Amen. Please be seated. It is good to see all of you here this day. And as we come for this morning to take up the theme of Paul's pastoral prayer for the Ephesians, I invite you please to turn with me in your copy of the scriptures once again to Ephesians chapter 3. Ephesians chapter 3, picking up at verse 14. And I'll read to verse 19 in your hearing. Ephesians 3. At verse 14, the Apostle Paul writes the following and says, For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from 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 through his spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, that you being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height to know the love of Christ. which passes knowledge that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Brethren, let's once again pray and ask the Lord's blessings upon our time. Let's pray together. Our great God, we thank you for this opportunity to be before you this day. I'm so thankful, oh God, for this one day in seven, whereby we could set ourselves apart from the cares and concerns of this world, and to be here to worship you, to love you, and to praise you, and to learn from you. Oh God, therefore, we look to you this morning. You would come by the mighty Holy Spirit and minister to each one. that you would do each one good. That you, O God, would sanctify the saved and save the lost. O God, that this day would have your transforming power upon it and on all who sit under your word this day. Great God, We call upon you for all of these things. We pray and we ask all of them in and through that wonderful name of Jesus Christ our Lord, amen. Now prayer, biblically understood, is a wonderful means of grace whereby the believer has the glorious, the wonderful opportunity of calling upon God the Father through Christ the Son by the power of the Holy Spirit for those things which are according to His will. In fact, and perhaps the very best definition of prayer I've ever heard, It was the great Reformed Baptist pastor named John Bunyan who said that prayer is, quote, a sincere, sensible, affectionate, pouring out of the heart or soul to God through Christ in the strength and assistance of the Holy Spirit for such things as God has promised according to his word for the good of the church, And this with submission in faith to the will of God. Now, to pray to God indeed is a great privilege to be sure. And yet, beloved ones here this day, at the same time, it's also a great privilege to study out those various prayers of individuals as they are found throughout the Word of God. Indeed, these prayers are not only crucial to consider for our own edification, but they also can be used in our own lives. in order to inform and shape and mold our own prayers, helping us to pray more biblically, helping us to pray more scripturally, which is always a good thing. Now, for today. We have the great privilege of studying out this second prayer that the Apostle Paul made on behalf of the Ephesian believers as recorded in this book. Now, as you may recall, some months ago, we saw his first prayer as put forth in chapter one of this letter. Ah, but here for today, we have another prayer of Paul again in chapter three, verse one. 14 and following, and this prayer, like the other prayer, was full of useful information for our lives as believers. Whereas, in Paul's first prayer, again in chapter one of this book, he prayed that these Ephesians would be enlightened. Now, however, you should note in this second prayer that we have before us this morning, he prays that these Ephesians would be empowered, empowered. He prays that they would be strengthened and helped in their sanctification as saints, and this, so that they could be all that God would have them to be and live as God would have them to live. Now, why would the Apostle Paul pray a prayer like this for these people? Well, quite clearly he did so because of his pastoral heart for them. He did so because he greatly loved these Christians and he wanted them to walk in a manner which was worthy of the calling with which they were called, just as he says in chapter 4 of this book. Now having said this, it's important that you note that this particular section in this letter is really a transitional section. If you're taking notes, just note that this particular section here in 14 to 21 is a transitional section in this book. This is the case so that whereas the first three chapters of this book are about who we are in Christ, The next three chapters are about how you and I are to live as followers of Christ. Ah, but in view of this, I ask, dear ones, what is going to be one of the main things in order to help us to live well as God's people? In other words, what's going to be a great assistance for you and me in this regard? Well, church, the answer is very simple, and it is prayer. It is prayer. The answer is an earnest supplication for the saints with reference to this whole matter, and this is exactly why the Apostle Paul put forth these words here before us today at this particular point in this book. You see, church, sandwiched right between who we are in Christ and what we are to be in