Category Archives: Blessing

Abundance, Bible, Blessing, Filled, Flowing, Oveflowing, Scripture

FILLED TO CAPACITY

EPHESIANS 3:19

“and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to all the fullness of God.”

Don’t you love a good meal? I remember very fondly the meals we used to have at my Grandma Carter’s farmhouse with all the relatives. What a spread! When those meals occurred, there was no excuse for leaving hungry. You could very easily fill up on all those “vittles.” Man, I am getting hungry just thinking about it.

Paul uses a verb and noun in today’s verse that come from the same root Greek word. They basically mean to be super abundantly filled to your individual capacity. And look what Paul tells us we can be full of – God. How is that possible? Because when you come to Christ and give your life to Him, He comes in and fills you up with His love and grace. It’s like pouring jello into a mold. It fills every cavity.

APPLICATION

This same word is used in Matthew 13:47-48 where it says, “47 ‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; 48 and when it was filled, they pulled it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away.’” It is the same word used to describe the full baskets of leftover fish and bread when Jesus fed the 4,000 and 5,000. When God does something, He goes all out. Go big or go home!

I love how Paul uses the same word over in Colossians 3:9. “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” Now, get the picture here. Christ is full of the Deity. That same Deity dwells in you fully through the Holy Spirit. As believers, we are so full of Jesus, we should have no reason to sin. But we do! We forget the fullness. We forget just how full we are.

You see, our fullness is meant to overflow. We should have a continuous overflowing of the fullness of God. As we overflow, He refills us, and not just partially. He fills us so we can continue to overflow. So, let me ask you something. How is your flow? Are you so full of Jesus today that anyone who gets close to you gets splashed with Jesus? Enjoy the fullness.

And now I’m filled to overflowing. I don’t mind the whole world knowing!

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Bible, Blessing, Calling, Family, Glory, Humility, Scripture, Service, Uncategorized

NAMESAKE

EPHESIANS 3:15

“from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name,”

My daughter and son-in-law gave me such a blessing a few weeks ago when our grandson was born. What was an even bigger blessing is they decided to name him Lucas Carl. He has my name. Why does that bless me? Well, I carry both of my grandfathers’ names – Carl Spence and Clarence William Willis. It’s kind of like carrying on the family name, in a way. Of course, my grandson has his dad’s last name (unless I can get him to change it, lol). Bearing someone’s name is an honor and privilege.

In today’s verse, Paul says all believers have their Father’s name. Now, he didn’t mean we all have to change our name to Jehovah. That would be kind of silly. What he meant was we are now all in the same family. We represent the Father. We are protected by the Father. This applies to all believers, alive or in heaven. We are all one big family.

APPLICATION

What does that mean for us? Well, first of all, it means we need to love each other. In John 13:34, Jesus tells us, “‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.’” How are you loving your fellow believer? Are you arguing about the color of the carpet in the sanctuary? How silly! We’re family.

Family means a lot of different things to people. Those who grew up in dysfunctional families can really struggle with the concept of family. They don’t understand that you can disagree and still love each other. Do you really think the disciples always got along? In Mark 10, we have a great story that I think illustrates this point. Remember when John and James asked Jesus if they could sit at his right and left in glory? Read the following and see what happened.

John 10:41-45 says, “41 Hearing this, the other ten began to feel indignant with James and John. 42 Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, ‘You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles domineer over them; and their people in high position exercise authority over them. 43 But it is not this way among you; rather, whoever wants to become prominent among you shall be your servant; 44 and whoever wants to be first among you shall be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.’”

So, love each other and serve each other. That’s what family does!

Thank You, Lord, for making me part of Your family.

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Bible, Blessing, Bowing, Heart, Honor, Humility, Prayer, Scripture

BENT KNEES

EPHESIANS 3:14

“For this reason I bend my knees before the Father,”

Eusebius of Caesarea quotes the writing of Hegesippus, a chronicler of the early Church concerning James, the half-brother of Christ and leader of the early church. “He alone was permitted to enter the holy place, for he did not wear woolen but linen garments. And he frequently entered the temple alone and was frequently found situated upon his knees asking forgiveness for the people, so that his knees became hard after the manner of a camel, on account of always bending down upon a knee while worshipping God and asking forgiveness for the people.”

I wonder if Paul’s knees were also calloused due to kneeling in prayer. I know mine aren’t. Paul begins a prayer in today’s verse that goes through verse 21. It is one of the most encouraging prayers in Scripture. It is one of many of Paul’s prayers recorded in the New Testament (some say his writings contain as many as 45 prayers or prayer “snippets”). “For this reason” points back to the preceding verses. Paul had many reasons to pray, but the salvation offered to the Gentiles was at the top of his list.

