In the first chapter of the book of Ephesians, the apostle Paul tells the church at Ephesus that he continually prays that God will give them a spirit of wisdom and give them a revelation of knowledge of himself. He elaborates on the content of his prayers in verses 18 and 19:
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…
― Ephesians 1:18–19 NASB
The apostle Paul is always very intentional with the words he chooses. He does not pray that they will learn, but that they will be enlightened. This is because spiritual truth is not something that is learned. Our sin blinds us to spiritual truth. Left on our own, we would live our entire lives and die never knowing spiritual truth. God, by an act of divine grace and power, overcomes the blinding power of sin and opens our eyes to spiritual truth. So, knowing this, the apostle Paul continually prays that the Christians at Ephesus will experience the illuminating power of God, opening their eyes to spiritual truth.
Paul goes on to tell them the three specific spiritual truths that he is praying God will open their eyes to. He is praying that they will know:
- the hope of his calling
- the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints
- the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe
This is also my prayer for myself and for you. I pray that God will open our eyes to a full understanding of these spiritual truths. The more I learn, the more I realize just how little I know and understand, and the more I realize how much I need God to open my eyes and give me a greater picture of all that he is and all he has done.
As I write this devotional, I have a very clear understanding of one spiritual truth: I have not loved God and loved his Word as I ought to. I have not truly valued my Creator’s revelation to me. I have not treasured the words of the One who reached into the pit of hell, lifted me out of it, gave me new life and made he his son. If I had loved him and his Word the way I ought to, I would have spent so much more time reading his Word, meditating on it and searching and longing and begging for a better understanding of these three spiritual truths. But I haven’t, and it is painfully clear to me right now.
The bottom line is that I need God to give me a renewed love and passion for him and his Word so that I will dive head first into his Word and he can open my eyes to the same truths that Paul was praying the Ephesians would know. I need to have my eyes opened so that I will know “what is the hope of his calling, what is the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of his power toward us who believe.”
Let us pray together that God will give us a renewed passion for him and his Word and that he will open our eyes, so we can have a clearer picture of who he is and all that he has done.
Lord, I pray that the eyes of our hearts may be enlightened, so that we will know what is the hope of your calling, what are the riches of the glory of your inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of your power toward us who believe. Amen.