Love First Love: The Riches of His Love Toward Us / Ephesians 3:14-21
Standing at the Altar: When Everything Changes
If you have your Bibles, let’s open them together to Ephesians chapter 3. I hope you brought a Bible with you today. We mention that just about every single week, but if for some reason you’re really stubborn and you say, “No, I will not bring it,” then I’m going to keep saying it: bring a Bible! And for those of you watching on video this weekend, I can see you, so you bring your Bible as well.
Let me set up our passage this way. It was June 13, 1998. It was about one hundred and fifty degrees in Denton, Texas, and I was trying to stuff my girthy self into a tuxedo for my wedding day. As we were getting ready to come out onto the stage, everybody was seated, and you could hear the crowd murmuring. In that moment, I experienced something personally that I have since witnessed from a different seat a hundred times: I saw a groom panic.
Now, it is really funny when you are watching another groom panic. But in June of 1998, it was me, and I was completely overwhelmed. I knew that in that exact moment, everything in my life was changing. I don’t mean that in a bad way, like “Here comes the old ball and chain.” I mean, whoever you thought you were, you better step up. Whatever you thought a man was, you better be one. More was going to be required of me from that moment forward than any day I had ever lived up until then, because God was entrusting a wife to me. I felt the weight of a thousand years on my shoulders. Some of you men know exactly what I am talking about.
I remember walking out there with the worst haircut in the history of mankind. I used to look back at my parents’ wedding pictures and say, “Dad, really? Who let you do that?” Now I look at my own wedding pictures and think, “I need better friends! How did they let me walk down the aisle like that?”
So I walked out there with my bad haircut and I stood in place. I tried to be ready. In that church, it felt like the center aisle was a mile long. I stood there feeling the full weight of the moment. I was sweating, my heart was racing, and the adrenaline, fear, anticipation, and excitement were all colliding at once. It was the ultimate game-day experience. Then the doors swung open, and there she was.
All I could do in that moment was take a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh: Here we go.
For many of you men, that is exactly how you felt. And for you ladies, when those doors opened and you wore that white dress, in your own way, you felt that too. Why? Because in that moment, you knew everything was changing. Everything was different. More was required. More was being asked of you. You realized, “I have to become something that I’m not entirely sure I can do, and I’m afraid she knows that I don’t know.” All I knew was that the boy I used to be had to grow up right there on the spot.
The Story So Far: Identity Precedes Calling
That feeling of standing at a pivotal crossroads is exactly where we find ourselves at the end of Ephesians chapter 3. Paul has just spent three full chapters walking us through the riches of our identity in Christ.
In chapter 1, he told us that we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.
Ephesians 1:3 (NASB)
Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ,
At the end of chapter 1, he prayed that the eyes of our hearts would be enlightened so that we could understand who we already are in Him.
Then in chapter 2, as PJ walked us through last week, we saw that when it comes to salvation, God brought everything to the table. We brought nothing to the table other than our deadness and our spiritually bankrupt hearts. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, made us alive together with Christ. God moved on our behalf.
Ephesians 2:4-5 (NASB)
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
Not only did He save us by grace when we were dead in our transgressions and sins, but He also entrusted us with the mystery of the gospel. The most profound truth in the history of mankind has been wrapped up in the message of the gospel and entrusted to you and me to articulate saving faith in Jesus Christ to a dying world. God gave that message to us—not so that we would bury it or lock it away in a cedar chest to be auctioned off in a storage unit foreclosure, but so that we would take it and proclaim it in word and in deed. He has entrusted us with that sacred stewardship.
In chapter 3, verse 1, Paul begins to pray. But as he starts, he gets overwhelmed by emotion and launches into a long parenthetical tangent. He says, “For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus…” and then he goes on a rabbit trail about the stewardship of God’s grace and his joyful endurance in tribulation. Finally, when he reaches verse 14, he picks his original thought back up and remembers what he set out to pray.
Ephesians 3:14-15 (NASB)
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name,
Reminiscent of chapter 2, where he explained that the gospel unites us not on affinity but on identity, Paul bows his knees before the One from whom every race, tribe, tongue, and demographic derives its identity under the lordship of Christ.
Strengthened by the Spirit Within
Look at what Paul prays next in verse 16.
Ephesians 3:16 (NASB)
that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,
Notice what he says: “I pray that you would be strengthened with power through his Spirit.” He does not pray that you would pull yourself up by your bootstraps. He does not pray that you would muster up enough human courage to be strong. He prays that you would be strengthened with power through His Spirit.
Why? Because these believers are standing at a major crossroads. The people Paul is writing to are scared to death. In this moment of their spiritual lives, everything is about to change. God is going to ask of them more than they feel capable of giving. God is going to call them to do more than they think they have in them. They have to step up, yet they are wrestling with fear, insecurity, doubt, and anxiety.
