The Inner Man

Prayer

Grant now, heavenly Father, that the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts may be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Introduction

Today, I want to look again into some insights about our inner beings, as Paul describes it in the New Testament.

Last week i talked about the fact that,.. what we are on the inside, affects what we are on the outside.

We seen where Paul was talking to the Corinthian church and said that their lives serve as written books for the world to read.

and i emphasized the fact that we reflect who is on the inside of us the to people around us.

And today, i want to start by thinking about this the other way around. instead of thinking about the fact that the inside person reveals their selves on the outside, i want to look at the fact that many times the outer person will define the inner person.

Thinking about the Apostle Paul, he went through some incredibly tough times.

He faced persecution, imprisonment, and so many obstacles, yet through it all, his faith never wavered. He had a lot going on on the outside but he didn’t allow it to define his inside man.

In 2 Corinthians 4:16 , Paul says,

2 Corinthians 4:16 (KJV 1900)

For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

I think about John Bunyan, the man who wrote "The Pilgrim's Progress."

He spent 12 years in prison for preaching. The prison that he was in had little to no sanitation, barely any food and no medical care. It was a dark damp moldy place and yet while he was in there he wrote “The Pilgrim’s Progress”.

But although he faced harsh conditions and uncertainty, his inner being was alive with hope and even with the creativity to write.

Instead of letting his imprisonment bring him down, Bunyan turned his focus inward, holding on to the transformation God was working in his heart.

And today we are reminded that no matter how tough our outer circumstances may be, it’s our inner being that really matters.

The Apostle Paul and John Bunyan are examples of how we can find strength in the most challenging times to not allow the outer person change the inner person.

But, let’s see how we can cultivate that same inner resilience in our own lives. How can we shift from our external to the internal?

As Paul said, our physical bodies may be experiencing wear and tear, but there’s something deep within us that can grow stronger and more vibrant, no matter what life throws our way.

Ephesians 3:14–21 (KJV 1900)

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; 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 fulness 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.

Summery

This passage is a prayer that Paul is praying for the believers at Ephesus.

It is a prayer for spiritual enlightenment and strength for believers.

Paul talks about how crucial it is to be filled with God's presence and that true Christian living isn’t about what’s happening around us—it’s about what’s happening inside us.

Our focus should be on that deeper relationship with God, rather than just the ups and downs of life.

But this morning, as we think about this, i want to first point to the fact that Christ is the source.

John Stott said that;

…: “The Christian life is essentially a life of the Spirit, and the Spirit of God is given to us through our union with Christ. He is the source of our strength and transformation.”

John Stott

Paul begins his prayer

I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

This is Paul showing a deep sense of reverence and humility as he approaches God.

Bowing in prayer is a physical act that symbolizes submission, humility, and respect.

and Paul’s posture indicates that he is coming before God with deep reverence, acknowledging God’s authority and majesty.

God of the Universe

When it comes to praying, we must realize that we are going before the God of this universe and he deserves all respect.

Isaiah 66:1-2 Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: Where is the house that ye build unto me? And where is the place of my rest? 2 For all those things hath mine hand made, And all those things have been, saith the LORD:

Understanding this, Paul writes, “I bow before the Father” this was something sincere,.. In this book, he had been praying for the church In Ephesus.

and this wasn’t just something cool and religious sounding to make himself look spiritual.

This was heartfelt. He knew who God was.

He says; “Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named”

All believers belong to God’s family. This is where we get our name as Christians.

As believers, belong to Christ. and because we belong to Him we are loved by Him and it is though Him that we can develop our being.

and so we need complete reverence before our God.

just as we read in Psalm 95:6-7

Psalm 95:6–7 (KJV 1900)

O come, let us worship and bow down: Let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

When we realize who God is and learn to truly reverence Him, our inner being will be strengthened.

Moving back to our text this morning, Paul says..

(Ephesians 3) That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory,

Christ is our Supply

the riches of His glory.” That is the same place where we get all our needs met! This is a supply that will never run out.

His strength comes from the same place His grace comes from. You see salvation is not just a one time experience…it is a daily need for us.

His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning!

Everyday we are in need of His salvation in one way or another, and this salvation comes by way of His strength at work in our lives.

But notice that in this phrase, Paul doesn’t say, “out of the riches” but rather he says “according to the riches”.

That’s because God’s supply does not run out. The riches of Christ are not a diminishing supply.

In Ephesians 3:8 Paul describes the riches of Christ as “unsearchable”. basically saying that the riches of Christ are beyond human comprehension and cannot be fully explored or understood.

There is always enough and he gives according to our need. Amen.

Ephesians 3:8 KJV 1900

Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;

Do we need this supply?

Yes.

One indication is that Paul is writing to believers:

 He starts this letter out by calling them, “saints” and It is important to recognize who Paul is writing to: Because these were Christians who needed more of God in their lives.

There are a lot of Christians, who when they get saved, they think that they have everything already.

But this isn’t necessarily true.

Salvation is just the beginning.

