“Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power.”—Eph.i. 15-19.
“Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power.”—Eph.i. 15-19.
If prayer for others is a barometer of our own spiritual life, we can realise what St. Paul felt was necessary for himself by his prayers for others. In Ephesians there are two petitions, and nothing fuller and deeper is found in any of the Apostle’s writings. This Epistle represents the high-water mark of Christian privilege and possibility.
We see from verse 15 that his prayer is closely and definitely based on what precedes, and this introduces us to a feature not hitherto found. Up to now the prayers at the opening have been recorded almost immediately after the personal greetings. But here a long paragraph intervenes, and the prayer is not recorded until after fourteen verses full of spiritual teaching have been given. This section deserves special attention because it is the basis of the prayer. Let us review it briefly in order to obtain the true perspective of the petition.
The key-thought is in verse 3, where the Apostle praises God for having actually blessed them “with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” Then comes a wonderful statement of the way in which these blessings had become their own. (a) They had been eternally purposed in God the Father (vers. 3-6a); (b) they had been historically mediated through God the Son (vers. 6b-12); (c) they had been spirituallyapplied by God the Spirit (vers. 12-14). And in connection with each Person of the Sacred Trinity practically the same phrase occurs in this paragraph, showing that all the blessings were given in order that they might be used for the Divine glory: “To the praise of the glory of His grace” (ver. 6); “To the praise of His glory” (ver. 12); “To the praise of His glory” (ver. 14).
Now it is upon this wealth of provision that the Apostle bases his prayer: “On this account.” God had so wonderfully blessed them in Christ by His Spirit, and this fulness of blessing was so clearly intended to be used to the praise and glory of God that he could pray, as he does here, assured that the answer would come. God’s revelation of Himself is invariably and inevitably the foundation of our prayers. Because of what He has done and is doing we can be sure of grace. Because His power has provided “all things that pertain to life and godliness” we can be certain of power for daily living.
The names and titles of God are particularly noteworthy and are always full of spiritual significance, shedding light on the passages in which they occur. St. Paul prays to “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This title as it stands is unique, though already he has referred to “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (ver. 3), and will refer again to “the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” in connection with prayer (ch. iii. 14). “The God of our Lord Jesus Christ” seems to suggest the highest point and peak of power and grace. God, as the God of Christ, is the primary source of all blessing.
He is also “the Father of Glory.” This, too, is a phrase not found elsewhere. He is the Father to Whom all glory belongs as its Divine source. In Acts vii. 2 He is “the God of glory,” and in 1 Cor. ii. 8 Christ is “the Lord of glory.” In Rom. vi. 4 Christ is said to have been raised from the dead “by the glory of the Father.” Glory is a characteristic quality of God. It is themanifestation of His splendour and the outshining of His excellence. All radiance, all brightness, all magnificence come from Him and are intended to be returned to Him in praise. The glory of God in Romans is threefold: it is God’s proof for man’s past life (ch. iii. 23); it is God’s prospect for man’s future life (ch. v. 2); it is God’s principle for man’s present life (ch. xv. 7). And the association of glory with prayer seems to suggest that the praise of His glory which is to characterise our life can only come from God Himself as the Father of glory. If our lives are to be lived “to His praise,” His must be the power. If our lives are to manifest His glory, His must be the grace. “Thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory.”
Now we come to this profound prayer which teaches the inmost secrets of the spiritual life.
(1) A Divine Gift. “May give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation.” He hasspoken of the wealth of blessing stored up in Christ (ver. 3), and of God’s grace abounding to us in all wisdom and prudence (ver. 8). Now he asks for wisdom and illumination to perceive all this for themselves as a personal experience. The word “spirit” seems to refer to their human faculty, though of course as indwelt and possessed by the Divine Spirit. But the absence of the definite article from the word “spirit” seems to suggest a gift rather than a Person. The Holy Spirit of God enters into our spirit, and the result is wisdom and revelation. These two words refer to general illumination and specific enlightenment. He desires his readers to enter fully into the meaning of these great realities to which he has given such full expression (vers. 1-14).
