Category Archives: Sermons

Great Power, Great Consolation

12 Sunday Feb 2012

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Ephesians 1:19

Paul’s prayer for illumination for the Ephesians contains a very surprising and thrilling request as he prayed that the Ephesians would come to know God’s great power at work in them. Five different words are used to unpack the dimensions of God’s power operative in believers, while in verse 20 a case from history, Christ’s resurrection and heavenly exaltation, are cited as tangible examples of just what kind of enormous things this power can accomplish. Believers, armed with a sense of awareness about this power, will have consolation to know that not only will they arrive at the promised and hoped for heavenly inheritance but also that their earthly struggles against spiritual forces of darkness will not end in failure.

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Prayer for Illumination

05 Sunday Feb 2012

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Ephesians 1:15-18

Some people think that a mastery of the lexical, grammatical, and literary details of a passage always leads to a right understanding of Scripture. Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians, that they might receive the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the clear knowledge of God, makes it clear that we cannot understand Scripture adequately without the illumination of the Holy Spirit. This prayer of Paul means that Christians cannot be assured of adequate understanding of Biblical truth apart from seeking the grace of spiritual illumination through prayer.

Sealed With The Spirit

29 Sunday Jan 2012

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Ephesians 1:13-14

In view of hearing promises of participation in an eternal heavenly inheritance, the most natural question to ask is, “can I be sure that I will actually obtain it?” Paul’s answer to that question is that assurance is ours because the Holy Spirit has sealed us until the return of Jesus Christ. A moments reflection leads us to understand that the sealing of the Holy Spirit is a means of great consolation to the believer, assuring them that nothing will separate them from the reception of heavenly grace.

We Have Received An Inheritance

22 Sunday Jan 2012

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Ephesians 1:11-12

Paul hardly mentions the grace of eternal inheritance, before he passes on quickly to underscore its sovereign administration to us. Five different terms are used to highlight the sovereignty of God in his plans, purposes, operations, and distributions. Where one term by itself could have adequately conveyed divine sovereignty, Paul uses many terms to amplify God’s power and plans. The opening phrase of v12 accounts for this heaping up of terms as Paul discloses the purpose of God’s administration of the grace of inheritance when he declares that it was for the purpose of God’s glory. Paul’s basic message is that divine sovereignty is overwhelmingly exercised in administering grace in order order to secure the broader of aim of magnifying the glory of God.

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