MONDAY June 17th
We come today to the second section of verses in Ephesians which consist of a prayer that Paul made for the saints.
Ephesians 3:14–21
‘For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.’
In the previous prayer that Paul had prayed for the saints it was for them to understand something about the immeasurable greatness of God’s power towards them, here he prays that they may be strengthened with power through his Spirit.
Now, I have been on my Christian journey for 55 years, having come to faith at the age of nine. I have spent 50 of them preaching the word of God, having the first opportunity at 14. I have also spent 45 of them in leadership in various churches, as a deacon, elder and then pastor. Yet, today as I read these verses I readily and willingly confess I need that according to the riches of his glory, that God would strengthen me with power by his Spirit in my inner being! The more I have journeyed the more I have realised that it never ever can be by my might, nor by my power, but by the Spirit of the Lord.
Over the last few weeks, as the weather has been improving, (well slightly improving) I have been able to get more done in the garden. I have planted more beans and peas this year, and I have two choices, plant them and leave them or plant them and care for them. I have obviously chosen the second option, which means that the beans and the peas need support to enable them to grow, to be strengthened and to produce a harvest. So, I have put canes in the ground, so that they can be either tied to them or they can eventually naturally wind around them. The more they grow, the more they need the support otherwise they would just fall, collapse to the ground and be of no use.
We, each one of us as we discovered in the devotions last week, are the body of Christ, of which he himself is the head. Can I put it this way, we have been planted into the family of God. We need support, otherwise we would falter and fall. Being a part of the body means that we need each other for support, that is why regular fellowship is important. We have the word of God as another important means of support, to feed us, develop us. We have the means of prayer, communion with our heavenly Father, but in the context of these verses we have the help, the support of the Holy Spirit, he comes as a means of God’s grace to strengthen us with power in the inner man.
Now, excuse the way that I am applying it, but just as the beans and the peas need the canes to support them, the canes are also a means to empower them, to enable them to grow and to develop.
I want to be attached to a place of regular fellowship with others, I want my life to be attached to the word of God, I want to be attached to whatever God has made available to give me the support, strength and empowerment that I need as a believer to be who God wants me to be, that my life will be fruitful for him. I want that he will strengthen me with power by his Spirit. Can we all say this, do we truly desire it.