The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:17-19a,
"I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."
Paul tells the Ephesian recipients of his letter about his prayer for them. He is thankful for what God has done among them, their faith in Jesus Christ and their love for all the saints, and so he spent time before God in prayer for them. (What a heart the Lord gave Paul! How many of us are so thankful for what God does in the lives of others that we spend time before God for their benefit?) I note these things Paul prayed for were for the Ephesians as believers, not that they become so.
What Paul asks of the Lord is that the Lord would give these believers "the Spirit of wisdom and revelation" that they might know him better. He asks God to enlighten the hearts of these Ephesian believers that they may "know the hope" to which they have been invited, or called to, which he describes as "the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints." He also asks God to enlighten these Ephesian believers that they know his "incomparably great power for us who believe."
What I see in Paul's prayer for these Ephesians is, of course, available to all believers, including us today. While we have the advantage of the New Testament Scriptures, something these believers had to await, as with this letter, there remains additional things God makes available for believers. The "Spirit of wisdom and revelation" that results in knowing God better is something that works in tandem with a study of the Scriptures for us today. Enlightenment of the heart that results in knowing the hope to which we have been invited, to my mind, goes beyond simply being informed of it. "Knowing" it is something transformative in our lives. In his letter to the Colossian believers, a companion letter which I feel was written by Paul in the same sitting, he says speaks of the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for the Colossian believers in heaven. Colossians 1:4-5. The Colossian believers were transformed by the hope they had leading to the remarkable faith and love evidenced in their lives. Additionally, knowing God's great power for believers, beyond simply being informed of it, is transformative as well. It is one thing to be informed it is quite another to experience and base life-changing decisions due to "knowing". Paul asked for these things for the Ephesian believers that they be transformed in their life as a new creation in Jesus Christ.
What I see here is that there are some additional things God has for us after we become his children. I also note that these things are apparently not available on the "lowest shelf" but require prayer. The Ephesian believers had the advantage of apostolic prayer for these things. We today have Jesus Christ himself, as well as the Holy Spirit interceding on our behalf, Romans 8:26,34. We need to be praying for these things, as well, for one another. The exciting thing for me is that God does, in fact, make these things available to us as believers, demonstrating he has accepted us as his very own children!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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