Dear One,
This is the end of our series on the Cross to the Throne. Next week we will publish the whole series, edited together as one article, as a special midweek LW article. Hope you enjoy it!
Love to all! KRP
FROM THE CROSS TO THE THRONE
THE FULLNESS OF GOD
…that you may be filled with all the fullness (Grk. PLEROMA) of God Eph 3:19 NKJV
We are ready in our study of the journey from the Cross to the Throne, to approach the great second prayer in Ephesians, in Ephesians Three. As I stated previously, Paul is the writer of this prayer but the Holy Spirit is the Author of it, making it in effect His prayer for us. Just as you express your desires in prayer, this prayer here, and the prayers throughout the Church Epistles, express the Author’s heart and desires for us. Indeed, it is God’s prayer for you.
Ephesians 2:10-3:21 describes what I believe is the Church’s position at the Throne of God. Like the different buildings on a university campus, the different aspects of the Church expressed here surround the Throne and give glory to Him who is seated there. We’ve identified five major themes of the Church in this section of the Word and we are ready to consider the fifth and final theme: the fullness – the PLEROMA – of God.
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father (In Hebrew its ABBA) of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family (Grk. PATRIA) in heaven and earth is named (Grk. ONOMAZO), 16 that He would grant you, according to (Grk. KATA) the riches of His glory, to be strengthened (Grk. KRATAIOO) with might (Grk. DUNAMIS) through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell (Grk. KATOIKEO) in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted (Grk. RHIZOO) and grounded (Grk. THEMELIOO) in love, 18 may be able (Grk. EXISCHUO) to comprehend (Grk. KATALAMBANO) with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height — 19 to know (Grk. GINOSKO) the love of Christ which passes knowledge (Grk. GNOSIS); that you may be filled (Grk. PLEROO) with all the fullness (Grk. PLEROMA) of God. Eph 3:14-19 NKJV
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father – ABBA in Hebrew -of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family (Grk. PATRIA) in heaven and earth is named (Grk. ONOMAZO)…
ABBA’s whole PATRIA is certainly a lot bigger than I was ever taught, which is a reminder that what you learn AFTER you think you know it all is what really counts! ABBA’s PATRIA would include OT saints, starting with A&E, right up through the patriarchs, Israel and OT Gentile saints, all the ranks of angels and NT saints both deceased and alive. ONOMAZO indicates that all were named or placed in the PATRIA of God.
…that He would grant you, according to (Grk. KATA) the riches of His glory, to be strengthened (Grk. KRATAIOO) with might (Grk. DUNAMIS) through His Spirit in the inner man…
We are going to see in this great prayer the relationship between love and power; that faith, and the power faith releases, is energized effectively, according to Galatians 5:6, by the love of God we have in our hearts. Love inspires you to make the sacrifices necessary to release the great power of God in your life. One of the great healings I’ve ever seen in my ministry was of a boy afflicted by polio whose leg faced backwards. The day before I had prayed from 630am to 330pm, stopping briefly for breakfast and lunch, when God spoke and said, “You are ready,” after which I quit because I was ready. It is said that Oral Roberts would pray in tongues for five hours each night before he preached in his crusades. Love requires sacrifice!
KATA sets a standard by which the power of God can be compared, measured or judged. The standard is His glorious riches. Wow! Meditate on that for a minute, and realize that everywhere you go, you can bring fabulous blessings!
KRATAIOO means power with an impact. We get our English word CRATER, the result of an impact by a solid object of great density and high-speed striking a landscape. If you want to make an impact wherever you go, the way to effectively do that is with the power of God. For example, prophetic words spoken in love go straight to people’s hearts and create faith. Such words will be remembered and treasured when thousands of others are forgotten and ignored!
DUNAMIS is inherent spiritual power, the same power that created the heavens and the earth. You and I have that power, but crossing the key landmarks, almost step by step, in Romans and Ephesians is necessary for us to allow ourselves to release that power. Have you ever noticed how the children of believers pray with power because they haven’t been taught yet that God DOESN’T answer prayer? Those pure hearts just know that God will answer. The landmarks we’ve talked about on the road to the Throne seek to get us back to that purehearted level!
…through His Spirit in the inner man…
How is this accomplished? If this were automatically done at the new birth, like so many of our rights in Christ, then why would it need to be prayed for? This is one of the greatest arguments for every believer to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Speaking in tongues edifies the believer and builds up their faith. It is how we are strengthened with might by His spirit in the inner man. Let me say that the Church Epistles were given by the Holy Spirit with the expectation and assumption that every believer would speak in tongues.
Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. Gen 28:12 NKJV
I never used to value prayer. I did it as a Christian discipline, but without real conviction. Now I understand it as a time of worship, of empowering, of giving and receiving, of being brought together with Heaven and earth to produce Kingdom power in the world. It’s like the heroes in the fantasy/sci-fi stories that are so popular now. They go out and fight, but they must return to their power source, or else they die. Very much like us! Our inner man must be renewed through prayer and worship daily, or else we fall from lack of power.
…that Christ may dwell (Grk. KATOIKEO) in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted (Grk. RHIZOO) and grounded (Grk. THEMELIOO) in love…
KATOIKEO means to reside or bed down, not merely to visit, to make our hearts His home. Again, we see the standards, the demands of the Gospel, are the highest in all the earth. Jesus said that if you love wife or husband or son or daughter more than Me, you are not worthy of Me. The first command is to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. The highest standards! Do you see why this is a journey?
RHIZOO and THEMELIOO. Rooted and grounded. Jesus is the root of David and He is the rock upon which our lives are grounded. We are rooted and grounded in Him who is love. By the way, the rooting and grounding begins in Romans with those landmarks I previously pointed out.
…may be able (Grk. EXISCHUO) to comprehend (Grk. KATALAMBANO) with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height — 19 to know (Grk. GINOSKO) the love of Christ which passes knowledge…
God makes us smarter. EXISCHUO means ‘to make entirely competent’. Perhaps you were always told that you were an idiot, which is a decree from hell. Perhaps you always had low marks in school. I tell you, my sister or brother, apply yourself daily by reading the Word out loud and praying in tongues and God will make your physical brain cells sharper, more alive and you will get smarter. He will make you entirely competent!
KATALAMBANO means to take, seize or possess eagerly. To comprehend is to grasp with eager hands the full understanding of the love of God.
GINOSKO means to know by experience, not merely an intellectual knowing, but a ‘gut level’ experience. A gut level experience of knowing the love of Christ – this is the answer to the question ‘Is this all there is?’ This understanding, this perception of the love of Christ will lift you into whole new realms of faith, because love energizes faith. All that Jesus did, all that He walked in, all the victory that overflowed and touched the world is now open to His sons and daughters to walk in who know by experience the love of Christ. The Lord God will meet you, and individually instruct you, and carefully train you, and show you the intimate details of the love of Christ in your soul so that you are transformed into His image.
…that you may be filled (Grk. PLEROO) with all the fullness (Grk PLEROMA) of God. Eph 3:14-19 NKJV
PLEROO is to be filled full. The fullness of God is the image of Christ. Jesus said, He who has seen Me has seen ABBA! This is the end of the journey in our renewed minds to the Throne of God. We are so secure in Him that we can walk in great love, because great love requires great strength, all the time. Great love produces great faith which yields great power. All the fruit of the Spirit, all the gifts of the Spirit, all the RHEMA words and an increasing understanding of the LOGOS of God are all in the fullness of God. Two things can be happening here even simultaneously: being continuously filled to fullness and increasing in capacity. We can be filled full yet growing more and more!
And the Child grew (Grk. AUXANO increased) and became strong in spirit, filled (Grk. PLEROO) with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him. Luke 2:40 NKJV
To get from one place to another, especially a place you have never been, requires four things: (1) you must know where you are, (2) you must know where you want to go, (3) you must have a map showing a route with its intermediate landmarks or objectives, and (4) you must have a guide. The map shows you the objectives and the guide keeps you from going off course. Your guide will reroute you as necessary! If you are a born again one, your starting place is the Cross. Your goal, where you want to go, is the Throne. Your map is the word of God, specifically Romans and Ephesians, and your guide is the Holy Spirit.
Find someone to take the journey with you. A threefold cord is not quickly broken! Identify each objective in Romans and Ephesians, starting in Romans Three, and don’t leave the objective until you have completely embraced its truth and are practicing it comfortably. Be accountable to your partner and to the Lord. This is a marathon, not a sprint. I’ve run a couple of marathons, and it requires patience, pacing and keeping the goal in mind. But you can do it, dear one. You can be a great judge, bringing Kingdom authority, favor and blessing to all the world around you to His glory. Amen? Love you!
Remember dear one, we must be about our Father’s business…