Abundance
My dear aged Aunt ran her house and world in a distinctive way. Think Miss Havisham from Great Expectations. She had plenty but lived as though with little. She lived in faux poverty, yet was rich. Her kitchen back in my childhood had a range of repeat tins of food, powdered milk and the house, dissolving into wrack-and-ruin… but the irony was that she was wealthy. She had more than enough. She had plenty. She’d sometimes reward guests by pressing a precious shiny 50p in their hands, and back in the mid 1980’s that was quite a thing. She didn’t functionally believe her riches, its as though she misread her worth!
At the close of our scripture reading: Ephesians 3:14-19, comes of the gutsy invitation of v19. “Know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God!” Fullness and plenty.
In our humanity, we have by grace through faith, so very much in God! Our confidence is the inestimable riches that God has revealed in Jesus Christ! The Christian life is rooted and grounded in love. Being built on love, we must have God’s power to lay hold of Christ’s love with all the saints.
Notice the before-and-after in our passage… verse 14 of Chapter 3, explains the reason…. "No reason for discouragement" before the bubbling immensity of verse 20 and "the exceedingly more of God"
Paul wants his readers to experience the love of Christ in a way that goes beyond mere information. This does not imply that knowledge is unimportant. Instead, Paul wants the Ephesians to fully live, breathe and inhabit the love of God, for we will never fully or completely understand it. We understand it only in part! Echoing what James wrote, that true, godly love is not limited to mere knowledge; it must be expressed in action James 2:17–23. Paul called love "the greatest of these gifts of God” 1 Corinthians 13:13.
In contrast, the Pharisees were said to follow the law, in their actions, yet neglected the "love of God" Luke 11:42 and did not have the love of God in them, John 5:42. So, action without love is just as futile as love without action.
Paul's desire for his readers to grow in God's love has a specific purpose. This "fullness of God" is mentioned only one other time in Scripture, in Colossians 1:19: "For in Jesus all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell." Paul wants his audience to be filled with Jesus as much as possible. He wants you and I to know the abundance of God! He knows that love, in both thoughts and actions, is the key to this taking place in the life of a believer, v18.
This Ephesians 3 prayer from Paul on behalf of the Christians of Ephesus begins a transition from the first half of his letter, focused on doctrinal ideas, to the second half, where those ideas are put into practice. The natural theme for this transition is an appeal for spiritual strength from God. In particular, Paul asks God to help the Ephesians exhibit a faith which goes beyond knowledge and doctrine, into application and action.
Comprehending the love of Jesus doesn’t come instantly and naturally, but patiently over a lifetime and supernaturally. All believers everywhere need to fully comprehend this love! And amidst its many things, it’s an invitation into community… Knowing Christ’s love is a never-ending process because it is inexhaustible! It far exceeds our knowledge and God kindly invites this as our lived experience! Knowing Christ’s love results in spiritual maturity. We get to know Him more… a little glimpse of eternity: now!
The top rung of the ladder, to use Spurgeon’s phrase, is: “that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God” v19. Paul is praying in the Holy Spirit that you and I might be filled to overflowing! As our capacity to receive this love grows, God keeps filling us again and again. Nothing stingy but overflowing, not diminishing odds but multiplying goodness!
The Anglican tradition has many helpful truth-phrases, and this is one I love: "...all other benefits of His passion!" This is what Paul's talking about! Put on the full benefits… the more, the plenty: the abundance of God’s goodness in Christ!
My Aunt lived unnecessarily in scarcity and lack, rather than joyful plenty. So what is your measure…?
Ephesians 3:19 "May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God!"