The Love of Christ (Pt 3) "I am sorry"

In my first post on "The Love of Christ" (Pt 1) I said things like: "It is my desire to do an in-depth expository work on comprehending the Love of God." YUK! If I were in a cult that was quick to judge motives, I would likely be condemned for life for saying it that way! Some of you unfortunately know what I mean. As far as "in-depth" goes... it won’t happen. For I could hardly begin to touch upon the magnitude of Christ’s Love. God is already convicting me about how I am saying things. Not really "what" I say but "how". I am sorry for sounding short on passion, if I do, as I do this study. I will most likely do it again and be convicted for it, for I am only so mature and yet growing up in Him who is the Head of the Church, Christ Jesus Himself. Please forgive me. I pray you may glean some good from my study here.

I think Paul said it well enough, " 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. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ep 3:14-19 nkjv)

Or as the NLT puts it:

"When I think of the wisdom and scope of God’s plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.."

Consider this promise: "to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith;"

I say "WOW!" This is so incredible to think about! The same Spirit and His Power that raised Christ from the dead is in believing Christians to empower and endow them with grace directly from the highest of the Heavens. This "resurrection power" is available to our inner man because of Christ's death and New Life for our soul, where He has chosen to dwell there through the faith we have in Him. "Christ in me, the hope of glory". "I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me". "Greater is He Who is in me than he who is in the world". My "inner man is being renewed day by day". We "are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit." He dwells "in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite (not condemned) and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones." I have eaten His flesh and drank His blood so I abide in Him and He in me. Because His Spirit dwells in each and every one who accepts the Truth of the Gospel of grace in Christ Jesus as Paul "faithfully" describes, we are one together in Him even as He is One with the Father. This is the faith of Christ dwelling in us.

Lord willing, my next post, I will look at "being rooted and grounded in love". I pray God will help me see this better. I do covet your prayers.

God Bless You!

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