(2) But this Divine gift is only possible by means of a simple yet important condition. It is “in the full knowledge of Him.” The word rendered “knowledge” is characteristic of these prison epistles, and always means “full knowledge,” the mature experience of the spiritual man. It is invariablyconnected with God; it refers to the deep, growing, ripening consciousness which comes from personal fellowship with Him. Philosophy can only say “Know thyself,” but Scripture says, “Know God.” This is how wisdom and revelation become ours, and Christian history and experience testify abundantly to the simple yet remarkable fact of spiritual insight and moral understanding which are due solely to fellowship with God. Nothing is more striking than the fact of a deep, spiritual apprehension and appreciation which are independent of intellectual conception and verbal expression. Believers can have a true spiritual consciousness of God without the possession of great capacity or attainments. Many whose natural education and intellectual opportunities have been slight have had this spiritual perception in an uncommon degree, and it always marks the spiritually ripe Christian. It is not the one whose intellectual knowledge is critical, scholarly, and profound, but he whose spiritual insight is suffused with grace, love, and fellowship. This does not mean that naturalknowledge or culture is to be despised or avoided as evil, but that the two kinds of knowledge should be carefully distinguished. The Christian Church has at least for the last three hundred years set great store by knowledge and science, but deeper than all this is the spiritual instinct, insight, knowledge, and illumination which constitute the supreme requirement of the true Christian life. We can see this spiritual perception in its various stages in several passages of the New Testament. We have seen how St. John divides believers into three classes (1 John ii. 12-14). But while in his repetition the Apostle can vary the description of the “children” and the “young men,” when he has to speak the second time of the “fathers” he has nothing new to say, for they cannot be otherwise or more fully described than as those who “know Him Who is from the beginning.”
(3) The immediate consequence of this fellowship is that the eyes of the heart become permanently enlightened (Greek). Keeping in view the Scripture truth of the“heart” as including the elements of Mind, Emotion, and Will, the result of fellowship with God is that every feature of the inner life becomes purified and enlightened. The mind is illuminated to perceive truth, the emotions are purified to love the good, and the will is equipped to obey the right. It is not that new objects meet the gaze so much as that a new and deeper perception is given to enable the heart to see and understand what had hitherto been dark and difficult. This illuminated heart is one of the choicest blessings of the spiritual life and one of the greatest safeguards against spiritual error. “Ye have an unction ... and ye know” (1 John ii. 20). “The Son of God hath come, and hath given us an understanding” (1 John v. 20). Many of the problems affecting the spiritual life are solved only in this way. Criticism, scholarship, intellectual power may be brought to bear upon them, but they will not yield to this treatment. The illuminated heart of the babe in Christ is often enabled to understand secrets which are hid from the wise and prudent.
(4) The outcome is a permanent spiritual experience. “That ye may know,”i.e.possess an immediate, instinctive, direct knowledge (εἰδέναι). Three great realities are thereupon mentioned as the objects and substance of our spiritual knowledge.
(a) The first is “What is the hope of His calling.” “His calling” is the appeal and offer of the Gospel with all its Divine meaning and purpose, and “the hope of His calling” is that which is intended by and included in the offer of God. This “hope” is either thattowhich God calls us, orbywhich He calls; either objective or subjective; either the substance or the feeling. Hope when regarded as objective, as the substance of our experience, is full of promise, on which the believer fixes his faith. Hope when regarded as subjective, as the possession of the soul, is full of inspiration, as it encourages and confirms belief that “He is faithful that promised.” Hope as an objective reality is fixed on Christ, and since God has a purpose in calling us, we can exercise hope. Hope as a subjective realisationis based on the fact of experience. God calls us by the Gospel, and therefore hope becomes possible. Hope is the top-stone of life and follows faith and love (cf. ver. 15). Faith draws the curtain aside; hope gazes into the future; while love rejoices in the present possession of Christ. Faith accepts; hope expects. Faith appropriates; hope anticipates. Faith is concerned with the person who promises; hope with the thing that the person promises. Faith is concerned with the past and present; hope with the future alone. Hope is invariably fixed on the future and is never to be regarded as merely a matter of natural temperament. It is specifically connected with the Lord’s Coming, and we are thus reminded that the calling of God covers past, present, and future. It starts from regeneration and culminates in the resurrection of the body at the Coming of Christ.
