Above and Beyond – September 10, 2023
Psalm 145:1-9, Ephesians 3:7-21
September 10, 2023
Our men’s group decided to study the book of Ephesians. And I have to admit I sort of “guided” them toward that decision. Because Ephesians is one of my favorite books in the Bible. And one of my favorite parts of the book is the section I just read to you. And one of my favorite verses is verse 20, “Now unto him, who by the power at work within us, is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.”
That’s the inspiration for the title of this sermon, “Above and Beyond.” God is infinite, as we often say – sometimes even without thinking. He is above us. And he is beyond our comprehension. And as Paul says here, his power in us is far greater than we can imagine! We can’t say any of that enough! God is above our belief about him, and he is beyond what we can ever know.
Do you believe that? And the reason I ask, and the reason I remind you about this today, is that, for too many people, their understanding of God is far too small. They think about God like we used to say. They have “God in a box.” You keep him in a little box on a shelf, you take him out and show him or ask him to do something, then you put him back. For too many people, they can’t imagine that God is infinite, and they can’t believe his power in us is that great. So they simply don’t. Even people of faith! They can’t imagine a God so powerful, so they don’t even try to imagine.
But we should! The people of old did. They tried to imagine the power and majesty of God. They did it by looking to the heavens. The psalmist wrote, “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth… When I look at thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and stars which thou hast established, what is man that thou art mindful of us.” That’s from Psalm 8. The psalmist looked up at the heavens and tried to imagine the majesty of God. That’s a good thing to do. That’s one of the reasons I like astronomy so much!
They looked to the mountains. In the 121st Psalm we read, “I lift up my eyes to the hills, from whence cometh my strength.” (Psalm 121) You think it was the actual hills that gave him strength? No it was the God who made the hills! The psalmist looked to the majesty of the mountains and used that to try to imagine the power of God. And that’s a good thing to do, too. If you’ve ever been to one of the great mountain ranges in the world – like the Rockies or the Sierras – you know what I mean! (That’s one of the reasons I like skiing so much!)
As I said, those are good things to do! Those are good places to look, in order to try to imagine the majesty and power of God! Or, you can read Ephesians. There is great majesty in Paul’s words here, as he attempts to get his readers thinking about and imagining the greatness of God.
Look at our passage for today. Paul begins by talking about Grace – grace which he was called to preach to the Gentiles. Paul saw that as a great mystery – a mystery “hidden for ages and generations.” It was the mystery that all people, including the Gentiles, were offered the Grace of God! And as he writes about that, he describes that Grace as “the unsearchable riches of Christ.” Don’t you love that? “The unsearchable riches of Christ!” Even God’s Grace is seen as being “above and beyond” our comprehension!
Then he goes on to tell them of “the eternal purpose of God, which he has realized in Christ Jesus.” And that eternal purpose was, “that we may have boldness and confidence of access (to God) through him.” Do you get that? We – all of us – have access to God, through the Grace he gave us in Jesus! I think that’s just as unimaginable and unsearchable as the power of God himself! And so did Paul.
With that in mind, Paul offers what has been called a “prayer for the readers.” That’s the heading in my Bible. And “readers” means us, too! And here’s his prayer. “For this reason” – that is, because of this Grace – “for this reason, I bow my knees before the Father… and praye, “according to the riches of his glory, (there’s the word “riches” again!) he may grant you to be strengthened with might through his spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith.” The prayer is for the readers to know that the spirit is within us, and that Christ dwells in our hearts! That alone is hard for us to comprehend. It’s as hard to imagine as the size of the universe, and the majesty of God! But we should try!
With that, with “Christ in our hearts,” he asks God for the readers to be “rooted and grounded in love, and be able to comprehend” – or at least try to comprehend – “what is the breadth and length and height and depth of God, and to know his love – love that passes knowledge.” Love that is beyond us. Then he prays that they (and we) may be “filled with all the fullness of God.” That’s Paul trying to get us to understand the power of God that is Above and Beyond! That’s like looking at the stars or the mountains!
Do you try to do that? Do you try to imagine the infinite nature of God? Do you look at his creation and try to imagine his power? Do you try to think of what it means to have his Spirit inside you? Do you know that Christ lives in your heart? That’s what Paul is trying to get you to do here. That’s something we all should do – every day!
So try it this week. As you begin each day, take some time and think about what God has created in the world around you, and try to imagine his power and glory. We don’t do that enough! Look to the heavens. Look at life all around you. Think about God’s spirit within you. Think about it with each breath you take. The ancient people used very similar words for “breath” and “spirit.” They saw them as being very close in meaning. Think about God’s spirit within you as you breathe in.
And then think about this last part, where Paul gives them what sounds like a benediction. This almost sounds like he’s ending this letter! (It’s not, but it sounds like it. It’s Paul just getting wound up!”) And this is where he talks about, not just the greatness and power of God, but what greatness and abundance he is able to do through us.
That’s often the hardest part of this. That’s the thing that’s hardest to imagine. But I think Paul does a pretty good job getting us to do so, saying, “Now unto him, who by the power at work within us, is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.” God’s power in us is above and beyond what we can imagine!
And then this closing. “To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever, Amen!” Paul knew, and I hope we do, too, that it’s all for God’s glory. His power and majesty are above our imagining, and his power in us, is beyond all that we ask or think.
Prayer
Eternal God, sometimes we forget that your power and glory are beyond our imagining. And we forget your Spirit and power within us. Help us to see glimpses of your glory each day, and to recognize your hand in all creation around us. And we thank you for your amazing Grace and steadfast love for us, given in your son, Jesus. And it is in his name we pray, Amen.