Beyond All We Ask or Imagine

As Martin Lloyd-Jones tells in his exposition of Ephesians, Ephesians is so sublime that one calls the book as ‘the crown and climax Pauline theology’. I realize I am not worthy of even talking about it because my Christian experience is too low, compared to the tremendous possibilities open to Christians in this life in Christ Jesus. I am deeply humbled or even depressed by the fact, though. Then why do I try to talk about it right now? It is because it is my desire that my spiritual eyes may be open to the tremendous possibilities and seek them even a little bit by God’s grace. Several years ago, I asked one of my sons that what he hoped for his future. He told that he had none. I don’t know he said it half-jokingly or not. But when I asked the same question to me, I, too, didn’t have much hope either. Why do many Christians including me have a low expectation? Why do they settle down with a lowly Christian experience? As William Carey’s famous saying, “Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God,” Christians are called to expect great things from God and attempt great things for God. Then, why do we settle down with our low Christian life? I think it is because we do not fully understand our potential abilities as a Christian. We think we are little people. But Paul’s point in the book of Ephesians is that God’s might power that made you alive is at work within us (See 3:20 and 1:19-20), and that, therefore, Christians are not little people any more but they are God’s redeemed people through the blood of Jesus Christ. You may have a misunderstanding that the Ephesian Christians were different folks than us. But they were slaves or uneducated. Also they were recent converts. They were no different than us. But Paul wrote this letter to these young Christians in Ephesus so that their spiritual eyes might be enlightened and thus they might be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God, living according to the worthy calling of God in Jesus Christ.

As you see, Ephesians 3:20-21 is Paul’ outburst of praise and hymn to God. It’s like his version of “Hallelujah” chorus. He concludes Chapter 1-3 with this fitting doxology like the climax of a symphony, after he expounds the glories and riches of God’s way of salvation in Christ verse by verse. If you study Ephesians Chapter 1 to 3, you will understand his conclusion better. 

I will briefly summarize Chapter 1-3. In Chapter 1:3, Paul praises God because he has blessed us to the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. He reminds the Christians in Ephesus of that God has blessed them with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. We are forgettable or ignorant that we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. In 1:4-10, Paul shows to the Christians in Ephesus that salvation is from God, by God, and of God. Sometimes we think that we were saved because we chose to believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ. But strictly speaking, we were saved only because God had chosen us in Christ before the creation of the world. In other words, we were saved because God had purposed and initiated the way of redemption in Christ. Therefore, our salvation is not a small matter that can be easily brushed in the eyes of the world. Even before the creation of the world, God planned our salvation and actively involved in it. He planned the wonderful plan of redemption that required the blood of his beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Even God could not simply forgive our sins. In 1:7-8, Paul says,

“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished us with all wisdom and understanding.”

 Even to God, forgiveness of sins was not a small matter. It involved the blood of his dear Son Jesus Christ. And the redemption vividly reveals his glorious grace and the riches of his grace. That fact that we were forgiven and we were saved is not a small matter at all. It necessitated the huge sacrifice from God, which was possible because of his incomparable riches of his grace, mercy and kindness. The reason why you and I are Christians is only because God redeemed us through the precious blood of Jesus Christ.

And then has God saved us for nothing? Is being saved or being born again everything? Why did he save us? Why did he bless us? For what great plan did he save us? We find the answer in 1:9-10:

“And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment – to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.”

Engrossed in our daily busy schedule, we tend to forget that we were saved for God’s great purpose and plan. Due to the fall, men were disobedient to God. God began his way of redemption through calling one man Abraham, through whom he created a nation Israel. Then from his seed, God raised Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world. Through whom, he called his people even from the Gentiles and formed a new thing, which is called the Church. This work of God is mostly invisible to the world, but God is building the Church, calling one Christian after one Christian from every race, nation, tribe, and language until when the fullness of the time will come, and when the new heaven and new earth will visibly display to the eyes of every man, and when every knee will bow before Jesus Christ and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Every local church has its own weaknesses, division, and controversies, because a church is the gathering of people with different races, different nationalities, different educational or economical backgrounds, and different personalities in every conceivable degree. And yet God is creating one new creation in Christ through the blood of Jesus Christ, which is the Church. We may not see or sense it. Even the world or the devil may not know it. One of the elders in Revelation 7:13 asked John, “These in white robes – who are they, and where did they come from?” Of course, he knew the answer, but I believe his question was intended for emphasizing that God’s great purpose of calling people from every tribe and language and people and nation will not be fully revealed before the eyes in the universe until God’s due time. Even though you may neither recognize nor know nor sense it, God is working out his purpose through every local church, even through YTCF. Then God is sealing this through the Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the day of the final redemption. Therefore in Chapter 4 to 6, Paul emphasizes the ethical behavior fitting to Christians’ high calling under God’s mighty plans.

