That was just for us. Take your Bibles right now, open them up to the book of Ephesians chapter number three. Ephesians chapter number three. We'll begin reading in verse number 14. Ephesians chapter three, verse number 14. For this cause, I bow my knees unto the Father, our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man. that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end, Amen. Our Father, I pray that you would bless us now as we study your word. I pray that you would take everything else out of our hearts, out of our minds, and help us concentrate on you, on your word, listening to the still, small voice of the Spirit of God as he makes application to our lives. Guide us and direct us as we speak, as we listen. In Christ's name we ask it, amen. Paul begins this section with the words, for this cause, meaning for this reason. In other words, he's telling them, now that you know what you have in Christ, I am praying for this. Now that you know, we've been talking about what you have in Christ for a while now, now that you know, Here's what I'm praying for. For this cause, I bow my knees. For this cause, I am praying to God for you. So we have to ask the question, what is the this that he is praying for? What does he want to happen in the lives of the Ephesian readers and us as well? Well, look at verse number 20. Look at verse number 20. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that worketh in us. He is praying that everything you have in Christ, that all your resources would come together, that God's power might be exceedingly abundantly as they work where? In you. that God would work exceedingly abundantly above all that you ask or think. He's talking about the powers where? In you. That's where the power is. Not that you might be able to do magical things or be successful in all your endeavors and get rich quick and not even that you'll never get sick or have a difficult time in your life. Remember, as Paul is writing this, he's talking about spiritual resources. He's talking about the spiritual blessings that we have in Christ Jesus. You have the power to live the Christian life and shine in a dark world because you know, as we talked about last week, you have the perspective that God will overrule in bad circumstances to work good, that you have to his throne room at any time and that you can trust him through it all. Amen. That's what Paul's praying for. That that perspective now changes your life and you can see that the power that works in you through this perspective can do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. So let's look at the progression in Paul's prayer that it might be accomplished in our lives as well. Number one, the strength of the spirit. The strength of the spirit. Let's read again, Ephesians chapter three, verse number 14. For this cause, I bow my knees unto the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man. This strength of the spirit takes place in the inner man. Did you get that? Did you catch that? The inner man, the real you. Not the outward, physical, because we are not a body that contains a soul. We are a soul that has a body. Our body will die one day. Our soul will live on for eternity. Amen. We've got to remember that, the real you, the inner man, the you that lives right now in a broken world. He says, I want you to live rightly, and you can. The power is there, the resources are there, the strength is there by the spirit who indwells you that you have everything you need and you live it out. Hold your finger here. Go to 2nd Corinthians chapter number four. 2nd Corinthians chapter number four. 2nd Corinthians chapter number four. Go to verse number 15. 2nd Corinthians chapter four, verse number 15. Again, Paul is writing, for all things are for your sakes that the abundant grace might, through the thanksgiving of many, read down to the glory of God. For which cause we faint not, we don't quit, but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." Again, he's using perspective to help us understand the power that works in us. He says, I'm getting older, I'm getting frailer, bad things are happening, and the outward man is not doing well at all. But the inward man is renewed every day. Because I know that one day I will be in heaven with God forever and everything will be okay for eternity. Amen. That's what he's writing to the Ephesians here. I want you to be strengthened by the spirit in the inner man. And while things might go wrong on the outside, and while things might be difficult on the outside, and your physical body may have to go through some things, your spirit inwardly can be renewed every day by the strength of the spirit when you allow him to speak in you and through you. Now, as he already goes back to go back to the book of Ephesians, he has already said, we have the spirit of God. If you've trusted Jesus Christ as your spirit, you have the spirit of God. He indwells you. Ephesians chapter one, verse number 13, Ephesians one, 13. in whom ye also trusted Christ, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession under the praise of his glory. Paul says you've got him. You've got the Holy Spirit, he indwells you. The moment you got saved, you received the Holy Spirit of God to guide, direct you, to strengthen you to live for You have the Spirit of God, all of Him. And the Spirit will guide you on your journey to Christlikeness when you yield yourself to Him. Now, how do you yield yourself to Him? You yield yourself to Him as you allow the scriptures to change your mind, to transform your mind, and your thinking to follow God's mind and God's thinking. And the Holy Spirit will use scripture to lead you to obedience to God and to keep you from sin. Does that make sense? It makes perfect sense, pastor. Thanks for saying it. Hang on a second. Wanted to see your faces as I said it. That's a fact. That's the fact the Holy Spirit. Uses the word of God. To help you to obey God and to get away from sin. It's pretty much that simple. There's the Christian life. Can you do it? Yes. Are the resources yours? Yes. Do you have the Holy Spirit of God living in you? Yes. Here's where the no comes in. Do you take