(b) The second is “The riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” This may mean the wealth which God possessesforthem orinthem; our wealth in Him or Hisin us. If we take it in the former sense it will mean that God is the inheritance and we are the heirs; that the saints now possess imperfectly, and anticipate in its fulness, the inheritance of grace, the spiritual Canaan which they are to enjoy here and hereafter. If, however, we take it, as is more likely, in the latter sense, it will mean that we are the inheritance and God is the Possessor and Heir. We must never forget that the Biblical ideas associated with “heir” and “inheritance” always refer to possession, and not, as in ordinary phraseology, to succession. In the Bible the heir does not merely expect, but already enjoys in part that which he will possess in full hereafter. Adopting, then, the second of these interpretations, the saints belong to God and are precious in His sight. They are Hispeculium, or special treasure, like Israel of old (Deut. iv. 20). They have been formed for Him and are to show forth His praise (Isa. xliii. 21). He sets store by them, as is suggested by the significant words, “Hast thou considered My servant Job?” There are several indications in Scripture thatGod values and trusts His people; “I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him” (Gen. xviii. 19). “The Lord taketh pleasure in His people” (Ps. cxlix. 4). “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and He (that is, God) delighteth in his way” (Ps. xxxvii. 23). And the “wealth” is a further proof of the value placed on believers by God. Five times in Ephesians the Apostle uses this metaphor of “riches,” showing his thought of those who have been “bought with a price” (1 Cor. v. 20). Believers are God’s riches, wealth, treasure; they belong to Him in view of that day on which He will enter in full upon His inheritance when He comes to be glorified and admired in them that believe (2 Thess. i. 10). And we are to see this, to know it, to realise the spiritual possibilities of each believer and all God’s people together as God’s own inheritance.
(c) The third is “the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe.” In this marvellous association of almost inexpressible thoughts the dominant note is“power” (δύναμις), and the Apostle prays that the Ephesian Christians may know what this means. Power is a characteristic word of St. Paul as expressive of Christianity. The Gospel is “the power of God unto salvation” (Rom. i. 16). By the Resurrection Christ was designated “the Son of God with power” (Rom. i. 4). He is “the power of God” (1 Cor. i. 18). Man needs power, not merely a philosophy or an ethic, but a dynamic, and it is the peculiar privilege of His Gospel to bring this to us. But let us try to analyse this power. There are no less than four comparisons stated or illustrations given. (1) It is exactly the same power that God wrought in Christ at the Resurrection. Nothing less than this is the standard of the Divine working. We are to possess and experience the spiritual and moral dynamic exercised by God on Christ when He raised Him from the dead. This is described as “the exceeding greatness of His power.” The same adjective is used of grace (ch. ii. 7), and of love (ch. iii. 19), and it is intended to express the superabundance of that powerwhich was put forth in the Resurrection and is now exercised on our behalf. Then the four words used for power are particularly noteworthy: “power,” “energy,” “strength,” “might.” Each conveys an aspect of this great spiritual force. “Might” is power inpossession; “strength” is power as the result ofgrasping, or of coming into contact with the source of that power; and “energy” is a power inexpression. (2) Not only so, but the power exercised by God in the Ascension is also intended to be bestowed on and experienced by us. When we are told that Christ was set at God’s right hand far above all powers, we can understand something of the Divine might exercised. (3) Still more, it is the same power by means of which God put all things under the feet of Christ. This, too, is the Divine force and energy for believers. (4) Not least of all, it was Divine power that gave Christ to be “the Head over all things to the Church,” and it is exactly this power that is exercised on our behalf. When we contemplate all this as intended by God for us, we can see somethingof the vigorous and victorious life He can and will enable us to live.
As we review this wonderful prayer it is impossible to avoid noticing that the first petition refers mainly to the past (“His calling”); the second mainly to the future (“His inheritance”); and the third mainly to the present (“His power”), though of course each petition has its bearing on the other two points of time. Every part of our life is thus adequately supplied and intended to be abundantly satisfied. Nor may we omit to observe that all through the prayer the emphasis is on God:Hiscalling;Hisinheritance;Hispower. Everything is regarded from the Divine standpoint, because we are not our own but His. The contemplation of this glory of the Divine love and grace overwhelms the soul with “wonder, love, and praise.”