Christ, again, As Paul will go on to say in chapter four of this letter, is this great, is this wonderful, is this helpful and useful prayer from the apostle for the Ephesians, which shows us that they, just like all of us, need prayer in order to be all that God would have us be. Well, as we come then for this morning to consider these important words together, I ask you please to notice with me first in your copy of the scriptures in verses 14 and 15 of this chapter, Paul's posture of prayer. Look again at his words with me in your Bibles. He says, for this reason, or we could say for this cause, what does Paul do? He says, I bow my knees to the Father. of our Lord Jesus Christ from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named. these opening words before us here, which say, for this reason, or again, for this cause, bring us back to verse one of this chapter, where the apostle Paul used the exact same language. He used the exact same three words. Now, as you may recall, back in that verse, Paul was just about to put forth this very prayer, as it appears in verse 14 of this book, for the Ephesians. However, having mentioned the Gentiles again in the opening part of this chapter, Paul couldn't hold back from speaking about all the great things that God had done for them in saving them and then making them fellow heirs with the Jews in the church and partakers of the promises of Christ through the gospel, just as Paul says in verse 6 of this chapter. Yes? Dear ones, here this day we see that Paul got joyfully overwhelmed. Joyfully overwhelmed. He just mentioned the word Gentiles. He became very excited with this subject. Therefore, he went on to speak about it from verse 2 to verse 13 of this chapter. And this specifically, as we've seen it in recent weeks, with reference to his ministry to them. Well, here then now, in our verses for today, in light of the fact that God had gloriously converted and saved these Gentiles and then brought them into the church. The apostle knew that they needed prayer. He knew this. And so as he speaks about prayer for them, his prayers for them, he says again, first in verse 14 of this chapter, note the words. He says, I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Now, you should know that this language, these words here, of the apostle bowing his knees in prayer is not, underscore, is not meant to be a prescribed formula for how it is that you and I are to pray every single time we approach God. It is not to be a prescribed formula in this regard, no, and this is because when we study Holy Scripture, we see that people prayed before God in all kinds of different ways. all kind of different ways. So that, for example, whether it was Hannah standing in prayer, as recorded in 1 Samuel chapter 1, or David sitting before the Lord in prayer, as recorded in 1 Chronicles chapter 17, or Joshua falling down on his face before the Lord in prayer. Dear ones, all of these different examples show us that no single posture of prayer is particularly prescribed by God for us to engage in. And so having said this, what then do Paul's words here before us now of him bowing the knees to the Father highlight to us? Well, simply stated, they highlight to us his humility. is humility. They highlight to us that the Apostle Paul had a great sense of reverence and awe when he prayed to God. In church, I must say that this is a crucial point for all of us to take for ourselves in this place when we pray to God. You see, when you and I pray to God, brethren, we're not to do this carelessly, no. We're not to do this flippantly, no. We're not to do this haphazardly, no. But rather, we are to remember who we are approaching and act accordingly. So who are we approaching? Well, church, we're approaching the only true and living God in prayer. We're approaching the great God of heaven and earth, the almighty God who sovereignly rules over all things. Now, Far from these truths with reference to our great God, keeping us away from Him, we must always remember that even though all of these things are so concerning Him, God nevertheless is at the same time our Father, our Father, if you can believe it, just as Paul says in our passage. O church, I say, If you're a Christian here this day, He is your Heavenly Father who has ordained that in the fullness of time you would be saved. Thus you are to come before Him daily with all your requests, knowing what? Knowing that He delights to hear from you. Well, in view of this fact, I must say what a great God He is, right? Great, sovereign, the King of heaven and earth, this great God who sustains all things. He's our Father, He loves us, and He delights to hear from us. Yes, brethren, He's the God whose ears are always open to your cry. Being, as the Apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 1, the God of all comforts, who comforts us in all of our tribulation. Now, not only is He our Heavenly Father, because Paul also says here, look at the language, that He's the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He's the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. And so what is this speaking about? Well, it's speaking about several different