in the word of God every day? Do you take in the Word of God every day? Do you allow the Word of God to fill your brain, to fill your heart, to fill your life so the Holy Spirit can actually use it to keep you from sin and to guide you into obedience and help form Christ in you? That's it. Paul's saying, for this cause, I bow my knees. that God might grant you to be strengthened by his spirit in the inner man. Paul wants it to happen, but he knows the Holy Spirit uses the word of God to allow that to happen. Go to the book of Galatians chapter number five, Galatians chapter number five, previous book to Ephesians, Galatians chapter five. Look at verse number 17. Galatians chapter five, verse number 70, for the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary, the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that you would. But if you be led by the spirit, you're not under the law. If you allow the Holy Spirit to lead you, you don't have to do what the flesh wants to do. It's just that simple. Okay, but we got to do it. Verse number 19, now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these. Here's what happens when we trust in the flesh, when we rest in the flesh, when we feed the flesh. Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like. Of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. These are not things which mark the life of a believer. These mark the life of those that are living after the flesh. Verse 22, but the fruit of the Spirit is, in complete contrast, love. joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Against such there is no law, and they that are Christ have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts." Paul is writing here in Galatians saying, again, you have what you need to live the Christian life. You can follow your flesh and that will lead to no good. You can feed your flesh and that will lead to no good end. or you can follow the Spirit and feed the Spirit through the Word of God, give Him something to work with in your life, and good things will happen. It's your choice. In Ephesians, he's saying, you got it. Live it. It's yours, it's already in you. And I'm praying that you make the right choice and you live it out. You can live the Christian life out through the Spirit's power and live an extraordinary life for Christ. You can. What's Paul saying? You should. You should. You've got everything you need to do it. You just need to trust and obey and do what's right. Number one, the strength of the spirit. Number two, the company of Christ, the company of Christ. Go back to Ephesians chapter number three, verse number 17. Ephesians chapter three, verse number 17, he continues with his progression here, and he says that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge. Wow. The company of Christ. Christ. That Christ may dwell in your hearts. Now, he's not praying for their salvation. They already have it. They are already saved. That's clear from verse number one of chapter number one, where he talks about I'm writing to the saints, which are in Ephesus. It's right to us. I'm talking about salvation. He's saying, when you are strengthened by the Spirit into obedience and leaving sin behind, then Christ feels at home in your heart. Christ feels at home in your heart. It might dwell in your hearts. Now, let's illustrate with a silly illustration. You have friends. family, you have people over your house at times, and there are people that, or you go to other people's houses, and there are people who say, you know, make yourself at home. And there are places you can do that. And there are people too that can do it at your house. Not everybody can. And you don't with everybody. Does that make sense to you? Well, let me ask you. Does Christ feel at home in your heart or does he feel like a stranger? That's what he's talking about here. Christ is your guest, your visitor. Does he feel at home? Robert Munger. wrote a little booklet called My Heart Christ's Home. He pictures the Christian life as a house through which Jesus goes into every room of that house. In the library, which is the mind, he finds all kinds of trash and all kinds of worthless things that are there, which he proceeds to throw out and replace with his word. In the dining room, A place of appetite, he finds sinful desires on a worldly menu. In the place of such things as prestige, materialism, and lust, he's gonna put humility and meekness and love and the other virtues that we're supposed to hunger and thirst after. He goes through the living room of fellowship where he finds worldly companions and activities through the workshop where only toys are being made, into the closet where hidden sins are kept, and so on through the entire house. And only when he had cleaned every room, closet, corner of sin and foolishness could he feel at home. How's your heart? Is Christ at home in your heart? Remember, The story of Mary and Martha. They were having Jesus over at their house, their actual house. And so what did Martha do? She cleaned every part of the house and was still cleaning every part of the house because she wanted to make it perfect for Jesus. Amen. What did Mary do? When Jesus got there, she sat down and listened to Jesus talk. And Jesus said, you know, Martha, you're worried about a lot of things and they're good things. But Mary's chosen the better part. You see, Jesus doesn't come in and want to be at home in your heart so he can be left alone somewhere. He comes into your heart that you might spend time with him, that you might be in his company, that you might sit at his feet and learn from him. And then Paul writes something that's kind of amazing here. He says that you might know the love of Christ. Look at it again, verse number 17, that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, you might feel at home in your heart, that ye being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge. He said, if you spend time with Christ, he's at home with you, you're at home with him, and you spend time with Jesus Christ in his word and in prayer, you will know he is love, which is unselfish, unmeasurable, and unknowable. Oh, that's pretty amazing, isn't