Daily - 12/26/08

Ephesians 1:15-21

15 Therefore, I, too, hearing of your faith in the Lord Jesus and of your love for all the holy ones,

16 do not cease giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,

17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.

18 May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones,

19 and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might,

20 which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens,

21 far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come.

I’ve sent out this passage before. I love it because it gives a glimpse of what lies ahead for those who truly pursue spiritual maturity. I am at times a “studier” of the bible, and can get frustrated when I see descriptions of a spiritual life that I haven’t yet experienced. How do I get there? Paul gives the answer in this passage. He prays that the Ephesians receive a spirit of wisdom and revelation. For me personally, when there’s something that I study but can’t understand, I have taken to praying that God show me the answer. It is amazing how often this prayer gets answered. As it says in Matthew 7:

7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

8 For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Look again at Ephesians 1:17 and see the description of private revelation that can occur for each of us. God gives a spirit of wisdom that results in knowledge of Him. Our hearts are enlightened, we begin to know the riches of glory, and we experience the surpassing greatness of his power. This is pretty heavy stuff that Paul is describing. It is a glimpse of what I call transcendent faith, and is the product of drawing ever closer to Christ.