things, but specifically now it's speaking about the fact when Jesus who is very God of very God, became very man of very man, through the incarnation, so the two whole perfect and distinct natures were inseparably joined in one person, so as to quote our own London Baptist Confession of Faith, dear ones, it's speaking about the fact that when this happened, while Jesus Christ was on the earth, God the Father was his God. God the Father was his God. In other words, brethren, when Jesus came to this world, he didn't become an atheist. No. But rather, the Father, in the Trinitarian sense, was his God. Was his God. Now strikingly, very much worthy of our notice. Once again, here in this epistle, we see that the Trinity is mentioned. For here in our verse, look at the language again. Paul speaks about God the Father. He speaks about our Lord Jesus Christ. And then in verse 16 of this chapter, what does he do? Well, he speaks about the Holy Spirit. Over and over again, we see this all throughout the Word of God, especially in Ephesians, as we've come across this many times. Therefore, brethren, you and I must be sure, what? We must always be sure that we are holding to this biblical doctrine of the Trinity with all that we have. It's all over the Word of God from the beginning to the end. That we're into it, that we're believing it, that we're rejoicing in it, and that we're proclaiming it. And why? Well, here's the answer. And get it down if you can. The answer is because the one true and living God of the Bible has revealed himself as a plurality of persons, a plurality of persons, to borrow the good language from Dr. John Gill. This church is who he is, and this church is who he will always be. For again, to quote our own excellent London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689, the writers say, quote, God is, the divine and infinite being who consist of three real persons. Who are they? The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Now, with reference to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Paul goes on to say next in verse 15 of this chapter concerning him, look at the words again with me in your Bibles, he says, from whom, the Father, the whole family in heaven and earth is named. And so, what is this speaking about? What is it speaking about? Well, it's speaking about the fact that God is the Heavenly Father of all His redeemed people. That's what it's speaking about. God the Father is the Father of all his redeemed people who have put their trust in Christ alone for life and salvation. Whether they are currently in glory or on the earth, and whether they are Jews or whether they are Gentiles, it does not matter. My dear ones, simply stated, it's speaking about the fact that we are named, or better understood, designated as God's family. And this is because he is ultimately the source of our salvation. And because he is, all of this has come to pass in our lives. That is to say, we're part of God's family. Now, having said this, I must say what a joy and great privilege it is to be part of the family of God, right? I mean, church, you know that at one time this was not the case for us when we were not saved. Now, at one time we were children of the devil. We were not God's children, just his creation. Ah, but because God has saved us, he has made us his very own. Consequently, this is now the case for us who are Christians here this day. Yes, beloved, now, as Paul says in chapter 1 and verse 5 of this book, we are gods and this is because he has predestinated us to adoption in order to be his sons and daughters. Praise be to his name. And so dear believer here this day, never forget that you are now part of a new family. I don't care how your natural family treats you. Maybe they treat you badly. I don't know. But never forget that you're part of a new family. And what's it designated? The family of God. The family of God. It's called God's household, which exists in heaven and on earth. And it's a household which will exist forevermore. And dear Christian, you will always be part of it. You'll never get kicked out of this family, you'll never be ostracized by this family, you are part of the family of God, and nothing, no nothing, will ever change this fact, praise be to his name. And so, having seen firstly for today, Paul's posture of prayer, come with me now secondly, to note his petitions in prayer, in verses 16 to 19 of this chapter. In these particular verses, Paul makes three particular petitions concerning the matters of power, presence, and perception. And we'll look at these things one at a time for a few minutes together. So first, in verse 16, Paul prays concerning the matter of power. Look at it with me there in your Bibles. He prays that the Father would grant or give you according to the riches of his glory, or perhaps better translated, his glorious riches or abundance, to be strengthened with might or power, the Greek word dunamis, and this through, the Greek word dia, better translated, by means of his spirit, That is to say, the Holy Spirit. And where? Where does all this take place? The prepositional phrase answering the question, in the inner man. Now, it's