APPLICATION

Okay, this is one of those “duh” verses. What do I mean by that? I mean we can all see how to apply this our lives. I need to bow my knees before the Father a lot more than I do now. I cannot pray enough. In 2 Chronicles 6:13, we see Solomon, the king of Israel, bow in humility. “For Solomon had made a bronze platform, five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the courtyard; and he stood on it, knelt on his knees in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.” At this point in Solomon’s life, he was not ashamed to humble himself and pray.

How about this example of kneeling in prayer, despite the danger. In Daniel 6:10 we read, “Now when Daniel learned that the document was signed, he entered his house (and in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and offering praise before his God, just as he had been doing previously.” We know the consequence of this. He was thrown into the lions’ den but escaped death because of his obedience to be faithful in prayer.

What is stopping you from kneeling today? Maybe you have bad knees or a bad back and can’t physically kneel. Bowing our knees before God in prayer is about much more than our physical position. It has more to do with our spiritual position. Bow yourself in humility. Recognize the awesomeness of our God. Give Him the honor that is due Him when you pray.

O Lord, forgive me, cleanse me, purify my heart. I bow my heart and spirit before You today.

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Bible, Blessing, Conceit, Grace, Humility, Scripture

THE LEAST OF ALL

EPHESIANS 3:8

“To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ,”

None of us like to see ourselves as less than someone else. It’s in our old sin nature to puff ourselves up and make ourselves look better than we really are. So, when someone belittles you or cuts you down, you naturally respond. I am not saying that’s right. I just saying it’s the normal response. Should it be?

In today’s verse, Paul humbles himself in one of the most selfless ways. He uses a Greek word, elachistoteros, for “very least” which Strong’s Concordance defines as “less than the least.” That’s not a lot, people. Elachistoteros is only used here in the whole New Testament. Most scholars I read agree that Paul never forgot what God saved him out of. He was persecuting believers, even agreeing to the stoning of Stephen. He could never see himself on par with other saints who had suffered for Christ. In short, Paul never got over grace.

APPLICATION

Reading this verse causes us to think about the issue of humility. Now, that’s a different Greek word, but the idea is the same. Humility means putting others first, lowering yourself to serve others. The perfect passage for this is found in Philippians 2:5-8. “5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross.” 

A similar passage is found in 1 Peter 4:1. “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because the one who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,” If Christ, the Son of God, was willing to humble Himself to suffer for you, we need to have that same attitude. We should be willing to suffer for others.

Just how much do you think of yourself? Do you think the sun rises and falls because of you? Not hardly. The world does not revolve around any single person. We are called to humble ourselves and pray. We are commanded to humble ourselves and submit to our elders. How are you doing with that?

Father, keep me humble before You. I want to honor You in my service to others.

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Abiding, Access, Bible, Blessing, Church, Fellowship, Heirs, Members, Partakers, Scripture

FELLOWS

EPHESIANS 3:6

“to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel,”

Last night I had the privilege to attend a meeting with about 70 men here in Knoxville. I watched these men during the evening and was so encouraged at their fellowship. Many of them knew each other from the ministry where I serve, Every Man A Warrior. These guys hugged each other, shook hands, laughed and just generally enjoyed the night. What was amazing, though, was to see how they welcomed the other guys who were new to this. They made them feel welcomed and like, well, one of the fellows.

Don’t you just love this verse today? Paul tells the Ephesians that they are now fellow heirs, fellow members and fellow partakers. That’s a lot of fellows! In the Greek text, the word “fellow” does not occur. Each time it is really the preposition, sun or syn, which means to be closely identified with. You’ve heard me say it before that this preposition is that inseparable, permanent “with.” Paul wants us to know that these positions we are now in will always be that way.

APPLICATION

“Fellow heirs” is the Greek word sugkléronomos, which means “joint-heir; used of believers sharing in the inheritance of the heavenly Father with (through) the chief heir, Jesus Christ.” (HELPS Word studies). We will share jointly in the inheritance of Christ. There will be no dividing the inheritance. We will all share it together forever.

“Fellow members” is the word sussómos, which literally means joint body. The body refers to the body of Christ as in the community of believers which make up the church. Some denominations think they are the only ones who will be in that body, that they are the only true church. Paul says differently here. If you have believed in Jesus and have given your life to Him, you are a permanent part of that body. Romans 10:9-10 tells us, “9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”

The final “fellow” is “fellow partaker.” This is the word summetochos which means to be changed having taking part in something. The promise of Jesus Christ presented to us in the Gospel. The word is only used here and later in Ephesians 5:7 where it is used in a negative way. Let’s back up to verse 6 to get the context. “6 See that no one deceives you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them;”

You are a fellow heir, member and partaker. Enjoy it!

