Far More Abundantly (Jubilee DNow #3)

Introduction

Ephesians 3:14–21 ESV

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

ILLUSTRATION: Catching the apartment on fire.

Ken and Adam cooking cheese sticks.

I started spelling smoke. They started screaming, and I thought they were messing with me.

A grease fire had erupted in the kitchen. The pot was overflowing with flames and oil on the stove, and the microwave was melted. They were running around and SCREAMING.

They decided on two different options: Ken said, “Bro, this apartment complex is gonna burn. Abandon it!” So he runs out of the apartment and jumps off the second floor balcony to get out of there. My other friend, Adam, “Picked up the hose that’s attached to the sink, and he sprayed the grease fire.”

My two friends reactions are very similar to most people’s view of God. They only see God as a holy, righteous, and just Judge - and He is. But, because they only see God in this way, they see Him as their biggest problem instead of their greatest joy.

As a result, they either try to:

fix their problems on their own, or

run from God.

While God is the holy, righteous, just, and sovereign judge of the universe, do you know what God is to you? Father

In your home groups, what have you guys been studying? The Prodigal Son. Really, it should be entitled, “The Prodigal Sons.”

While we have sinned against God, the beauty of God’s grace is that through Christ, God sees us as His children.

CIT: God’s grace changes our hearts to see Him more clearly, love the things that He loves, and serve His Kingdom.

Explanation

Ephesians 3:14-16 “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,”

“Father” // Here is that word I used just a minute ago. God is your Father. I heard a pastor explain it this way once.

Let’s say you are walking down the street in Los Angeles, and you see Lebron James house. You say to yourself, “I am really thirstly, and I bet Lebron would let me have a glass of water.” You walk into his house, go up the stairs, walk into his bedroom, and tap him on the shoulder to ask him for a drink of water.

You are gonna get dunked out the window, and then you are going to jail. Why? Not because Lebron doesn’t have water, but because he doesn’t know you.

Now suppose that Lebron’s daughter decided to ask for the same thing. She does the same thing. He gets up and gets her the water.

What changed? It was the relationship.

When you give your life to Jesus, you are in Christ. When you are in Christ, God uses all of his vast resources to strengthen and grow you.

Isn’t that what Paul means when he says he “bows his knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named?”

The meaning of this verse is debated, but the jist of it is really simple.

Every family speaks to the bigness and sovereignty of God, while family speaks to the intimacy.

God is both big enough to know the name of every family, and He is involved enough to know the intimate details.

God is both willing AND able to work His power in us.

I could give you a list of does and don’ts tonight, or I could tell you that God’s power grants you everything that you need.

1 Peter tells us this as well: His divine power has granted to us everything that we need for life and godliness.

Because God loves you, He gives you the power to grow and walk in Him?

The question is: How? Verses 17-19 show us the answer.

Ephesians 3:17-19 “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

This passage of Scripture is a passage about growth. You don’t grow by pulling yourself up by your bootstraps and trying harder and doing better. You grow by looking at Jesus and knowing His love for you. “Rooted and grounded in love” “know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge”

Louie Giglio says that the way we fix our small view of God is like looking through a telescope.

Not a microscope. A microscope makes small things look bigger.

But a telescope. A telescope takes big things that are far away and brings them closer.

The more that you look at the big, wonderful, incredible, and never-ending love of God, the more your life will be changed.

The quality of God’s love is that it is:

Wide // God’s love covers a lot of space. You can look as far in one direction and the other direction and still see his love.

Long // God’s love isn’t short term. It goes the length. It endures. Even when we fail and falter, God’s love remains steady and consistent.

High // Mt. Everest is 29,032 feet in the air. If you stacked 30 Mt. Everests on top of each other, the love of God would still reach higher. The height of God’s love is magnificent.

Deep // A shallow love would give up on you when you became hard to deal with. But, God’s love stays steady even when you mess up. It covers the deepest, darkest sins that you feel ashamed to admit.

“Filled with the fullness of God” When you are full in the Lord, you don’t

Ephesians 3:20-21 “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

My purpose tonight is not to ask you to do better or be better or live better. My goal is for you to encounter the love and grace of God in a powerful way. When you do that - when you grasp God’s love for you - you will change.

And it won’t be a short term/I got excited because I came to DNOW kind of change.

It will be change from the inside out.

That sin that you have been struggling with for year after year. God can take that away from you. Only his power can do it.

The gospel saves us from our sins, but it also saves us from the slavery that our sins placed us in.

Maybe you are addicted to porn.

Maybe the friends that you are hanging out with have enticed you to do things that you never thought you would do - and you don’t know a way out.

Maybe, you have struggle anger or fear. The power of the cross is more than enough to deliver you from that.

Invitation

If you haven’t given your life to Jesus by faith in Him and repentance of your sins, don’t walk away from this weekend without receiving his grace.

If you know Jesus, but your life has lately been characterized by running from his presence and sin, run to Jesus and cast your sin at His feet. He knows what to do with it.

Maybe, God is calling you to the ministry. Missionary, pastor, ministry leader, etc. Answer the call of God on your life.

Maybe, God just wants you to make the next step. I haven’t really hit on it, but something that you learned in your small groups or on the mission sites or in conversations at your host homes have you thinking about what you need to do next. Take the next step.