Paul recognizes their fear, and he points them to the only power they can rely on: the power of God working within them. Look at verse 17, where he prays that Christ would dwell in your hearts through faith.
Ephesians 3:17 (NASB)
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; [and] that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
Did you know that the moment you placed your faith in Jesus Christ, the Spirit of God sealed you? If you look back at chapter 1, verse 13, Paul says that having heard the gospel and having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.
Ephesians 1:13 (NASB)
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation– having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
When you placed your faith in Christ, Jesus took up residence inside of you. For years we have used the phrase “inviting Jesus into your heart,” and people sometimes ask what that means. It means this right here: that Christ dwells in our hearts through faith, and that He is the One who compels us, drives us, and moves us.
Jesus said in John 14:23, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.”
John 14:23 (NASB)
Jesus answered and said to him, ’If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.
Paul reminded the Corinthians, “Do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?”
2 Corinthians 13:5 (NASB)
Test yourselves [to see] if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you– unless indeed you fail the test?
Do you see what Paul is doing in this moment of transition? As he punctuates three chapters of explaining who you already are, he wants you to see that the power at work within you is the very power of the living God.
Rooted and Grounded in His Love
Paul prays very specifically that we would be rooted and grounded in love.
I have to admit, at this point in my life, I have become completely obsessed with gardening. I know it sounds lame, but I am totally into it. On any given day, there is dirt underneath my fingernails and I am having a ball. I am out there planting all kinds of things, pretending I know what I’m doing when I really don’t have a clue. But one thing I have learned is that roots mean everything. In reality, you aren’t just growing plants; you are cultivating good soil.
When you plant something with a healthy root system, those roots are actively reaching for something. They cannot produce life or fruit unless they tap into a source of sustenance outside of themselves. They reach down into the soil to draw up the vital nutrients they lack on their own.
Paul says, “I pray that you would be rooted in His love.” Reach for the sustenance you do not possess in yourself, so that He might provide what you lack and give you true life. And be grounded in love—built upon a solid foundation, anchored in who He is.
To know Him is to know the riches of His love. It means to comprehend what He has already done on our behalf, to be amazed by His love, to be moved by His love, to be stirred by His love, and even to be wrecked by His love.
I spent some time this past week with a brother from our FIG campus, Zach Smith. Zach is a faithful guy who loves Jesus deeply. We were spending some time together, letting iron sharpen iron, and I listened to him talk about the love of God. He spoke about how God’s love should stir our affections and move us from the inside out. As I watched him speak, tears welled up in his eyes. I sat there thinking, “Yes! Amen.” I was so encouraged and blessed by his heart, because that is what the love of God is supposed to do.
God’s love is not a passive sentiment that simply lets us say, “Oh, isn’t that nice, God loves me.” It is an active, gripping reality that works within us and moves us to action despite our weaknesses. As I listened to Zach, I asked myself, “How do we lay hold of that?”
That is precisely what Paul prays in verses 18 and 19.
Ephesians 3:18-19 (NASB)
may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.
Paul is saying, “I want you to comprehend, along with every saint who has ever lived, the breadth, length, height, and depth of the love of Christ.” Try to wrap your mind around the sheer magnitude of His love for you, so that you may know this love that surpasses knowledge and be filled with all the fullness of God.
You can sense the holy desperation in Paul’s voice. He is saying, “You need to see this!” Why? Because you cannot do what God is about to ask you to do in chapters 4, 5, and 6 unless He first does in you what only He can do. You cannot step into the calling of the Christian life until you are anchored in the depth, riches, and fullness of His love for you.
Paul wants us to be filled with the fullness of God so that we can reflect His glory, refresh a weary and dying world, and be fueled by love to go on mission with Him.
When Paul wrote to the church in Corinth about the love of Christ, he put it this way in 2 Corinthians 5:14-15:
2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (NASB)
For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.
The love of Christ controls and compels us. Because He died for us, we who live should no longer live for ourselves, but for Him who died and rose again on our behalf. That is what love does.
Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”
John 15:13 (NASB)
’Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.
When we truly grasp the breadth, length, height, and depth of God’s love poured out for us at the cross, how could we not be moved to action? How could we not be stirred with deep affection for others?
He loves you, and He wants to send you. But He must work through you first. You cannot go in your own strength. It accomplishes nothing of eternal value to step out merely on human courage, personal motivation, or religious guilt. Guilt is never the right motivator. Go because He loves you! And because He loves you, how could we stay silent? How could we fail to steward the life-changing message of the gospel?
Exceedingly, Abundantly Beyond
Whenever I tell people that God loves them and wants to send them, the immediate reaction is often hesitation: “Wait a minute. Are you talking to me? Do you know who I am? Who am I to be used by God? I’m not holy enough. I’ve got too many issues. I’m not good enough, I wouldn’t know what to say, and I don’t have the talent. I’ve never done anything like that. I am simply not enough. Period.”