striking to note, quite interesting I think, that Paul here in these words doesn't pray for any external things, external things with reference to these Ephesians, no. I mean, he doesn't pray for their health, wealth, and prosperity as many talk about in our day, no, but rather he prays that they would be strengthened in the inner man. Now again, it's not bad to pray for external things, health, wealth, and prosperity, etc. But listen, if our prayers are going to be like Paul's, there's an application right here, it needs to be with reference to inner things. I'll talk about it later. He prays that they'd be strengthened in the inner man. What does that mean? The inner self of the heart and the soul. Paul prays here that the Ephesians would be empowered. deep within by the Holy Spirit. And why? Well, the same reason why we need to receive prayers on our own behalf with reference to the same thing, namely, for the trials and temptations that we'll face in life. I'm praying that you would be made strong deep within, because living in this fallen world as a believer is not easy at times. Why did Paul pray like this to the Father for them? Why did he pray exclusively to the Father with reference to them being strengthened within? Well, Paul did so because he knew something about God the Father. And what is it? Well, he knew that according to Philippians 4 in verse 19, his God would meet all of our needs. And this according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Paul prayed to the Father in this regard because he knew that the Father had all the spiritual strength that these Christians needed so that they can live well before him. And this is because all of God's strength, look at the passage, was according to The Greek word kata, in line with the unlimited nature of the father's glorious riches. As Paul says here in our passage, thus he called upon him to empower these people in this way. Ah, but not only does Paul. For these Ephesians pray this because secondly now we praise in verse 17 of this chapter concerning presence, concerning presence, which is to say Christ presence, Christ presence, not just power, but presence. Notice words again with me there in your Bibles. He says that he prays first that Christ, that is Jesus the Messiah, would dwell, would reside in their hearts through faith. He's praying for these believers that Christ would reside in their hearts by faith. Now, this language here might seem a bit strange to us. Why? Well, it's because we know that Christ, by the Holy Spirit, had already indwelt these believers the moment they were saved, right? Now, we do know that they were saved, for sure. And this is because of what Paul says in Ephesians 2 and verse 8, and I ask you please to turn with me there in your Bibles. Ephesians 2 verse 8, he's praying that Christ would dwell in them. Well, if they're saved, they have Christ in them. Do we know they're saved? Yes. Because he says in Ephesians 2 and verse 8, look at the language, for by grace, charis, quote, you have been saved, the means, through faith. And that faith and that salvation is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God. And so, dear ones here this day, please be clear with me. Back in our verse in chapter 3 and verse 17, Paul there is not speaking about the matter of salvation with reference to Christ dwelling in them, no, but rather he's speaking about the matter of sanctification. sanctification. He's not speaking about Jesus Christ dwelling in them initially by the Holy Spirit, no, but rather he's speaking about them, him rather, dwelling in them more consciously, more experientially. So that in light of this, they would live properly as Christians and this through an ever deepening fellowship with Jesus, which again as Paul says here in our passage, all happens through faith. Now, as they did this, what would be the particular result? For them. Well, in using imagery from the worlds of botany and buildings, Paul says next in our verse, turn with me back there in your Bibles, Ephesians 3 verse 17, he says that the result would be that they would be, look at the language, rooted and grounded in the realm, or we could say the sphere of love. He says that the more conscious they become of Christ living in them, again, by the Holy Spirit, just as Jesus said he would do for them in John chapter 14, that the positive consequence, the positive result of this would be that the entirety of their lives would be firmly established and permanently fixed upon God's love for them. For then, that would be the result. And so, having said this, what's the practical import of this particular truth for us here this day? Well, it is, brethren, that as deep roots help a tree during a storm, and a strong foundation helps a building during an earthquake, when you and I have the love of God as our core root system and the foundation of our lives, we also will be greatly prepared for all that we have to face in the world. All that we have to face in the world. As we have this God's love at the core of our being to be true for us, you and I will be unshakable for the days ahead. For as one writer correctly says, quote, the presence of