it? You can know what's not knowable if you spend time with Christ. He says it's unselfish. He uses the word agape here. Agape here is the Bible word for a selfless love, where the other person is put first, the kind of love that God has for us. That's the kind of love Christ has for us. And it's the kind of love that Christ said, a new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another. Listen, as I have loved you. That's how you're supposed to love each other. Wow. So guess what kind of love we're supposed to have? An unselfish kind of love. How do we learn that kind of love? Only from Christ. Only from Christ and spending time with him. It's unselfish. It's unmeasurable. Unmeasurable. He says, so you could know the height and the breadth and the depth of the love of God with passive knowledge. Now, we have different ways of measuring love. Okay, we measure love. We might tell someone, I love you with all of my heart, all of my being, all my soul. I love you, we measure it. Okay, we might say something to the effect of, I love you to the moon and back. We measure that kind of love. And Paul is telling us here that the kind of love that Christ has for you is unmeasurable. You can't measure it. Wow. It's more height than you can imagine, more depth than you can imagine, more width, more breadth than you can imagine. It is unimaginable in its amount. You can't measure it. And yet, you can know it. if you spend time with him. If he is at home, if you're at home with him, you spend time with Christ in the word of God and through prayer, you can know his love for you. Amen. He also goes on to say that it's unknowable. He says, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge. you could know something that you can't know. Now you can't know it before you trust Christ as Savior. Can't be done. You can't know it, it doesn't happen. But when you get to know Him, when you spend time in His company, when He feels at home in your heart, when you're feeling at home with Him and you spend time with Christ, you begin to know Him. You begin to know yourself, and you begin to understand where you would be without him. When you understand what he did to save a wretch like you, you love him even more. Amen. Amen. And it only comes through sitting down at Christ's feet and learning the word of God from him. Amen. Go to the book of Luke chapter number seven. Luke chapter number seven. Luke chapter seven. Verse number 36, And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And when he went into the Pharisee's house and sat down to meet, and behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meet in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, and stood at his feet behind him, weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. Then when the Pharisees, which had bidden him, saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him, for she is a sinner. And Jesus answering said unto him, now remember he just thought it, Simon, I have some want to say unto thee, and he saith, Master, say on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors, the one owed 500 pence and the other 50. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he to whom he forgave most. And he said to him, thou hast judged rightly. And he turned to the woman and said unto Simon, seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house and thou gavest me no water for my feet, but she washed my feet with her tears and wiped them with the hairs of her head. Thou gavest me no kiss, and this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint, but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. Wherefore I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. Wow. Now, is Christ saying here, if you're a bigger sinner, You'll love me more. If you were a bigger sinner at the time of your salvation, you will love me more. Is he saying that? The answer is no. He's not saying that. He's saying she realizes how big a sinner she was. And there's no difference between us and her. Do you get that? Please shake your hands. We're all sinners. We all deserve to go to hell for how long? Forever. And Christ saved us. What he's saying here is those who realize it more will love more. To those who think they weren't so bad and it didn't take a whole lot to save them and Jesus could have saved them easily because they weren't that bad, they're not going to love him a whole lot. It's when we realize because we've spent time with Christ through his word, we don't deserve him. We don't deserve forgiveness. We don't deserve heaven. We don't deserve anything. And yet Christ has given us everything. Then we learn to love him the way we should love him. Amen. And that only comes through spending time with Him. That's it. Comes through spending time with Him. Paul said, I'm praying that you might be strengthened by the Spirit. I'm praying that you might enjoy the company of Christ. And then number three, he says, I'm praying that you might know the fullness of the Father. Go back to Ephesians chapter number three, the fullness of the Father. He says in verse number 19, and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. That you might know the fullness of the Father. Quite a progression. the strength of the Spirit, the company of Christ, the fullness of the Father. Yielded to the Spirit of God and His Word, spending time with Christ through His Word, living a life that is empowered to please God at every step, you will know, you will know the fullness of God in your life. And that fullness of God will do exceeding abundantly above all that you ask or think. Again, I'm talking about material things, physical things. This is in the inner man. You'll have everything you need spiritually to do what you need to do. Amen. It is yours. You see, the Holy Spirit is God. The Holy Spirit is God. Amen. In Ephesians chapter five, verse number 18, he says, We need to be filled with the Holy Spirit, fullness of the Spirit. Jesus Christ is God. And in chapter four, verse number 13, he says, We need to know the fullness of Christ. And here we have the fullness of God. You see, God, the father is God, God, the Holy Spirit is God. God, the son is