But as you know well, we are bound to our flesh and sinful nature and our circumstances and situations. We are easily inundated by our daily mundane matters. So Paul prays for the Christians in Ephesus that the eyes of their hearts may be enlightened that they may know the hope to which they were called, the riches of God’s glorious inheritance, and his incomparably great power that is at work within us (1:17-23). Notice that he prays that they may know especially God’s incomparably great power that is at work in them according to his great plan and purpose. Why does Paul pray for God’s incomparably great power that is at work in believers? The reason that we were made alive in Christ Jesus is simply because God started his mighty work in his power. Dead men can neither dream nor imagine nor hope nor even desire spiritual things. The fact that we believed the gospel is the demonstration of God’s mighty power in our souls. But God does not stop in our regeneration. Have you ever seen any parents who will desert their newborn children? No, they will take care of them with their utmost care and nurturing. Likewise, being born again is not everything what God had in mind when he quickened our dead souls. His utmost desire is that each child of God may grow to the fullest under his incomparably mighty power that is at work with us.

See Chapter 3:16-19. Paul prays for the Ephesian Christians:

 “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, and 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—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

That’s God’s desire and hope for his children. We have tremendous possibilities open to us in this present life. But is it possible that Christ dwells in our hearts and that we may grasp the width, length, height and depth of the love of Christ to the fullest measure? These possibilities are too good to be true. They are staggering promises. But Paul prays for the Ephesian Christians for these amazing possibilities because he knows God is able to do exceedingly beyond all they ask or imagine.

Pause and think about a Christian who never knows what is possible to him or her. Recently I read a story about a homeless man who died under a railroad overpass in Evanston, a small mining town in Wyoming without being aware that he was entitled to about $19 million before taxes. His name was Timothy Henry Gray, the half great-nephew of a famous New York philanthropist and recluse, Huguette Clark, who died in 2011 at age 104. Mr. Clark had no children and in her will she left no money to her family, leaving it instead to her nurse, goddaughter, attorney, account, hospital, favorite museum and to an art foundation. Nineteen of Ms Clark’s relatives joined a legal challenge to her will and Mr. Gray was included in the challenge. But the lawyers could not find him. Mr. Gray died without knowing he would be entitled to $19 million. Like Mr. Gray, many Christians are unaware of what is possible to their Christian lives. Many people are interested in wealth and riches. We are envious of those who display their affluent lifestyle. But isn’t it a pity if we Christians do not know far greater wealth and riches of the Christian life? Worse, isn’t it a tragedy if, even knowing them, we don’t seek them because they are staggering promises and they are too good to be true.

But Paul knows our weaknesses and lack of faith. Thus he turns our eyes to God who is able to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine. There is nothing God cannot do. When the Israelites entered the wilderness, God fed them with manna. But they were sick of manna and complained to Moses. So Moses asked the Lord where he could get meat for all these people. Then God told him that he would feed them with meat for a month until they are fed up with meat. Then Moses staggered in disbelief that how more than one million people would get meat. Then God told him, “Is the Lord’s arm too short?” The Bible numerously tells about similar stories. When God told Abraham that Sarah would bear a child, Sarah laughed in disbelief. But God told Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

In essence, God’s promise is staggering. That’s why it requires faith. To God, the greatest sin is to limit God to our levels and not attempt anything for God. God told Moses to send 12 men to explore the Promised Land. When they returned from the exploration trip, they except Caleb and Joshua reported that they would be unable to conquer the land because the Canaanites were too powerful and great in size and that, compared with them, they seemed like grasshoppers. Their report was so negative that the whole assembly got discouraged and loudly complained to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Why is the Lord bringing us here only to let us fall by the sword? Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” Moses and Aaron pled with the people, saying, “If God is pleased with us, he will lead us into the land, the land flowing milk and honey. Do not rebel against God. Do not be afraid of the Canaanites.” But the whole assembly was against them. God was so angry at their unbelief in spite of seeing all the miracles he had performed for them.

God is not pleased with us if we do not expect anything from him and remain status quo because of our unbelief. We should grow in love, holiness, patience, knowledge, zeal for the Lord, and our outward deeds. But these things can be done only by God. Therefore, we should pray to God anything without limiting God’s power. Psalm 81:10 says, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.” I am guilty of limiting my prayers for my sons who are antagonistic to Christian faith. I have prayed for their conversions for years, and when nothing seemed to happen, I begin to think there is no point in continuing to do so. Abraham’s greatness is in the fact that he did not stagger at the promise of God through unbelief but lived by faith to the end, believing God had power what he had promised. I know that it is not that our faith suddenly grow tomorrow and attempt a great thing immediately. Faith is like a body. It needs nutrition, training, exercise, and practice. But if you have even a little faith like a mustard seed, the Bible says that we will ask God any impossible things. So let us not shrink back or remain stagnant but challenge many impossible things in prayer. The greatest encouragement is that God’s power is at work within us and for us through his Church according to his great plan and purpose. In spite of all our weaknesses, he is rich in his grace, mercy and kindness. He is working even now within you. He wants your eyes to be enlightened to all the possibilities open to you.