2022_11_21 Insight Post- Kim Feld

Happy Monday! I know that many of us will be on the road traveling to see family and loved ones this week. I will be praying for safe travels for all and a wonderful time of love and connection during this Thanksgiving week.

I am enjoying reading through the book of Ephesians so much! It is packed with powerful takeaways and things to ponder. Maybe it’s because of the journey I am currently on with Jesus, but something struck me in a new way as I read chapters 3 and 4. I’m gaining a deeper understanding of the importance of recognizing the depths of love God has for me. There’s a connection between my knowledge and acceptance of this love and my ability to love others well. Let’s look at Paul’s incredible prayer in chapter 3 and the actions he encourages us to take in chapter 4.

¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:14-19 NIV, emphasis mine)

The Amplified version uses “deeply rooted and securely grounded in love” in verse 17. Let’s look at verse 19 in the Amplified version:

¹⁹ and [that you may come] to know [practically, through personal experience] the love of Christ which far surpasses [mere] knowledge [without experience], that you may be filled up [throughout your being] to all the fullness of God [so that you may have the richest experience of God’s presence in your lives, completely filled and flooded with God Himself].

Having this secure attachment to God should inform my identity. If I am convinced that I am deeply loved by my Father, I can begin to see myself as His daughter, not just one of the “world” that He loved (see John 3:16). There is a communal element to our faith, and practicing our faith for sure, but that should come out of a personal understanding of the depth of love that God has for me.

Next, Paul urges us to “live a life worthy of the calling” we have received (see Ephesians 4:1). He lists some of that life’s characteristics: humility, gentleness, bearing with each other, and keeping the unity of the Spirit through peace. Then, he reminds us of the basis for our unity as believers: one body, one spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of all.

If my identity is less than a daughter of the Most High King, I jeopardize these things because of my need to prove my worth. God desires us to be deeply rooted and firmly established in the extravagance of His love for us. I pray that we each take a step closer to that reality today.

Kim Feld
Executive Director of Education and Outreach