While we receive grace and forgiveness, the journey of sanctification—being made more like Christ—continues throughout our lives.

A baby doesn’t have everything he needs.

He hasn’t learned everything or developed in every way and as a believer, we will keep growing and maturing and receiving. 

We start out drinking milk, and end up eating meat.

But today if you believe that you have all you can have then you are deceived.

Because God has so much more. Paul is actually praying for believers to be open to receiving more of God’s love, strength, and fullness. 

There are a lot of modern Christians who don’t want to do the spiritual work,

either because they are lazy spiritually speaking or they are proud.

But true fullness in Christ leads a continued seeking and to humility, not arrogance.

There a many people who focus on physical exercise and that is a good thing when it comes to your health but as Christians we are supposed to do some spiritual exercise also.

1 Timothy 4:7 we are told, “train yourself in godliness.”

Spiritual laziness can lead to stagnation, where believers miss out on the fullness of life with God.

St. Augustine: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”

But today we need to know that the strength to live a Christ-centered life comes from the transformation of the inner being

Christ is the source of all blessing.

The more we yield ourselves to Him, the more we are filled with His Spirit, and the more we reflect His glory.

James 4:8 tells us that if we will :Draw near to God, he will draw near to us..”

We need a constant supply of the Spirit in our lives.

and Verse 16 of this morning text continues;

(Ephesians 3)

16b to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;

And so it is that we find our strength by His Spirit. The work of the Holy Spirit.

But the question becomes, how to we grab hold of this power or inner strength?

If it comes by Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit, then do we have any part in this equation?

and the answer is laying right there in the next verse.

(Ephesians 3)

17a, That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith;

The answer is “faith”.

Faith is more than mere belief; I believe that the lights are on in this room today. That’s belief and really that means nothing.

But faith is a deep trust in God’s character and in His promises.

It’s acknowledging and knowing that He is who He says He is and that He can do what He says He will do.

Faith that Christ will fill our hearts with the Spirit will bring about the experience of the fullness of Christ in our lives.

As we understand that we need a continued flow of the Spirit and we receive this by faith, we must also understand that there must be some active searching on our part.

Daily align your life with God and His presence.

Sunday morning just isn’t enough. Spirit powered living requires that we intentionally seek out God every day. The more we seek to encounter Him in our daily lives, the more we will begin to recognize that God’s presence surrounds us and sustains us whenever we may be.

God is reachable through the means that He has given us to reach Him and if you are suffering spiritually to be frank, it is your own fault.

He is there, willing to bring comfort, to give wisdom or to bring you encouragement.

Jesus spent the bulk of his ministry in ordinary towns and village. He taught and preached and performed miracles in the most mundane of locations.

In neighborhoods, at the market, and in homes filled with noisy kids. He is there wherever you seek Him.

Deuteronomy 4:29 says, “if from there thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul”

Finding God is merely a matter of looking.

How do we seek?

Well, one way to seek God is through having a daily devotional time.

This is important to the well being of the inner being.

In our Bible study this week, we talked about the importance of having a time spent with God away from everything else.

i believe that this is essential to the vitality of the spiritual life of a believer.

It’s not enough to hear about God through the pastor, small groups, or something you watched online.

To fully appreciate and know God, you must seek Him, meditate in His Word and be in prayer.

Psalm 63:1–5 (KJV 1900)

O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: My soul thirsteth for thee, My flesh longeth for thee In a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;

To see thy power and thy glory, So as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.

Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, My lips shall praise thee.

Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.

My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; And my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:

This Psalm expresses a deep yearning for God. The kind of desire that a Christian should have.

The writer seeks God earnestly, showing a desire for a close connection with God and a Communion with Him.

If we never take time for God and allow simply allow our outer person define our inner person then we will become more and more like the world.

We will be like the man that is.. as James puts it, tossed to and fro.

We allow our circumstances to shape us rather than allowing the Holy Spirit to shape us.

Ephesians 3:17–21 (KJV 1900)

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 fulness 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.

Hallelujah! I think that this sounds awesome. To be about to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth, and the length and the depth and the height and be filled with the fullness of God.

Conclusion

We can seek God and find him! God is knowable, touchable, hearable, seeable, with the mind, the hands, the ears and the eyes of the inner man.

A. W. Tozer

The way society is today, we are subjected to lots of information. lots of things that want to control who we are and influence our outer man so that we will be changed and influenced to being less Christian. The world wants to silence the inner being in all of us. The part of us that connects to God.

Christ in the vine and we are the branches and as such we need to stay focused on the development of our spiritual lives.

It is virtually impossible to energize your soul without some periods of solitude. We need to take time for God.

And solitude begins with a time and place for God, and him alone. It is a time that we give God our undivided attention and allow Him time to refocus our souls.

Matthew 6:6 (KJV 1900)

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

I think that devotional time could be the most neglected spiritual exercise of our modern culture.

We are addicted to noise, information, and activity.

But this morning, I encourage you to find a quiet place and connect with God and keep the Spiritual side of you the prominent side.