Christ brings the extraordinary love of God right to the center of our beings. For although the love of God is the source of our salvation, it is also the basis, the foundation, on which we are enabled to move forward in this world as disciples of Christ. And so, having seen then so far for today Paul's pastoral prayer to God the Father concerning power and presence, note with me next the matter concerning perception. Here, as the apostle puts forth this third aspect of his prayer concerning the Ephesians, He says first in verse 18 to 19a of this chapter. Look at it with me there in your Bibles. He writes of these Ephesians saying that they may be able to comprehend. That they might have the power to comprehend or better translated apprehend. That's the better word. Apprehend. With whom? Well, he says all the saints. Who are those? Well, they're not dead people sitting around on some statues or wherever they display them, all the saints, it's all true Christians. What might they comprehend? What's his prayer? Here's what I want them to understand. What is the width, and length, and depth, and height, M-dash, Paul puts, as it were, M-dash. Okay, okay. Now help us out here, Paul. Well, and then explaining what he's talking about with reference to width, length, and depth, and height, he says next, here it is, that they may know, that is, that they may know in their own experience in greater degrees what? The love of Christ. or his unconditional goodwill and favor towards them which passes, or we could say surpasses, and goes beyond knowledge, that is to say, a perfect knowledge. Now, beloved ones here this day, please hear me when I say that in these two verses before us now, we have the great end of what Paul was praying for, concerning these Ephesians, the great end, in these two verses. Note it. We have here the great goal of what he was driving toward. And what he says now in these two verses before us is absolutely vital for you and I to understand. It's vital for us to get That he prays in 18a of this chapter that the Ephesians might be able to comprehend, or as I translate it, apprehend, more literally, lay hold of, with all believers, quote, the love of Christ, shows us something. What does it show us? Well, it shows us quite clearly that this was something that they were presently not doing, to its max capacity at this time, right? I mean, this language here, I'm praying for you that you would comprehend, apprehend, lay hold of the love of Christ. It clearly assumes, as theologian D.A. Carson rightly says in his excellent book on Paul's prayers, I highly recommend it. Carson says, quote, it assumes that his readers, Christians though they are, do not adequately appreciate the love of Christ. Thus, Paul now wants them to have the power to grasp just how great the love of Christ is for them. I'm praying that you may know this in your life. Now, church, I think that this aspect here in the apostle's prayer, again, as I said a moment ago, is crucially important for us to understand. It's so vital, and why? Well, it's because sometimes, even as Pastor Jack mentioned in the opening hour, sometimes it's so crucial because you and I can forget, what? Just how much Jesus loves us. That's why it's crucial. Sometimes you and I can let the cares and concerns of this world swallow us up and forget that Jesus loves us. Sometimes this could be something which is just in our heads, but not really in our hearts. And when this happens, what will be the results? Well, the results will be that you and I won't be all that God would have us to be. That's the practical result. The result will be that you and I won't be as joyful as we should be, as hopeful as we should be, as encouraged as we should be as God's people. And so again, brethren, I trust that you see how significant this matter is. It's crucial to the well-being of your life as a Christian. I trust you see that it's vital to live in the Christian life well, in a manner that pleases God and does you good as an individual. And so, in writing about the love of Christ for us, Paul speaks in 18b of this chapter, look at the words again, about its width, length, depth, and height. And so you ask, Pastor V, what's the point? What's the point? Well, the point is, the love of Christ for us who are true Christians, His people, you here this day who know the Lord, Jesus' love for you, my dear brother, my dear sister, the point is His love for you is immeasurable. That's the point. That makes me feel good just saying it. The point is, dear Christian, Jesus' love for you is vast. It's limitless. It's infinite. It's all encompassing. Being wider than the universe, longer than can be measured, deeper than the deepest ocean, and higher than the highest height, filling every dimension that exists. O church, I say, and listen carefully, if you're a believer here this day, soak it in. I say that Jesus' love for you is broad enough to cover you and every single Christian, whether Jews or Gentiles. It's long enough to stretch from eternity to eternity. It's deep enough to heal all of your hurts and forgive you of all of your sins. And it's high enough to take every true Christian all the way to