Ephesians 3:17-19 "I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge."
How wide the arms that took us in,
Fastened securely to a wooden beam;
How wide the eyes that look within,
Forgiven in Truth we are set free.
How long the patience that forgives,
The length of eternity waits for me;
How long the pressure of heady sins,
Held the Lamb of God upon that beam.
How high the power that heals hearts,
Strengthened in Spirit by purest joy;
How high the passion of Our Master's art,
Redeemed by Blood the prodigals rejoice.
How deep the love that suffered my death,
The depth of pain endured to cancel sin;
How deep the love that conquered hell,
Dissolved our chains and bid us live!
J. E. Pollock
July 12, 2009
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In the last hours of His earthly ministry, Jesus
spoke with His disciples and gave a command
which was considered new: "A new command I
give you: Love one another. As I have loved you,
so you must love one another" (John 13:34).
Should this command really have been new?
Shouldn't the disciples have known they were to
love one another? Or is it possible to spend three
years with a Master Teacher and yet not under-
stand that learning must translate to action, and
that we teach truth by first being an example of
truth? If we desire to teach love, we must first be
loving; to teach the concept of grace, we must first
be gracious; and in order to "make disciples of all
nations" (Mt 28:19), we must begin by first being
a true disciple!
As I continue to study and learn the wonderful
truths of God's Word - and as I diligently try to
teach these truths to others - I never want to stop
at simply being better educated: "Do not merely
listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do
what it says" (James 1:22). I'll be the first to
admit that I fall short in many ways, but I sin-
cerely strive to make His Word real and apply
it in all areas of my life.
Our spiritual growth must never be measured
by how much we know, but by how much we
are transformed- by how much the Word pen-
etrates to the innermost part of our heart. We
have all been blessed by God's love far more
than we deserve. We must now better under-
stand this love and then learn how to become
His expression of love to others.
Ephesians 3:17-19
"I pray that you, being rooted and established
in love, may have power, together with all the
saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and
deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love
that surpasses knowledge."
The ultimate expression of love was that God
gave His Son to an undeserving world so "that
whoever believes in Him shall not perish but
have eternal life" (John 3:16). This is a love
we will never fully understand.
Paul had such a deep appreciation for the love
contained inGod's plan of Salvation through
the sacrificial gift of Jesus,that he was often
completely overwhelmed; "When I think of
the wisdom and scope of God's plan, I fall to
my knees and pray to the Father" (Eph 3:14).
When we begin to truly grasp His love, all we
can do is say, Thank You!
Let's pray for a greater understanding of His
love and then return His love through a de-
voted life of worship. Let's makeHis love real
by demonstrating love to those He places in
our path. Let's begin to grasp, and then give
back and share, the true love of Christ.
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