Father, thank You for bringing me into the fold as an heir, a member and a partaker.

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Abiding, Bible, Blessing, Choices, Estrangement, Promises, Purpose, Scripture, Separation

SEPARATE FROM CHRIST

EPHESIANS 2:12

“remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the people of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world.”

Separation from those you love is hard. Whether it is due to death, a move across the country or world or estrangement, it’s hard to deal with. Why? Because our love doesn’t stop just because the person(s) is out of our sight. We continue to love them, but now we can’t touch them (hug, kiss). We miss them. Our heart aches for them. If you have experienced this, you know the deep longing that is with you every day.

Paul reminds us in today’s verse that we were once separate from Christ. We had no part in Him. Most of us never even realized we were separate from Him. We were going on our merry way as if everything was fine. But we weren’t fine. Paul says we were “excluded” for God’s people, we were “strangers” to God’s promises and we had “no hope” because we lacked God’s purpose. No people, no promise, no purpose. That’s separation from God.

APPLICATION

Paul uses a Greek word in this verse for “excluded” which can be defined as “estranged.” The word is apallotrioó, which is only used two other times in the New Testament. Later in this letter (4:18) and in Colossians 1:21. All three times it refers to an alienation or exclusion from Christ before we were saved. What does that mean for us as believers? It means we should be grateful for what we have now. Amen? We should occasionally lookback and give God praise for all He has done for us.

Sometimes our exclusion, our estrangement is of our own doing. We decided to move away from Christ. We don’t live as if He has any part of us. We are actually shunning the Spirit of God that is in us as believers. Listen, beloved, that is dangerous territory. That puts you outside the umbrella of His protection. As for me, I choose to stay under that protection.

Paul says we are “strangers.” That Greek word is xenos.It is where we get “xenophobia” -the fear of people. I don’t want to be a stranger to Christ. I want to be family. Don’t you? We all want our families to be close. We all want to be able to share our love with one another. Christ desires the same with us. He is drawing you close today. Do you feel that tug? It’s Him!

O Father, thank You for drawing me into Your family so I am no longer an alien or stranger.

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Abundance, Bible, Blessing, Glory, Grace, Love, Power, Riches, Scripture

BOUNDLESS RICHES

EPHESIANS 2:7

“so that in the ages to come He might show the boundless riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” 

I am sure you have heard stories about rich people and their luxurious lifestyles. It’s on television all the time. Names like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos are usually among the top 10 richest. But who was the richest person ever? Mansa Musa (1280-1337)! They say his wealth was incomprehensible. Ever heard of him? I hadn’t either which goes to show you money isn’t the answer to everything.

Aren’t you glad Paul wasn’t talking about monetary riches in today’s verse? God promises us “boundless riches of His grace.” The Greek word used for “boundless” is huperballó. It’s only used five times in the New Testament, three times in Ephesians (1:9; here, and 3:19) and two times in 2 Corinthians (3:10 and 9:14). I want us to look at what Paul uses this word to describe.

APPLICATION

In 2 Corinthians 3:10, Paul uses huperballó to describe God’s glory. “…because of the glory that surpasses it.” Later in the same letter, Paul uses the word to describe God’s grace. 9:14 says, “while they also, by prayer on your behalf, yearn for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you.” So, we have God’s glory that is surpassing and God’s grace which is surpassing.

Then in Ephesians, we saw back in 1:19 “and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe.” Then the last time Paul uses huperballó is in this letter to the Ephesians in chapter 3 and verse 19. “and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to all the fullness of God.” That means in Ephesians, Paul uses that word to describe God’s great power, His great love through Christ and the riches of His grace.

Paul really liked that word, didn’t he? Through the Holy Spirit, he penned those words so long ago which still ring true in our ears. God’s surpassing glory, surpassing grace, surpassing riches of His grace, surpassing greatness of His power and His surpassing love. Wow! God’s riches are truly surpassing. Are you an heir to all of this? If you are a believer in Jesus, you are the richest person in the world!

Thank You, Lord, for the surpassing riches of Your grace towards me.

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Abiding, Access, Bible, Blessing, Eternal Life, Eternity, Heaven, Home, Scripture, Seated

THESE ARE GOOD SEATS

EPHESIANS 2:6

“and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,” 

Man, there is nothing like getting good seats for an event, whether that be football, tennis, basketball or a concert. When you are in that seat you can see the players better. You can watch the action better. Shoot, you might even get some of their sweat on you, lol. Being up close and personal makes the event that much more memorable.