In the presence of such a prayer, dealing with such profound realities, three thoughts naturally arise in our minds. (a) How little we know, and how much we might and should know. (b) How little we are, and how muchwe might and should be. (c) How little we do, and how much we might and should do. And yet if we will but remind ourselves of the simple secret of true living, as here described, we might become and accomplish infinitely more than we have ever experienced up to the present. “To us-ward who believe.” Faith is the simple yet all-sufficient secret. Trust relies on God and receives from Him. It puts us in contact with the source of blessing, and in union with Him we shall find spiritual illumination, spiritual insight, spiritual experience, and spiritual power that shall all be lived and exercised to His praise and glory.
“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.”—Eph.iii. 14-19.“In no part of Paul’s letters does he rise to a higher level than in his prayers, and none of his prayers are fuller of fervour than this wonderful series of petitions. They open out one into the other like some majestic suite of apartments in a great palace-temple, each leading into a loftier and more spacious hall, each drawing nearer the presence chamber, until at last we stand there” (Maclaren).
“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.”—Eph.iii. 14-19.
“In no part of Paul’s letters does he rise to a higher level than in his prayers, and none of his prayers are fuller of fervour than this wonderful series of petitions. They open out one into the other like some majestic suite of apartments in a great palace-temple, each leading into a loftier and more spacious hall, each drawing nearer the presence chamber, until at last we stand there” (Maclaren).
The second prayer in Ephesians possesses remarkable affinities with the first; indeed,the two are complementary, and many of the expressions call for close comparison.
“For this cause” (ver. 14). To what does this phrase point back? Some associate it with verse 1, “For this cause,” thinking that St. Paul, having been diverted from his main teaching in verses 1-13, here resumes it in the form of a prayer. But perhaps it is still better to regard the resumption of the main teaching as coming in ch. iv. 1, where the Apostle again speaks of himself as “the prisoner.” This would make ch. iii. wholly parenthetical, so that instead of the present prayer being based on the teaching of ch. ii. the Apostle is led here to speak of his ministry (ch. iii. 1-13) and its outcome. His ministry is a gift, a trust, a stewardship, and its purpose is the proclamation of the Gospel and its results in the accomplishment of God’s purposes for Jew and Gentile. On this view the standpoint of the prayer is associated closely with his ministry and its effects, as seen in the immediately preceding verses. It isbecause of his remarkable ministry, given to him by God, and all the spiritual privileges brought to the Gentile Christians thereby that he is able to work for them (ver. 13), and also to pray for them (ver. 14). Thus, while the prayer in ch. i. looks at their life from the standpoint of the Divine purposes, this prayer will be occupied with their spiritual privileges in Christ.
“I bow my knees unto the Father” (ver. 14). The intense reverence of the Apostle in this allusion to bowing his knees is particularly noteworthy. As a rule the Jews stood for prayer (Luke xviii. 11-13), and prostration seems to have been an exceptional posture. But in connection with Christians, kneeling is mentioned (Acts vii. 60, ix. 40, xx. 36). Nothing could more beautifully express the true attitude of the soul before God than this posture of the body. At the same time the use of the word “Father” indicates the other side of the truth and confidence with which we approach God. He is at once ourGod and our Father (ch. i. 17), and our attitude must be expressive both of our adoration and of our assurance. He is great and good, and we approach Him as the Holy One and the Loving One.
“The Father from Whom every family in heaven and earth is named.” It is interesting that the title “God” is not associated with this prayer as in ch. i., although the thought of Deity is found in the allusion to bowing the knees. And in addition to God as the Father He is described as the One “from Whom every family (Greek, ‘fatherhood’) in heaven and earth is named.” This seems to mean that whatever element of family life exists, it comes from God, that all true spiritual life in heaven or earth has its origin in the Father. The scope of the prayer is particularly noteworthy, as we contemplate God as the Fount of every fatherhood and the Parent of all men everywhere. Such a statement will do more than anything else to guard us against narrow or purelyselfish desires as we approach God in prayer.
“That He would grant you” (ver. 16). As in the former prayer, the Apostle is clear that what he is about to ask is essentially a Divine gift. It comes from above, whether he is seeking knowledge (ch. i. 17) or power (ch. iii. 16). At every step God must give and the believer must receive. It would be well for us in our Christian experience to emphasise this simple but searching truth. “Every good and every perfect gift comes from above.”
“According to the riches of His glory” (ver. 16). Here again we begin to realise something of the fulness of the prayer to be offered. The measure of the Apostle’s desire is not our own poverty, but God’s wealth; we are to look away from ourselves to the infinite riches of the Divine glory. In the former prayer he asked that we mightknow the riches of God’s glory. But here there is something more; we are to experience them in our heart and life.