glory, praise be to God. Church, I say that this is the case, never forget it, and the good news of the Bible is that neither height nor depth, nor any other created thing shall be able to separate us from it, just as Paul says in Romans chapter eight. This is good news to be sure, right? It's fantastic news. And why? Well, it's because Jesus' love for you, dear Christian here this day, is an electing love. It is a sacrificial love. It is a covenantal love. It is a forgiving love. It is a sanctifying love. And it is an enduring love. which will last days without end. This is the fact of the matter. And as we experience it more and more in our lives by faith, what will the practical result of it be? Well, Paul tells us finally in 19b of this chapter, when he says, look at it with me there in your Bibles, he writes that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. And so here then, beloved ones gathered with me, is the great end of knowing the love of Christ increasingly in your life. This is it. And in using the language here, that the result of knowing the love of Christ is that we'll be filled with the fullness of God. In using the language here, it's not that we would be filled with that fullness of which God is in himself as an infinite being. No. But rather, it's that as we experience More and more of the love of Jesus for us in our hearts, you and I will be filled with all the fullness of God concerning His goodness, and His grace, and His mercy, and His love, which He communicates to us through His Son. We'll hear that. is where we end the exposition of our passage and view for this morning concerning Paul's pastoral prayer for the Ephesians. This is what we've been focusing on for today. And then this prayer Paul has shown us what? Well, he's shown us the posture of his prayer and his petitions in his prayer And so having considered this together, what applications can we take, firstly for ourselves who are Christians here this day, to us who are God's people? Well, there are three things that I want to say from our passage. Three things. I'll rattle them off and then I'll come back and deal with them. Three things from our passage. So what? Here's the so what. Number one, since all true Christians are part of the family of God, let's be sure that we are treating every member in this place accordingly. Secondly, when we pray for one another in this place, let's be sure that we, like Paul, are praying primarily for spiritual matters. so that people will be helped in the inner man, as I mentioned earlier, and not just physical material matters. And then third, as we live the Christian life, let's be sure that we are growing more and more in our experiential acquaintance of Christ's love for us. Three applications. Number one, since all true Christians are part of the family of God, let's be sure that we are treating every member in this place accordingly. Brethren, we're a family. We're a family. You're saved here this day, you're part of the family of God. And as we seek to do our due diligence, whenever we receive a member into the church, hear their testimony. We spend time with them for months and months. The church gets to evaluate them, all those kind of things. We welcome them in the church. Everyone here this day before me is a member in good standing. I'm not talking about the visitors and all the rest, but you who are the members of Grace Community Baptist Church. Therefore, the practical application is I need to treat everyone in this place as a family member, my brother, my sister. Not as an outsider, not as someone who doesn't know the Lord. No, but you're a member in this church, a member in good standing, which means you haven't thrown away your discipleship card, as it were, stamped by the church which says true believer. No, your passport shows true believer. And we have every reason to believe that you're a true believer by the grace of God. And so I think when we take this language here, family, and we apply it to our own church, it really does give us a special nuance, I think. My family member, my sister, my brother. We can think, oh, that's my brother, my sister, but they're part of another family out there or different families in a natural sense. But we're talking spiritually. We're brethren, part of the same family. And since that's the case, we need to treat one another accordingly. It would be sin not to love the people who make up the family of God. And so, brethren, may God help each and every one of us to remember that by God's grace, we're part of the same family, we love the same Jesus, we've been redeemed by the same blood. And might this come through each and every one of us with how we interact with one another in this place? You're my brother, you're my sister, but part of the same family. We don't think about it much, but Paul uses the language. That family, not just in heaven, let's not be so spiritual. Oh, I'll get along with my family in heaven, but my family on earth, oh, I don't even wanna know those people. No, your family on earth is the people of God in this place. And thank God, all around the world. But as we apply it to our own congregation, let's make it