What do you think Paul is describing in today’s verse? We are going to get front row seats with Jesus. The phrase “seated us with Him” is sugkathizó, means to sit in company with someone. It’s in the Aorist Indicative, which means it is a factual event that has been done once. Paul is telling the Ephesians (and us) that this action has already been completed. We have guaranteed, reserved seats with Jesus.

APPLICATION

I have a friend who gets season tickets to a minor league baseball team’s games. Those seats are right behind the dugout between homeplate and third base. Great seats. He lets me use them. They are paid for. They are guaranteed. No one else is going to take my seat. No one can stop me from sitting in them. He has paid for them.

Jesus has paid the price for our reserved seat with Him in heaven. He is just waiting for us. He’s seated next to His Father, at His right hand, and is waiting for us to join Him. Colossians 3:1 tells us that’s where He is. “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.”

Can you just picture it? You enter heaven and Jesus waves you down to where He’s seated. “Make room. Make room. My child is here. He has a seat reserved in His name.” Of course, I am just making this up. I don’t know what it will look like in heaven. But I do know one thing. I’ve got a seat. How about you?

Father, You have promised me so many great things. I look forward to my front row seat.

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Abundance, Bible, Blessing, Covenant, God's Will, Mercy, Riches, Scripture

RICH IN MERCY

EPHESIANS 2:4

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,” 

I doubt I will ever be independently wealthy in the eyes of the world. I mean, my wife and I live comfortably, but we aren’t going to retire on the French Rivera, lol. Being rich or wealthy means different things to different people. 1 Timothy 6:9-10 give us a warning about money. “9 But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

In contrast, Paul says in today’s verse that God’s wealth is a good thing. He is “rich in mercy.” God’s wealth will never run out. His riches are limitless. So, if He is rich in mercy, that means His mercy will never run out. Lamentations 3:22 says, “The LORD’S acts of mercy indeed do not end, For His compassions do not fail.” They do not fail!

APPLICATION

Does that give us permission to do whatever we want? No way! It does give us permission to do as we should. Love should be a driving motivator. 1 Peter 1:3 shows us the benefit of His mercy. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” It is His great mercy that gives us that new birth.

Hebrews 4:16 gives us another reason to look for His mercy. “Therefore, let’s approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace for help at the time of our need.” His mercy is waiting for us to come to Him during those times when we need Him most. Have you needed Him lately?

In similar words as our verse today, Paul says this in Titus 3:5-6. “5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we did in righteousness, but in accordance with His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He richly poured out upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior,” His mercy is not given because we deserve it. He just gives it! Do you need some mercy today? Come to the Father.

Lord, have mercy on me today. Show me Your mercy all the day long. 

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Abundance, Belief, Bible, Blessing, Eternal Life, Eternity, Pledge, Promises, Scripture, Trustworthy

FIRST INSTALLMENT

EPHESIANS 1:14

“who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.”

I currently have one installment loan that I am responsible for. When I moved to Knoxville, TN back in March, my wife and I had to borrow money to buy our home. That loan is an installment loan. Any type of loan you borrow all at once and repay in smaller increments is an installment loan. I will be paying on this house until I go to heaven or Jesus returns (whichever comes first, lol).

Paul uses this word three times in his letters – here, 2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5. Only he uses it in the New Testament. I love how Albert Barnes explains this Greek Word, arrabón. “God thus gives to his people the assurance that they shall be saved; and by this “pledge” makes their title to eternal life sure.” The installment payment God made was His Holy Spirit. We have a little taste of heaven by being indwelt with His Spirit.

APPLICATION

Let’s look at the other two occurrences of that word. 2 Corinthians 1:22 says, “who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.” In the same letter, Paul says this in 5:5, “Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave us the Spirit as a pledge.” This word was a common term used in business transactions. It was a promise of future payment. This pledge or first payment was meant to show you were good for the rest.

Aren’t you glad we know our God is good for the rest? His promises are sure. He will never fail us. He has promised us so much, but the best is an eternity with Him. Can you imagine? No more alarm clocks waking you up to go to work. No more bills to pay. No more aches and pains. No more…you fill in the blank. We will have a lot of “no mores,” but we will also have a lot of “so much mores.”

Take a minute and thank God for His gift of the Holy Spirit in your life as a believer. Thank Him for convicting you of sin.  Thank Him for uttering our deepest pains when we can’t find the words. Thank Him for His guidance through difficult situations. Thank for this pledge of our inheritance.

Father, You have promised us so much and given us this pledge as a reminder.

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