SSL 6 - Eph. 3:14-21
LAST WEEK: In Eph. 3:1-13, Paul explained his calling and ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles in order to assure Gentile readers that their share in the inheritance was authentic because of its divine origin. First, he elaborated on his call to apostleship and how he was sent by God as a gift of grace to the Gentiles, then he explained the "mystery" of how God's wisdom was revealed through Christ. The lesson taught us five main points: (1) A "mystery," in the Biblical context, is something that can only be known by revelation. We are incapable of unraveling a Biblical mystery by reason or intuition and can only achieve understanding if and when God chooses to open the door of our comprehension by revelation. (2) When Paul declared the Gentiles are "fellow heirs," he wasn't saying that Gentiles have displaced the Jews in God's kingdom. Instead, Gentiles have been invited to sit at God's table and share it with the Jews on an equal basis. (3) The full reality of who Christ was and the extent of salvation offered to the Gentiles was not clear until the giving of the Spirit to the apostles and prophets. The apostles and prophets to whom this mystery was revealed, have, in turn, made known to the church what the Spirit has revealed to them. (4) The call to ministry received by Paul, and indeed, by any one of us in this age, is God's initiative. Paul made it clear that his ability to lead others was based completely upon God-given talents. (5) Like Paul, when God calls you (or anyone else) into ministry, accomplishing His purposes may well involve tribulation. Although Paul was sitting in jail, he wasn't defeated, not by a long shot, and neither are we.
THIS WEEK: First, as we continue in Ephesians, we must keep in mind that the recipients of this letter were predominantly Gentile Christians. Let's briefly review what we've covered so far: In chapter 2 and the first half of chapter 3, Paul talked about the great transformation of Gentiles, from death to life (Eph. 2:1-10), and how Christians are no longer divided between Jew and Gentile, but are now one in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:11-22), and then related how God called him to minister to the Gentiles and how the "mystery" of God's wisdom was revealed through Christ (Eph. 3:1-13). Today, we will hear Paul conclude chapter 3 with a prayer for the recipients of this letter, and this powerful prayer extends all the way to you and me in the here and now. We need to understand it in the present.
Read Eph. 3:14-16 - STRENGTHENED THROUGH HIS SPIRIT
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,
v. 14: "For this reason I bow my knees before the Father" - The phrase, "For this reason," links the verses that follow what Paul had said earlier-that Christians are now one in Christ Jesus, with no separation between Jews and Gentiles (2:11-22) and that God had called Paul to minister to the Gentiles (3:1-13). At that time and place, people usually prayed standing, so that Paul's statement, "I bow my knees," indicates a mindset of intense reverence. Notice the wordplay between "Father" in this verse and "family" in the next verse, using the word Father for God to exemplify the father's role as an authority figure, a man to be obeyed who both provides for and protects his family.
v. 15: "from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name" - The giving of names is the privilege of the creator. In human families, the father and mother name their children, and naming is essential to the child's identity. Not only does our name tell us who we are but ties us to our parents, who named us in the first instance. Above that, the Heavenly Father is the ultimate creator, the One who created all families, both those living on earth and those who are now in heaven. It is the prerogative of the Heavenly Father to assign names to all families and indeed, to all creation (Gen. 1:5, 8, 10). Being named by God gives us our spiritual identity and ties us to Him as our Father, but a person is not named as a child of the Heavenly father until he or she accepts Jesus Christ as his or her personal Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:12).
TRUTH 1: Being named by God gives us our spiritual identity and ties us to Him as our Father. However, a person is not named as a child of the Heavenly Father until he or she accepts Jesus Christ as his or her personal Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:12).
v. 16: "that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man" - Here, Paul prays that God would strengthen these Ephesian Christian "with power (Gk. dunamis - lit. power with might) through His Spirit in the inner man." There is an inner man/woman in each of us just as real as our physical bodies, and for Christians, it's natural that this power-to our inner self-would come through the Holy Spirit, God dwelling in our hearts, guiding and empowering us. And Paul prays that the measure of this power given to these Ephesian Christians would be "according to the riches of His Glory." What a prayer! The riches of God's glory are infinite.
TRUTH 2: There is an inner person in each of us that's just as real as our physical bodies. For a Christian, it's natural that this power-to our inner self-comes through the Holy Spirit, God dwelling in our hearts, guiding and empowering us.
Read Eph. 3:17-19 - FILLED WITH ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD
17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.
v. 17: "so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love" - The word for "dwell" (Gk. katoikeó) lit. to inhabit, carries the sense of a home, a place to live. In the context of the verse, the sense is that Christ sets up housekeeping in our "hearts," making our heart His dwelling place. Then "through faith," Paul tells us that we need spiritual strength to let Christ dwell in our hearts because there is still something in us that resists the influence of the indwelling Jesus-we must believe it, use it, and focus on it. Paul asks for all of this to take place as they are "rooted and grounded in love." What Paul means is that their love, like a tree, should be deeply "rooted" in good soil (i.e., God's love) for strength, and "grounded, like a building, on a strong foundation (i.e., the love of Christ, see, Eph. 2:20-22).
