BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

This desire to know the Lord was so much a part of Paul’s heart that it was echoed in his prayers for the Church. In Ephesians 1:16-19, Paul said, "[I] do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe." Notice, Paul prayed the same thing for the Church that he prayed for himself: that you will know. His petition was that their hearts be enlightened, or flooded with light, to know how great the hope of their calling was. Paul was so deeply committed to his calling that he said in Philippians: “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). What many fail to realize is that not only does God want to know you, but also He wants you to know Him. And there are other things He wants to reveal to you. He is not keeping you in the dark, nor does He have secrets and mysteries that are being hidden from you. No, they are hidden from the devil, but open to you. Receive From God There are things that no one has seen or heard or even conceived of that God has prepared for us. Now, He is waiting for us to receive them. These things God has prepared for you are given to you freely. You cannot earn them—you can only receive them! The reason the natural man does not receive the things of God is because they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them. The things of God cannot be received through natural means. They are revealed by the Spirit of God. If the Spirit of God dwells in you, then you are a candidate to know what He has prepared for you. Look again at Ephesians 1:18-19, and notice the three things Paul prayed you might know. First, he prayed that you might know what is the hope of God’s calling. Second Timothy 1:9 says, “who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity.” One of the most frequent prayer requests we receive from Christians is to know the will of God. You were saved and called, not according to your abilities or talents, but according to His purpose. God has something for you to do, and He wants to flood your heart with light to see exactly what it is and equip you with the grace to do it. Second, Paul prayed that you might know what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance. When you receive Jesus into your life, you are qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints (Colossians 1:12). There are riches in this inheritance. The word riches in this verse means “wealth, fullness, bestow, supply and furnish.” God wants to supply you not only with wealth, but all the fullness of God. The riches in glory contain all the fullness of God, and Paul’s prayer was that you might know and discern clearly what that fullness includes. The phrase riches in glory is referred to in Philippians 4:19, where it says, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” The word need in the Greek means “requirement or demand.” God will meet all the requirements or the demands that are on your life by His riches in glory. The things you require to live a good life are not going to deplete the riches of glory! It’s His nature to richly supply whatever your life requires. Third, Paul prayed that you might know the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. Paul describes the power of God as not merely great, but surpassing greatness. It’s beyond great—so far beyond, he didn’t have words to express how great God’s power is toward us. When you understand the magnitude of God’s power, you don’t have any trouble believing you are more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus. His power is toward you and concerning you—not against you. Once you begin to know the hope of your calling, the riches of your inheritance and the surpassing greatness of God’s power to those who believe, then you can begin to make them known. You can become the one the power flows not only to, but through. You will be like the one Isaiah spoke of, “The Lord God has given Me the tongue of disciples, that I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word” (Isaiah 50:4). V Except where noted otherwise, all Scripture references in this article are from the "New American Standard Bible." Dennis and Vikki Burke are co-founders of Dennis Burke Ministries in Arlington, Texas. For information or ministry materials visit dennisburkeministries.org. 20 : BVOV

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