Have you ever been shocked when life’s circumstances seem overwhelming and then someone comes up and tells you they are praying for you? Somehow, they knew that you were in the middle of a trial, they knew life was hard at that moment, or somehow, they knew that you needed a little encouragement. When something like that happens it changes our outlook, it helps our heart, and it gives hope.
The church in Ephesus received a letter from Paul and he told them that he was praying for them. It wasn’t because of anything bad they did, but to encourage them. The cool thing he did was tell them how he was praying for them. The NLT explains his words well, I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called… He petitioned God for heart change even though they were following Jesus well, he wanted their hearts to be overwhelmed in Jesus’ light. Paul wanted their hearts to be full of understanding Jesus’ love. When our hearts see, then we understand a little better, and our hope is confident.
When our hearts see what Jesus has given us, we then become the kind of unified, collective, cosmic church that God intended. Life looks and feels different because we see how Jesus gives a new life and new identify. This newness Jesus gives makes our hope real and gives an eternal inheritance based on grace. Look at the rest of verse 18 … so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. As followers of Jesus you are holy because he changed your heart. This is what Paul wanted the church to understand- everything is different because of Jesus. We have gone from sinners to saints, from blind to seeing clearly. And because of all this we are now part of his cosmic body of Christ waiting for our inheritance to come.
May your hearts be flooded and overwhelmed with His light, so we can be confident in the hope He gives.
Jesus let me not to hold onto the things of this world, but to your truth, love and grace. Allow my heart to see your light no matter what today brings. Amen.
Jeremy Johnson
Director of Men’s Ministries