The Immeasurable Love of Christ: Moving Beyond Knowledge to the Heart

Remembering Our Privileges and Position

Through our overview of Ephesians, we have learned about the profound privileges we possess as believers. Because of God the Father’s great love and rich mercy, He didn't leave us dead in our trespasses. Instead, He delighted to:

• Adopt you

• Redeem you

• Forgive you

• Choose you

• Reveal the knowledge of His will to you

• Seal you with the Holy Spirit

We also learned about our new position alongside others. Through faith in Christ, the old walls have been torn down. The "mystery" hidden for generations has been revealed: Jews and Gentiles are now absolute equals in the body of Christ. We are no longer foreigners or aliens; we are fellow citizens with God’s people and members of His very family.

No more animal sacrifices are required. Christ accomplished a full, complete covering for sin through His crucifixion, burial, and bodily resurrection. The exact same power that raised Jesus from the dead is what makes us alive today.

Kneeling in Reverence: Paul’s Second Prayer

In Ephesians 3, Paul transitions into his second major prayer for the believers. It is a prayer so beautiful and comforting that I have used it to close many funeral services and have shared it frequently with grieving friends.

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name." (Ephesians 3:14-15)

Notice that Paul says he kneels. In the ancient world, as today, kneeling is an expression of deep respect, reverence, honor, and complete surrender. While physical kneeling isn't a rigid requirement for prayer, it begs the question: Are our hearts kneeling? When we approach God, do we come with a spirit of submission to His will?

Everything Paul discusses in this letter focuses on spiritual realities, not material possessions. He prays for two distinct things for our inner lives:

1. Strength in the Inner Being

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." (Ephesians 3:16-17)

We often see memes or quotes referencing Philippians 4:13: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." But let’s be honest—this doesn't mean we have supernatural physical abilities in the material world. Try to lift something outside your physical limit, and you’ll find yourself at the chiropractor's office!

Paul is praying for spiritual strength in your inner being (the heart). The heart is the seat of our will and decision-making. Intellectual knowledge is fine, but until truth impacts the heart, it is just data without action. When Christ dwells in our hearts, our deepest values, passions, and convictions change.

2. Power to Grasp an Unfathomable Love

"And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:17-19)

Paul wants us to be like the tree in Psalm 1—planted by rivers of water, deeply rooted and grounded. And what are we rooted in? Love.

"Love" is a heavily abused word in modern culture. We say we love pizza, movies, or certain songs. We use it conditionally to take advantage of others. But true, Christ-like love is rooted in action and obedience. Jesus asked, "Do you love me? Then keep my commandments."

Paul emphasizes that we need to grasp this love "together with all the saints." Faith was never meant to be a solo journey. We need the church community for strength and accountability. Together, we learn to wonder at a love that is:

• Wide enough to reach everyone

• Long enough to last eternity

• High enough to lift us up

• Deep enough to rescue us from the lowest valley

How can we fully understand a love that surpasses knowledge? We can't entirely analyze it; we can only marvel at it. As the old hymn goes: "O, the wonder of it all! Just to think that God loves me."

More Than We Can Ask or Imagine

Paul closes his magnificent prayer with a doxology:

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21)

When you look at your life, what are you asking God for? Are you consuming your prayers on temporary, material things? Or are you seeking the infinite spiritual riches He has already provided?

Imagine if every time you sinned, you physically had to bring a sheep, goat, or dove to a temple. The sheer cost and weight of that sacrifice would certainly make us think twice before making a poor decision. Yet today, because Christ paid the ultimate price once and for all, we often take His grace for granted.

Our gratitude for this immeasurable love should motivate us to actions that bring glory—not reproach—to God's family.

What’s Next?

When we return to the book of Ephesians after Easter, Paul will pivot from our position in Christ to our walk—how these incredible privileges and this immense love should practically transform the way we live day by day.

Originally delivered 2024.02.11