personal. These are people who make up the membership of this church who are in good standing. May it be, therefore, that I'll always love them with biblical love, giving myself for them, inquiring of them, being kind to them, gracious to them. That's what a Christian family does. Not mistreating them, not looking at them like second-class citizens, no. You're a member in this church, and I'm a member, and guess what? When I became a member, I vowed that I would do everything I just mentioned to you publicly, love them and care for them. And so may God help us to uphold our vows with reference to others in this place. They're part of our family, we're part of their families, the family of God, may we treat them accordingly, but secondly, When we pray for one another in this place, dear brothers, dear sisters, let's make sure rather that our prayers are primarily with reference to spiritual things. Again, that's not to say that we can't pray. for so-and-so who needs a car later on when we have our prayer meeting, or so-and-so who hurt her back or her leg, or a brother who hurt his arm or whatever it might be. We can pray for those things, but let's be careful that we don't let our prayer meetings become prayer meetings that are full of those things lacking that which is spiritual. And so take it as a word of caution, caution, My pastor here, one of them, and I thought about this. I thought, hmm, how have our prayers been recently? Generally, they're very good and very spiritual. The encouragement is keep it up. Pray for their souls. Pray that they would spiritually know more of the love of Christ, et cetera, et cetera, that they would grow in grace, be strong in the faith, all those things. First and foremost, While not negating the rest, let's just be sure again that, as it were, we suffer the word of exhortation and seek to be like Paul in his prayers. May God help us. And then thirdly then, by way of application, brethren, as you and I live the Christian life, let's be sure that we are growing more and more in our experiential acquaintance with Christ's love. for us. Remember I said earlier that if this is not so for us, if we're not experiencing it, then it will affect us. We won't be as encouraged, we won't be as motivated to preach Christ to others. In fact, Paul says the love of Christ does what? It motivates us, constrains us. It pushes us out to speak the love of Christ. we'll be kind of down and maybe depressed because we're forgetting that Christ has so loved us, especially at the cross, no doubt, but because of that he loves us every day, immensely, without limit. Height, width, depth, length, all of that And so let's be sure that we are growing more and more in our experiential acquaintance of Christ's love for us. You say, how? Well, three ways. Number one, by reading the word of God every day. By reading the word of God every day, why? Because the Bible is Jesus' love letter to us. Secondly, by praying to God the Father, asking him, oh Father, give me a greater sense of the love of Christ for me. Being like Paul, he prayed that, why can't I? That's how I get to sense Jesus' love for me more and more, by praying, reading the word. And then thirdly, as strange as it might seem, we can experience this by looking for the love of Christ as we go through various trials in our lives. Various trials in our lives. Now, isn't that interesting? And why? Well, it's because it's often in times like these when Jesus' great love for us is manifested in ways that it has not been manifested in other times. Because it's in times like these and trials and hardships. Maybe you're here this day, you're a Christian, you're going through a trial, a difficulty in your home, in your heart, at work, at school. And it's right in the midst of those times where you come to experience in a fresh way Jesus' words when he said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. That's Hebrews. Same thing, you get the point. I just quote Matthew 28. And lo, I'm with you always, even to the consummation of the age. It's the same thing. It's in times like these, uniquely, interestingly, when I was in great sadness and anguish of soul, that right there, I was sensing Jesus' presence with me. I was sensing His love in my heart. And why? It's because He promised in 2 Corinthians chapter 12 that His grace is sufficient for us, and that in our weakness, His strength is made perfect. And so look for the love of Christ, beloved, in your times of hardship. Right then and there, don't despair. Remember Christ, oh, you love me. You died for me. You're using this trial for my good. Fill my heart with your love, with your joy, with your grace. My strength is made perfect, not by removing weakness, no, but Jesus says, in the midst of weakness. In the midst of our hardships, our times of distress, again, wherever it might come from, whether the devil or our sins or again a problem, right then and there, many of us can testify, was Jesus. Right in the midst of the furnace and the fire, there was one like unto the Son of God ministering. And so I say, if you want to know more and more of the love of Christ for your dear Christian, read the Word, pray to