In general St. Paul asks for two great spiritual blessings, the inward strength of the Holy Spirit and the indwelling presence of Christ. These are inseparable, and we may regard the first as essential to the second, and the second as the effect of the first. But the prayer goes into detail and each part of the petition calls for careful meditation.
(1) “Strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inward man” (ver. 16, R.V.). As wisdom was the burden of the former prayer (ch. i. 17), so strength is the main thought here. The order, too, is significant; wisdom and power, since power without knowledge would be highly dangerous. This strength comes from the Holy Spirit; He is the Agent of God’s enabling grace. And the strength is to extend “into the inward man.” The contrast seems to be between the inward and the outward, as in2 Cor. iv. 16; Rom. vii. 22. The strength is not of the body, or of the mind, but of the soul. The “inward” is not exactly identical with the “new” man, but emphasises the inner essential life of the spirit as contrasted with the outer life of the body. “The hidden man of the heart.”
(2) “That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (ver. 17, R.V.). This is the outcome of the inward strength of the Spirit, and almost every word needs attention. The indwelling of Christ is virtually identical with that of the Spirit (ch. ii. 22), although of course Christ and the Holy Spirit are never absolutely identified in Holy Scripture (2 Cor. iii. 17, 18). It is only in regard to the practical outcome in the believer’s experience that the indwelling of Christ and the Spirit amount to the same thing. This is to be a permanent indwelling and not a mere passing stay, just as believers together are described as a temple for God’s permanent habitation (ch. ii. 22, Greek). This permanent indwelling of Christ is to be “in your hearts.” Almost every prayer isthus concerned with the “heart,” the centre of the moral being, and the Apostle prays that Christ may make His home therein. This is no mere influence, but a Personal Presence, the Living Christ within, and it is to be “through faith.” It is faith that admits Christ to the heart, allowing Him to enter into every part of the “inward man.” And the same faith that admits Him permits Him to remain, reside, and rule. Faith, in a word, is the total response of the soul to the Lordship of Christ.
(3) “That ye, being rooted and grounded in love” (ver. 17). Here again the original expressions imply permanent results, and the two words “rooted” and “grounded” are beautifully complementary. The one refers to a tree, the other to a house, and the expressions point to those hidden processes of the soul which are the result of Christ’s indwelling and the Holy Spirit’s working. The power of the Spirit and the indwelling of Christ tend to our permanent inward establishment in the element and atmosphere of Christian love. This is one of the sevenoccasions in this short Epistle where we find the Pauline phrase, “in love,” referring to the sphere and atmosphere of our fellowship with God. The love no doubt means primarily and perhaps almost exclusively God’s love to us, as that in which we are to “live, and move, and have our being.”
(4) “May be strong to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth” (ver. 18, R.V.). Here again the emphasis is on strength, and the Apostle prays that we may have full strength to grasp, may be quite able to accomplish this purpose. Spiritual ideas can never be appropriated by intellectual action alone. It is not by brilliant intellect but by spiritual insight that we become “able to comprehend.” Although there is now no specific reference to love, it would seem as though the idea of verse 19 is already in view, and, assuming this to be the case, we have four aspects of the Divine love which we are to be strong to grasp. Its “breadth” means that there is no barrier to it, reminding us of the extent of the Divine counsels; its “length”tells us of the Divine foreknowledge and His thought of us through the ages; its “height” points to our Lord in heaven as the goal for the penitent believer; its “depth” declares the possibility of love descending to the lost abyss of human misery for the purpose of redemption. And the ability to grasp the Divine love in this fourfold way is to be experienced with “all the saints.” It is impossible to accomplish it alone; no spiritual exclusiveness is thinkable in this connection, to say nothing of the lower forms of egotism and selfishness. Twice in this brief writing does the Apostle refer to “all the saints” (ch. vi. 18), thereby reminding us of the place and power of each saint in the spiritual economy of God. One saint will be able to comprehend a little, another saint a little more, and so on, until at length all the saints together are “strong to grasp” the Divine love. The wider our fellowship the fuller and firmer our hold of the love of Christ. This is doubtless why public worship is so strongly emphasised in the New Testament. “Where two or three are gathered togetherin My Name, there am I.” The experiences of our fellow-worshippers are always intended to be, and usually will be, of help to our own fuller realisation of our Lord and Master. The soul is justified solitarily and alone, but it is sanctified only in the community of believers.
