Ephesians 1:15-18 ESV
“For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.”
1.
Who is this speaking to?
2.
What was their faith in the Lord Jesus?
3.
What love did they have toward all the saints?
4.
What wisdom and revelation do we need?
5.
How can this be applied to our lives?
If we go back and read verse one, we realize that this is
speaking to the saints of God, to those who are God’s holy people, called of
God to live lives which are separate (unlike, different) from the world because
we are being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ. We are also the
faithful in Christ Jesus who are full of the faith gifted to us by God, which is
also God-persuaded faith, which is not of our own doing, not of the will of man
nor of the will of the flesh, but according to God’s will and purpose for our lives.
[Hebrews 12:1-2; Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12-13; John 6:44]
Now the Apostle Paul wrote these words of encouragement to
those who had chosen to leave their lives of sin behind them to walk in the ways
of the Lord. He wrote these encouraging words to those who were living lives
which were different from the world because they were being conformed to the
likeness of Jesus Christ. These were people who were of the faith that is persuaded
of God and is gifted to us by God and is not of our own doing. They were not
perfect people, but they were followers of Jesus Christ.
So, if we are to apply these words of encouragement to our
own lives, then we need to be people who are of the faith which God provided
and which he authored and which he persuaded us to have. And he persuades us to
forsake our lives of sin and to follow him in obedience in holy living in
submission to his will for our lives. He persuades us to bow to him as Lord and
to surrender our lives to him as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to him, which
is our acceptable worship of him.
[Romans 1:18-32; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2;
Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23; Acts 26:18; Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians 4:17-24]
Not only had Paul heard of their faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ, but he had also heard of the love they had toward all the saints. And
the Greek word for “love” is “agape,” which centers in moral preference, and
which means to prefer what God prefers. And what God prefers is what is holy,
godly, righteous, morally pure, upright, honest, faithful, and obedient to him
and to his will for our lives. So if we love others with this kind of love we
are not going to sin against them deliberately and habitually.
But we are going to love our fellow Christians, and all people,
really, with this kind of love. And so we are going to seek for them what is
for their good, as God defines good. And we will want to see them forsake their
sins to follow Jesus in obedience, and so we will speak the truth in love to
them to save their souls from hell and so that they can have deliverance from
slavery to sin and so that they can live holy lives different from the world
and unto God, and according to his will and purpose.
And we will pray for them and encourage them in their walks
of faith, and we will pray that they are given the Spirit of wisdom and of
revelation in the knowledge of him. But this really comes through us
surrendering our lives to Jesus Christ, through us walking in obedience to his
commands, and by us feeding on his word daily and by us putting his word into
practice in our daily lives. For we aren’t going to be given wisdom if we are
still floundering in sin. We will not get to know God if we are still living
for self.
And what are the eyes of our hearts? I believe this has to
do with spiritual discernment to know right from wrong and to discern truth
from lies so that we don’t end up following the lies and not the truth. For
liars and deceivers abound within the gatherings of what is called “church”
today here in America. So we need spiritual insight so that we can separate the
lies from the truth so that we are following the truth of God’s word and not
the lies which are so popular today which are permeating the church.
Thus, knowing the hope to which we are called is not just
the hope of heaven when we die. For we are called of God to die to sin and to
live to him and to his righteousness. We are called of God to forsake our sins
to follow him in obedience to his commands. And if we are, by the Spirit,
putting to death the deeds of the flesh, and if we are walking in obedience to
our Lord, then we have the hope of eternal life with him. But if sin is still
our practice, we will not inherit eternal life with God.
[Rom 2:6-8; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 5:3-6; 1 Co 6:9-10;
2 Co 5:10; Col 3:5-11; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31]
An
Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
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