TRUTH 3: When Paul tells you to let Christ "dwell in your heart," it conveys the sense that Christ sets up housekeeping there, making your heart His dwelling place. But it's not habitual and permanent. We need spiritual strength-focused faith-to let Christ dwell in our hearts because there is still something in us that resists the influence of the indwelling Jesus. Therefore, we must believe it, use it, and focus on it.
v. 18: "may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth" - This verse is difficult. The word "comprehend" (Gk. katalambanó) lit. means to reach out and take hold of something. Being rooted and grounded in love makes it possible for these Ephesian "saints" (and us) to achieve a simple understanding of these spiritual mysteries, but to really katalambanó the "length and height and depth" of God's love, Paul pushes these Ephesian Christians to energetically reach out and grasp this great prize. The "length and height and depth" of the love of Christ is large enough to cover over our sin and every circumstance of life. Think of it as a mighty river you allow to roll-over you and take you wherever you're going.
TRUTH 4: In order to really katalambanó (comprehend) the "length and height and depth" of God's love, we must energetically reach out and grasp this great prize. The "length and height and depth" of the love of Christ is large enough to cover over our sin and every circumstance of life. Think of it as a mighty river you allow to roll-over you and point you wherever you're going.
v. 19: "and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God" - It's important to remember that the love Paul mentions here is Christ's love for us-not our love for Christ. Notice that he declares that Christ's love "surpasses knowledge." While the Greeks prized knowledge, it could only take them so far. For one thing, man's knowledge is imperfect. We've learned a lot in the last 2,000 years, made big strides, but our knowledge is still imperfect. And knowledge can never bring us into the kingdom of God. Only Christ's love has that power, which is based on belief, not knowledge. Paul's desire for the Ephesian Christians to grow in God's love had a specific purpose-so that they "may be filled up to all the fullness of God." Elsewhere, Paul said: "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form" (Col. 2:9). In other words, the Christ who embodied all the deity of God, makes it possible for we Christians to be filled with this "fullness," to embody Christ's spiritual character to the degree that when people see us, they see, in effect, Jesus in the flesh.
TRUTH 5: All of the world's knowledge can never bring us into the kingdom of God. Only Christ's love has that power, which is based on belief, not knowledge. Jesus Christ, who embodies all the deity of God, makes it possible for we Christians to be filled with this "fullness," to embody Christ's spiritual character to the degree that when people see us, they see, in effect, Jesus in the flesh.
Read Eph. 3:20-21 - TO GOD BE THE GLORY
20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21 to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
v. 20: "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us" - Has Paul, in asking that these Ephesian Christians "be filled up to all the fullness of God" gone too far, asked for too much? No, not at all, because our God "is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask." In fact, God can do things we can't even imagine from a purely human perspective because He's all-powerful, all-seeing, all-knowing, and infinite. And notice that "to do" is present tense-God can fill us with His fullness right now, in this earthly life. This "power works within us" now, but being filled with it is something that can only be received through believing prayer. Jesus said, "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it" (Jn. 14:14). This seems too incredible to be true...until we realize the true meaning of asking in Jesus' name. To pray in the name of Jesus is to bring our prayers into line with the essential character of Jesus. When we do this, everything becomes possible. The enabling power is the Holy Spirit.
v. 21: "to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen" - Paul ends the chapter in praise with this doxology. The ultimate goal of our existence as a church is to glorify God. And when Paul refers to "the church," (Gk. ekklésia) lit. those who are called out, he pictures it as a unified whole, not as isolated entities. We, all of us, every church, every Christian everywhere, are ekklésia-called out under the banner of Jesus Christ. And we, as the church, are called out to proclaim the glory of God in perpetuity-"forever and ever." It's been 2,000 years since Jesus walked the earth in Israel, yet the church is still moving, giving God the Glory. We are not only praising God and singing hymns to His glory but are also proclaiming the Gospel far and wide and feeding the hungry and healing the sick all over the world in the name of Jesus Christ who has called us out. Who could have imagined such a thing? God could, Jesus could, Paul could, and it's taking place just as they envisioned.
TRUTH 6: The ultimate goal of our existence as a church is to glorify God as a unified whole. When Paul refers to "the church," (Gk. ekklésia) lit. those who are called out, he pictures it as a unified whole, not as isolated entities. We, all of us, every church, every Christian everywhere, are ekklésia-called out to unite under the banner of Jesus Christ, all for the glory of God.
