… together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,
Summary: Continuing on with Paul’s metaphor, we explore what it means to be rooted in love and discover that being fed on God’s love is the key to understanding.
The more I think about the first part of this passage, the more impressed I am by Paul’s words.
Rooting a cutting of a plant usually involves trimming the cut end to expose as much of the inner stem as possible. Then the cut end is placed in water. The exposed inner part of the stem begins to drink water directly from the place it is in. With time and sunshine, the plant continues to live and grows new roots. When the roots are established, the plant can be transplanted to its permanent home in the soil.
The visualization of a believer taking root in liquid love is powerful. When we confess our sins, we expose our inner selves before God. Embraced by the love of Jesus, we discover that we do not die as we had feared. Instead, there is a wonderful sense of life flowing directly into our inner selves.
When we are rooted in love, the love goes into all parts of our body and allows us to grow new roots and new leaves. Eventually, when we have been planted firmly in the Word and in faith, we will bear fruit that is only possible when one drinks from the pool of liquid love.
This is the same for all the Lord’s people. No one who comes to the Father is perfect. No one is righteous, not even one. All of us have our bark stripped back. We all have our inner parts exposed to our Creator. Nothing is hidden.
No matter how damaged or diseased we might be, the Lord does not turn us away. We are embraced in the same way the prodigal son is embraced by his father when he returns home.
Only when we drink from the Love of God do we begin to understand.
When a plant cutting is taken, its life is fragile. Within minutes, the cut end of the plant stem starts to dry out. If it is not put in water quickly, it dies. God acts quickly. As soon as we turn to him in prayer, he embraces us. When our hearts repent, and we admit our need for God, he hears us. When we are rooted and established in his love, we drink in God’s life-giving water. Nourished by this water, we begin to heal, and then grow, and then something amazing happens.
We begin to understand.
We begin to “to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.”
Application: Take a deep drink from the well of God’s love and see how you feel.
Food for Thought: What are some ways that we can strip the bark of our souls back to expose more of ourselves to God’s love?
What are some ways that we can strip the bark of our souls back to expose more of ourselves to God’s love?
Have a loved one help get those hard to reach spots that you missed. Helping sanctify eachother in love.
Tim,
What a great insight!
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”
(Proverbs 27:17)
“Do everything in love.”
(1 Corinthians 16:14)
Good thought T.
I would add the disciples – such as Bible study, prayer, worship, etc. These provide nutrients to the soil that help us to flourish. They are reminders of God’s love that have transforming capacities in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Excellent, Rich!
All good ways to stay connected to our source of Life.
06-04-2023, What are some ways that we can strip the bark of our souls back to expose more of ourselves to God’s love?
For me it has been a process which has been initiated and sustained by God extending His love to me. Over time living in His love has taken a priority in my life not because of works on my part, but because of work on His part. Living in and giving His love to others is refreshing as I become a conduit for His love for others.
Ron,
You bring to mind Ephesians 2:19-22 where Paul describes us being “joined together … to become a holy temple in the Lord.” We are absolutely a conduit for God’s love. We cannot contain it. