpose → Why real authority shows up in hospital rooms, school districts & neighborhoods, not just pulpits → How Joseph didn't just forgive his brothers — he saw it the way God saw it → Why meekness is not passivity — it's the tool that activates everything → The posture that makes the first last and the last first This message will change how you define power forever. ──────────────────────────────────────────── 🔔 SUBSCRIBE & turn on notifications — new messages every Saturday: 👉 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLRzMQFmplNd4-H1X5bj1jA?sub_confirmation=1 📱 DOWNLOAD THE APOC APP — prayer requests, give, and stay connected: Search "APOC Ministry" in the App Store or Google Play 🙏 SUBMIT A PRAYER REQUEST — our team is praying with you this week: Visit apocministry.com or tap Prayer in the app 💛 PARTNER WITH APOC — your generosity fuels our mission to Love, Serve & Grow: Visit apocministry.com/give or tap Giving in the app 📲 SHARE THIS MESSAGE with someone who needs to hear it today 🔑 SCRIPTURES REFERENCED John 13:3-5 — Jesus rises from supper and washes His disciples' feet Acts 1:8 — You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you 2 Timothy 1:7 — God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind Ephesians 6:10 — Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power Luke 10:19 — I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions Matthew 20:16 — The last will be first, and the first will be last Matthew 5:5 — Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth Proverbs 13:22 — A righteous man leaves an inheritance for his children's children ─────────────────────────────────────────── ABOUT ERIC THOMAS — ET THE HIP HOP PREACHER Dr. Eric Thomas, Ph.D. is a New York Times bestselling author, world-renowned motivational speaker, educator, and pastor. Known globally as ET The Hip Hop Preacher, his message has reached tens of millions of people across hundreds of countries. He has spoken in NFL and NBA locker rooms, Fortune 500 boardrooms, and now leads A Place of Change Ministry in Grand Ledge, Michigan alongside his wife, Dede Thomas, and Associate Pastor TJ Tyus. ET is the recipient of the President's Lifetime Achievement Award and has partnered with Nike, the NFL, the NBA, Disney, Amazon, and the Obama Foundation, not to be seen, but to serve. ──────────────────────────────────────────── ABOUT A PLACE OF CHANGE MINISTRY (APOC) A Place of Change Ministry is a Saturday Sabbath church in Grand Ledge, Michigan led by Pastor Eric Thomas and Associate Pastor TJ Tyus. APOC is more than a church it's a community actively built on a culture of Love, Serve, and Grow. Every Saturday the doors are open to worship, the Word, and the work of God, inside and outside the building. 📍 Grand Ledge, Michigan 📅 Join us every Saturday 🌐 apocministry.com ────────────────────────────────────────────

Transcript

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0:00.0	We talk about the Last Supper, we talk about foot washing, but I just want to remind you that both of those sacred things neither happened in the church.
0:10.0	They didn't have it in the temple. Why? Because God didn't want us to focus on the ritual. He wanted us to focus on the relationship. Jesus has been found in the sanctuary. He's been found teaching in the sanctuary. So he knows the
0:22.4	significance of the sanctuary. He knows the significance of the temple. Yet he decided to do his
0:28.0	greatest work outside the church because you don't have to wait to come to church to do God's work.
0:33.3	No, no, Jesus trying to teach us, you don't just serve your loved ones. You don't just serve people you like. That's not how I do it. You don't just speak to people you care about. You don't just bless people you know. First to the House of Israel, then to the other most parts of the world. You don't just get to take care of yours. That's not how I do it. I didn't come for those that were saved.
0:55.5	Most of us only activate our spirituality in church.
1:02.8	I don't mean how many of you had an opportunity to do your homework this week.
1:07.6	But we're reading from the book of John.
1:17.8	13th chapter starting in verse one now before the feast of the passover when jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this
1:24.5	world into the father having loved his own which were in the world
1:29.0	he loved them to the end i just want to stop if you don't mind one of the things i want to make
1:34.7	sure you guys practice and i don't say it enough but when you read the word you're not reading
1:42.2	the word for god you're reading the word for change I'm gonna say that one more
1:48.5	time let me say it this way because I want to help you out how many you have areas in your life
1:53.3	that you need to change that's what I should have said let's put your hands together you have
1:57.3	areas of your life that you need to change.
2:02.0	Good.
2:09.1	How many parents are in the room, and there's some stuff that you need to change as it relates to your relationship with your children.
2:13.0	Good, good, good.
2:18.5	How many people, when you look at your finances, it's like, God, yeah, I know you blessing me,
2:21.2	but according to your word, there's some stuff that could change.
2:22.2	Let me says, come on.
	...

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