(5) “And to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge” (ver. 19). If we are correct in interpreting verse 18 of the Divine love, the present verse will be the climax of this part of the prayer, and it has been helpfully suggested that we have here the “fifth dimension” of the love of Christ after the four already mentioned. Not only are they to experience breadth and length and height and depth but also the inwardness; they are to know by personal experience the love of Christ as it can only be known by those who have fellowship with Him. It is a love that surpasses knowledge, just as His power surpasses everything (ch. i. 19). The paradox of knowing that which surpasses knowledge will not be misunderstood from the standpoint of spiritual experience, becauseit is the difference between apprehending and comprehending. We know, and know deeply, increasingly, blessedly, and yet all the while there are infinite stretches of love beyond our highest experiences.
(6) “That ye may be filled unto all the fulness of God” (ver. 19, R.V.). This is the climax of the prayer and is the culminating purpose of the work of the Spirit and the indwelling of Christ. Strength, indwelling, love, and knowledge are to issue in fulness, and we are to be “filled unto all the fulness of God.” In the former prayer this fulness is associated with Christ and with His body the Church (ch. i. 23), but here it is specifically associated with God and ourselves as believers in Christ. When these two passages are associated with ch. v. 18, which speaks of the fulness of the Spirit, we have the word “fulness” connected with each Person of the Blessed Trinity. What it means for the soul to be filled to overflowing with the presence of God itself is beyond our comprehension; it can only be a matter of personal experience as we seek to fulfil theproper conditions. Such a prayer for the fulness of God is best expressed in Miss Havergal’s words—
“Lord, we ask it, scarcely knowingWhat this wondrous gift may be;But fulfil to overflowing,Thygreat meaning let us see.”
“And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all judgment: that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.”—Phil.i. 9-11.
“And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all judgment: that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.”—Phil.i. 9-11.
One of the most beautiful elements in the Pauline Epistles is the intimate relation which evidently existed between the Apostle and his converts. This is especially the case in the Epistle to the Philippians, for in no other writing is there such a full revelation of the heart of St. Paul and of his love to those with whom he was united in Christ. As, therefore, he knew them so intimately, so he prayed for them, the prayer revealing at once their need, and his conviction as to essential things.Prayer is always strong in proportion to our acquaintance with the spiritual life of others, and feeble so far as we are ignorant of their needs.
Let us mark the opening words: “this I keep on asking” (Greek). There was one thing for which he asked continually, and this seemed to him to sum up everything in their life.
(1) He prayed for love; “your love.” As they already possessed life, he wished it to be expressed in love. The Epistle is full of this subject. No writing is so truly characterised by the love of St. Paul for his converts, or of his converts for St. Paul (see ch. iv. 14-18). Let us again remind ourselves that love in the New Testament is something definite, tangible, strong, practical, intense. It is more than sentiment, though of course it includes that; it is more than emotion, though undoubtedly it includes that; it is more than desire, though obviously it includes that. Love is the outgoing of the entirenature in self-sacrificing service. It is the sympathy of the heart and the devotion of the life to its object. As such it is the supreme proof of the reality of our Christian profession. “If ye love Me, ye will keep My commandments” (John xiv. 15, R.V.). “Lovest thou Me ... feed My sheep” (John xxi. 16). “Seeing ye have purified your souls ... love one another from the heart unfeignedly” (1 Pet. i. 22, R.V.). It was with no cynicism, but with a wonderful astonishment, that the heathen used to say, “See how these Christians love one another.” When therefore the Apostle prayed for love he was asking that the Philippian Christians might possess and manifest the very finest, truest, most powerful, and most attractive proof of their Christian life.
(2) He prayed for abounding love; “that your love may abound.” Not only some, but abundant love; not a little, but much. Love to be real must be kept full, intense, overflowing; it calls for continual reinforcement, replenishing, and the abundance oflove is the measure and proof of the possession of abundant life.