God. And there are no lesser persons to the Godhead than the others. They are all God, and they are all one God. We don't get it. We don't understand it. We can't wrap our brains around that kind of thinking, but the Bible teaches it, therefore it is true. Amen. One God, three distinct persons. We've got them all, if you've trusted Christ as Savior. That's why He can do in you what's exceeding abundantly above all that you ask or think because it is the fullness of God dwelling in you to empower you to do what you need to do in this world to live for Him. How many Christians live like that? Not many. To our shame. Come on, amen? to our shame. That's why Paul's writing this. So he wrote the letter. I want you to know everything you have in Christ. That you might live it out. If you know it, you can live it out. Amen. You have all of him. And with that. You have enough. A common theme in our day and age is the theme that you are enough. You know what I'm talking about? In what you do, you are enough. It's a theme that is out there that goes all over the place. You are enough. You're not. Never have been. Never will be. When you decide that you're enough, you're done living the Christian life. You're not enough. But with the strength of the Spirit, the company of Christ, the fullness of the Father, you're more than enough. But it's not you. It is God that dwells in you. Amen. That's why Paul said, I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Wow. God can do exceedingly abundantly above all that you ask or think. You can live the Christian life. You could live a perfect life. You could. If you don't, whose fault is it? All right. Everybody take your hand, put it up in the air. Point one finger. Now follow me. Whose fault is it if you don't live a perfect life? It's mine. Because Paul makes it clear, you've got everything you need to do it. It's there. Draw on that strength, live in that company, and you've got the fullness of God that can do exceedingly abundantly above all that you ask or think. It's your choice. What are you going to do? Our Father, thank you for this time together. Thank you, Lord, for the Spirit of God who indwells us, for Christ, who lives in our heart, wants to spend time with us, for the fullness of God that is there. Thank you, Lord, for what we have, the power that you have in us. Help us, Lord, to understand that it's there. We just need to draw on it. It is there. We need to read the word of God and stay in the word of God and be obedient to the word of God and allow you to work in us and through us. Help us to understand we're not enough. But we can be through Christ. Guide, direct and bless every decision that we make right now for your honor and glory. Lord, I pray that you would draw us all close to you. Help us to all realize what we have in Christ and then live it out. We'll thank you and we'll praise you for it. In Christ's name we ask it. Amen. With every head bowed, every eye closed. What has God spoken to your heart about? What does the Holy Spirit want you to change or understand or live out or get through our thick skulls? What does he want us to do? You know. Question is, will you do it? You know. Will you yield that to him? You can't live the Christian life, so stop the excuses. You can't live the Christian life. Stop making justifications and rationalizations. You can't do it. Paul tells us you've got everything you need. I'm praying for you. Think he stopped? I don't think so. I don't think so. I believe he knew his gospel, his letters, his epistle would have far-reaching effects. He went, I want you to know what you have, and I want you to live it out. What are you going to do? You say, Pastor, I am saved. I've trusted Jesus Christ as my personal Savior. I know I have these things. I do need to live them out. But I'm saved, Pastor, and I know it. You're saved, you know, put your hand up as a testimony of that fact. You're saved, you know it. Amen. God bless you. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. You put your hands down. Amen. Christian. What do you need to do? To live the Christian life. We need to be strengthened by the spirit. Spend time in the company of Christ, and then you'll know the fullness of God. What are you going to do? That's what God wants you to do. It's all available to you. You just need to do it. This morning, you say, Pastor, God spoke in my heart. Would you pray for me? Just slip your hand and put it back down. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. God bless you. Amen. Amen. Amen. Anyone else? Pastor, pray for me. God's spoken to me. Just slip your hand and put it back down. Amen. God bless you. Maybe you're here and you've never been saved. You never trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior. None of this applies to you if you've never trusted Christ as Savior. You can't do any of this. You'll never understand any of this until you trust Christ as Savior. You say, Pastor, I'm not sure I'm saved. Pastor, I don't know about my salvation. Would you pray for me? Anyone like that? Put your hand up, put it back down. Pastor, I don't know. I don't understand. I'm not sure. We love you here. We want to pray for you. Christ loves you. You can't even understand how much until you're saved. Pastor, pray for me. I don't know. Pray for me. Anyone like that? Put your hand up, put it back down. Father, I pray that you would bless us in this invitation. I pray that we would make right decisions, right choices. Lord, we know what you want us to do. You've given us everything we need to do right, to live for you. I pray that we would make the choice to do so, the decision to be different for the rest of our lives. Guide and direct and bless us in this invitation, in Christ's name we ask it, amen. Let's all stand, grab a hymn book right in front of you, and turn to page 635, 635. If God has spoken to your heart, if there's a decision that he wants you to make, we invite you, talk to him while we sing. Talk to him, make that decision. If you need to be saved, if you need to speak to me, I'll be waiting for you right down front on this very first verse. What does God want you to do? Talk to him about it right now.