To that I say: it is not about you. Period.
It is about Him. It is about His holiness, His goodness, and His power. He is more than enough. If you are rooted and grounded in His love, and if you are filled with the fullness of God, then He is more than enough through you. Just show Him off and get out of the way! Point people to Jesus and let Him be the focal point.
Look at verses 20 and 21.
Ephesians 3:20-21 (NASB)
Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him [be] the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
Look closely at those words: “Now to Him who is able…” It is not about your ability; it is about His.
When you are rooted and grounded in His love, and when Christ dwells in your heart by faith, He will do exceedingly, abundantly beyond all that you could ever ask or imagine according to the power at work within you. That is when the adventure truly begins—when you see God moving through your life.
He will blow your mind by opening doors of opportunity you never expected. You might find yourself sitting across the table from someone at lunch, awkwardly stumbling through the gospel, perhaps even choking on your sandwich, and thinking, “Well, that was a complete disaster.” And right then, that person breaks down in tears and says, “I need this Jesus you’re talking about.” You will walk away shaking your head, wondering, “How on earth did God just do that?”
He does far more abundantly than all we ask or think. He will give you the words to say when moments arise. He will bring people in crisis across your path who desperately need the hope of Christ. He will use your life to make an eternal impact.
When the love of God is in you, it cannot be contained. Jeremiah spoke of God’s word being like a fire shut up in his bones—he grew weary of holding it in, and he could not hold it back.
Jeremiah 20:9 (NASB)
But if I say, ‘I will not remember Him Or speak anymore in His name,’ Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding [it] in, And I cannot endure [it].
If the love of Christ is in you, let it out! Let it shine so that those around you can see it.
And when God does move through you, verse 21 reminds us: don’t get arrogant. He does not do it for our glory; He does it for His glory alone. “To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” The Lord alone gets the credit when His love moves through our lives. It is never about us.
Stepping into the Calling
As we read this passage, there is a natural sense of weight that settles over us. We hear that God loves us, that our identity is secure in Christ, and that His love compels us into mission, and our initial reaction is panic: “Me? How could He ever use me?”
It feels like standing at the altar on your wedding day, realizing that life as you knew it is over. If you truly embrace the love of God and surrender to what He is calling you to do, it will require more of you than you possess in your own strength. You feel the weight of a thousand years, and you let out a heavy sigh.
That is exactly where God wants you: recognizing your own inadequacy so that you rely entirely on His power.
Look at where Paul takes us immediately after this prayer. Turn to chapter 4, verse 1.
Ephesians 4:1 (NASB)
Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,
Look at verse 17:
Ephesians 4:17 (NASB)
So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,
Look at chapter 5, verse 2:
Ephesians 5:2 (NASB)
and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.
Look at chapter 5, verse 8:
Ephesians 5:8 (NASB)
for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light
Look at chapter 5, verse 15:
Ephesians 5:15 (NASB)
Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise,
And look at chapter 6, verse 10:
Ephesians 6:10 (NASB)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.
The love of God was never intended to be poured into our lives only for us to bottle it up and store it away in a spiritual pantry. The love of God is meant to move us into the world.
Paul laid down three chapters of identity before giving us a single command to obey. If you try to walk worthy of your calling in your own strength, your efforts will produce no spiritual fruit and have zero kingdom impact, because it will still be about you. If you are pointing to your own name on the back of the jersey, you can forget about it—God does not share His glory with anyone.
However, when the love of God fills your soul, when Christ dwells richly in your heart, and when you grasp the incredible dimensions of His grace, His love spills out of you onto the people around you. God does exceedingly, abundantly beyond all you could ask or imagine, and He receives all the glory. That is when chapters 4 through 6 come alive.
As you leave here today, rest in this truth: He loves you. The riches of His love have already been poured out on you in Christ Jesus. He has sealed you with His Spirit and filled you with His presence. Now, let the love of God that defines your identity move you into action for His glory and renown.
What a privilege we have to serve the living God. What an honor to be loved by Him and used by Him. And what a sacred stewardship we carry to proclaim the riches of His love to the world.
Let’s pray together.
Father in heaven, we pray that we would decrease and that Christ would increase in us. In and of ourselves, we are inadequate, insufficient, and unable. Yet Christ is our adequacy, Christ is our sufficiency, and Christ is our strength.
Father, would You stir our affections for Jesus so deeply that our service becomes the natural overflow of a heart captivated by Your grace? Move through us in ways that fulfill this scripture: do exceedingly, abundantly beyond all we could ask or imagine. We ask that You would reach our neighbors and impact our city with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Blow our minds with unexpected opportunities. Place Your words in our mouths, bringing truth to our lips so that we can show the love of God to those who are hurting. And when the fruit comes, may all praise, honor, and glory be given to the King of kings and Lord of lords—Jesus Christ, who loves us with a love beyond words. We thank You in the matchless name of Jesus, amen.