(3) He prayed for increasing love; “that your love may abound yet more and more.” Expression is piled upon expression in order to emphasise the importance of love and its progress. Love is intended to grow and not to remain stationary. Just as life makes progress, so must its result similarly develop in love. The motto for the Christian is “more and more.” This is why there is so much in the New Testament about growth, for just as it is with natural life so it must be with spiritual. Constant increase, development, progress, extension, expansion must mark it at every step.
(4) He prayed for discerning love; “that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment” (R.V.). The two words “knowledge” and “discernment” are particularly noteworthy. One expresses the principle, the other the application. Again we observe this word “knowledge” as a characteristic expression of the Apostle in theseprison-epistles. “Full knowledge” (Greek) is one of the marks of a growing Christian life, and is proved by spiritual perception, spiritual feeling, spiritual discernment. There is a world of difference between intellectual ability and spiritual insight. Many people are clever, but not spiritual, while many people are often truly spiritual without being possessed of much intellectual capacity. Much is said in Scripture aboutsightin regard to things spiritual. “Except a man be born again, he cannotsee” (John iii. 3). “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shallseeGod” (Matt. v. 8). There are many people in our congregations of average intellect, and perhaps with mental powers decidedly below the average, who are nevertheless full of profound spiritual wisdom because love to Christ has given them keenness of vision and depth of insight.
This constant progress and abundance of love was intended for a very practical purpose;“so that ye may approve the things that are excellent” (ver. 10, R.V.). The discernment already mentioned was intended for spiritual discrimination. They were to be enabled to distinguish, to prove, and thereby to approve. As Lightfoot points out, “love imparts a sensitiveness of touch, a keen edge to the discriminating faculty in things moral and spiritual.” In things spiritual at least love is not blind, but keen-sighted. It is endowed with a spiritual discernment which is able to distinguish not only between good and bad, but between good and better, between better and best, and between best and excellent. The words, “approve the things that are excellent,” occur also in Rom. ii. 18, and the meaning seems to be first that they were to “distinguish the things that differ,” and then as a result they were to “approve the things that transcend.” This spiritual discernment is particularly needful to-day, as the Christian soul is surrounded by so many views and voices. Much that appears on the surface to be attractive and charming contains within it the elementsof spiritual danger and disaster, and it is only by spiritual discernment which comes from abounding and increasing love to Christ that the soul is safeguarded against evil and led to approve and follow the things that are superior. It is a vivid picture that the prophet gives of the Messiah when he describes Him as endowed by the Spirit of God and made of “quick scent in the fear of the Lord” (Isa. xi. 3, Hebrew). It is this “quick scent” that by the same Spirit the Lord Jesus Christ bestows upon those who love Him with all the heart.
Every Christian grace is intended for practical and permanent effect in character. Our lives are not to be intermittent, but continuous in their expression of grace and blessing, and all that the Apostle has been praying for and desiring on behalf of his Philippian Christians was intended to develop and express in them the solid and permanent realities of Christian character.
(1) Sincerity; “that ye may be sincere”(ver. 10). This has to do with motives. The word is thought to mean “tested in the sunlight.” Our lives are to be manifestly true, genuine, sincere, “transparent.” “Motive makes the man,” and from time to time it is essential that we should allow ourselves to be tested and judged in the sunlight of our perfect fellowship with Christ, just as St. Peter, when asked by his Master, said, “Lord, Thou knowest all things.” Sincerity is one of the essential features of the true Christian life. The believer, if he is to do the will of God and commend the Gospel to others, must have no doubtfularrière penséebut a life lived moment by moment in the perfect brightness of the presence of perfect holiness.
(2) Consistency; “void of offence” (ver. 10, R.V.). This has to do with conduct. Not only are we to be inwardly true, but outwardly sure. Our lives must not hinder others, or put a stumbling-block in their way. Just as the Master said, “Blessed is he whosoever is not put to stumble by Me,” so must it be with every follower of Christ.Our lives are to be stepping-stones, not stumbling-blocks.