the Father for this, and then look for it amid your trials. Well, having said all these things, I want to close for today with a word to any non-Christian here this day. Non-Christian. That is to say, you haven't been born again. That's what a Christian is. He's someone, she's someone who's been born again. They've had something amazing happen in their lives. They didn't just start going to church. They didn't just become religious. They didn't get baptized. No. Something happened to them which they could not do for themselves. God made them new people. God the Holy Spirit came into their hearts, invaded them as it were, and made them brand new creations. They're a marvel to themselves. So now they hate their sins and they love their Savior. They want to walk in gospel obedience and holiness all their days. That's a Christian! But if you know nothing about what I'm speaking of, you're not a true Christian here this day. To you who don't know this great love of Christ, kind of the main point in Paul's passage as I mentioned, that love of Christ which was supremely demonstrated at the cross When he gave his life as a sacrifice for sinners, sinners like you, sinners like me, and that love of Christ, which is personally experienced in the life. If you don't know the love of Christ, let me say to you, my dear friends, whoever you are here this day, children, teens, adults, that if you would ever know the love of Christ, if you would ever know it, then you must turn from your sins. And you must trust in Christ exclusively to be your Savior. That's the hinge, as it were, to experience the love of Christ. The gateway, the door. The real love of Christ that surpasses all understanding. That again, we get to learn greater degrees of it more and more as Christians. This love of Christ which is inexhaustible, immeasurable, The only way you can come to know this love of Christ is by turning from your sins and putting your trust exclusively in Christ, who 2,000 years ago died for sinners on the cross of Calvary. And he made a perfect atonement to God the Father for the sins of the guilty. So perfect, he cried out saying, it is done! Not I'm done, no, it is done, because he's never done. But it is done, the work which he was sent into the world to do, to redeem sinners from the wrath of God, he accomplished their redemption. When he took the sins of sinners upon himself and was punished for them, and then shed his blood to cancel out all their guilt before God above. This Jesus was then buried and he rose again in the third day as a validation of his accomplishment at the cross. The Bible says that if you would ever know his love for you internally, you must call upon him to save you. Turning from your sins, crying out to him, oh Jesus, wash me from my sins, make me a Christian. Flood my heart with your great love. For indeed, this is a love which excels all others. It goes beyond every single type of love that you might ever know. And that's why, as Christians, we serve Christ. We love Him, as Paul says. We love Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. We love Him because He first loved us. He loved us by dying for us and accomplishing our salvation, our deliverance from the judgment of God. Do us because He took the judgment. Do us in our place. We love Him for doing that. And then once we turn from all of our horrible sins and put our trust in Him, His love flooded our hearts, Romans 5. And now we love Him back. And His love is that love which is beyond all others. If you're a non-Christian here this day, there's the old song that goes, looking for love in all the wrong places. Right? And that's all of us. God made us to experience love. Why? Because God Himself is love. He made us to experience love. It's a good thing. It's a beautiful thing. But the problem is, as non-Christians, we look for love in all the wrong places. We look for this love that's going to be lasting and limitless. It's going to be, oh, just overwhelming. It'll know no end. But there's no love like that in human beings, in things, in success. Whatever it is, it's short-lived because no one was meant or could give us the kind of love that only Christ can give. And that's why once you get saved and the love of Christ floods your heart, you give up everything for Him. You give everything up for Him because He has loved you like no one else has and no one else can. Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus, says the hymn writer. Vast, unmeasured, boundless, free. My dear non-Christian friend here this day, experience the love of Jesus. Turn from your sins. Ask Him to save you. Call upon Him, for whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. Let's pray together. Our Father, we thank you again for your Word, which is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword, O God. Your Word is light, and in it today we've seen light. O God, might we walk in it. Might we be helped through it, by it, because of it. O God, Comfort your people. And for anyone here this day who has not known the matchless love of Christ, O God, might they call upon Him so that they might experience this very thing. We ask it in His wonderful name. Amen.