S) "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."
Ephesians 3:20-21 (NASB)
O) There is a surface-level point to these closing verses, which is that God is mighty behind comprehension. From there, it is obvious in this passage, that God is doing... something... for us, and based on that, Paul is praising God (and commanding praise). But, as we dig a little deeper, the real treasure of this passage is fully understanding what God is doing. When the verse says, "all that we ask or think," there is a temptation to believe Paul is leaving this undefined, as if this is a blank check that God has handed us, and we may fill in any amount we want, and He'll exceed our asking. In the sense that God is exceedingly good, I suppose that is correct, but the real issue is what are we buying with that blank check. The clue within this passage is the phrase, "the power that works within us," and when read in context with v.16 and 19. Specifically, they say, "strengthened... in the inner man," and "know the love of Christ... filled up to all the fullness of God." So, this passage is not about material gains (although God could exceedingly bless a person). It is not about physical healing (although we will all be raised in glorified bodies, eventually). It is not about really about God exceeding our expectations in our prayer requests, unless that prayer request is to become more like God in the likeness of His character. This passage is an encouragement to about spiritual growth and maturity.
A) First, I cannot let myself take this passage out of context, because I hear people use the first half of v.20 a lot, as encouragement for whatever prayer request they have. While God's character is still exceedingly good, I don't want to be tempted into thinking this verse is promising some kind of prosperity that it is not. Beyond that caution, though, this passage is a great encouragement to me, as I am certainly seeking spiritual growth and maturity. I desire to know the fullness of the love of Christ. I desire to be strengthened in my inner man. These are eternal qualities. These give me hope in the face of adversity. These give me advantage in the face of temptation. These bring me into a closer, stronger relationship with Jesus.
P) Father, there is no strength I would rather have increased, than inner strength. This wretched, corrupted flesh is destined for fire. There is no knowledge I would rather have increased, more than my knowledge of Your love for me, God. Everything else I could know will become useless when You bring new creation to the universe. Help me to remember this passage in its context every time I hear a reference to it, even if the person talking was taking it out of context. Let me be encouraged to pursue spiritual discipline, and growth, above all else. Be glorified as I mature by Your grace. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.
Of course you have no idea who I am, and these studies are from years ago. But I want you to know they are helping me in my morning scripture studies. I too use the soap method and find it helpful. So I just wanted to say thank you!🙏🏽
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