(3) Character; “being filled with the fruits of righteousness.” This has to do with our permanent life both within and without, though the emphasis is on being rather than on doing. Character is the highest point and peak of the Christian life, for just as fruit is the outcome of the life of a tree, so character is the fruit of Christian living, and is the best proof of its existence. The Apostle’s word suggests that we are to be “permanently filled” (Greek) with the fruits of righteousness, those things that are right, straight, true, correct, upright, without any deflection on either side. The Lord Who is our Righteousness works in us the fruits of righteousness by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
The Apostle looks forward “unto the day of Christ” (ver. 10, R.V.), and then speaks of the Christian life being lived “unto the glory and praise of God” (ver. 11). Everything is to tend towards themanifestation of the splendour of God in human life whereby others will be led to acknowledge and praise Him (Matt. v. 16). And this will reach its culminating point in the “day of Christ,” that time when Christian people will stand before their Master and receive the reward of their life and service rendered to Him (ch. i. 6, ii. 16). This was the Apostle’s constant thought, and towards this he strained every nerve (ch. iii. 11-21). It expresses the highest ideal of Christian living, for day by day we are to live with this wonderful thought of “the glory and praise of God,” and day by day we are to look forward to the coming of Christ as that day in which our life will find its fullest realisation, its complete satisfaction, and its unending joy. And all this reminds us of the essential simplicity of life, for there is nothing complex, or involved, or mysterious, or difficult in a life lived day by day to the praise of God and in the light of the coming of our Master.
As we review this prayer we may feel perfectly sure that the Apostle meant it to beanswered, and indeed, he himself gives us the hint of how this may come to pass when he tells us that the fruits of righteousness are “through Jesus Christ.” This is only another way of expressing what he has already shown, his confidence that the possession of the Christian life is the guarantee of its complete realisation and full perfection by the indwelling presence and work of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (ch. i. 6). Let us therefore take heart of grace as we contemplate this prayer and the other prayers of the Apostle. We must not be depressed, or disheartened, or discouraged, as we ponder the marvellous details and contemplate the stupendous heights of the Christian life as depicted by St. Paul’s wonderful spiritual insight. On the contrary, we must remind ourselves that he would not have prayed these prayers unless he had been certain that God would answer them, and they will assuredly be answered as we set ourselves resolutely, humbly, lovingly, trustfully to fulfil the required conditions, “through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Considerations of space have prevented the inclusion of all the Prayers of St. Paul, but for the treatment of the prayer in Rom. XV. 13 reference may perhaps be permitted to the author’sRoyal and Loyal(ch. v.) and to his Devotional Commentary onRomans(vol. iii. p. 103 ff.). And a fuller treatment of 2 Thess. iii. 16 is given in hisThe Power of Peace.
For the thorough exegetical foundation of the passages included in these prayers of the Apostle special attention should of course be given to the various modern standard Commentaries. The following have proved of particular value in the preparation of these pages. On Thessalonians: Milligan, Frame, Eadie, and Ellicott. On Romans: Sanday and Headlam, Godet, and the Notes by Lightfoot. On Ephesians: Armitage Robinson,Westcott, and Eadie. On Philippians: Lightfoot and Ellicott. On Colossians: Lightfoot and Ellicott. Preachers will find it nothing short of an education in Greek to ponder the passages under the guidance of these master-minds. The first step in all true expository preaching is the consideration of the words and phrases in order to elicit their full exegetical value. Following this, and based upon it, will come the spiritual teaching and personal application, and for this purpose the following books will be found of great value. On Thessalonians: Denney in theExpositor’s Bible. On Romans: Bishop Moule in the same series. On Ephesians: G. G. Findlay in theExpositor’s Bible, with R. W. Dale’s well-known Lectures. On Philippians: Rainy in theExpositor’s Bible, and Jowett’sThe High Calling. On Colossians: Maclaren’s peerless treatment in theExpositor’s Bible, with Bishop Moule’sColossian Studies, and a useful American work,Oneness with Christ, by Bishop Nicholson. The subject of this book is definitely treated inThe Prayers of St. Paul, by W. B. Pope, D.D.;The Pattern Prayer Book, by E. W. Moore;Preces Paulinæ, a valuable old book by an anonymous author, which is now only obtainable second-hand.
On the general subject of Prayer, which will naturally be given attention in the expository preaching and teaching on this special topic of St. Paul’s petitions, the following among other books may perhaps be mentioned:Waiting on God, by Andrew Murray;The Hidden Life of Prayer, by D. M. M’Intyre;Prayer, by M’Conkey;Praying in the Holy Ghost, by G. H. C. Macgregor;Quiet Talks on Prayer, by S. D. Gordon; andPrayer: Its Nature and Scope, by H. C. Trumbull.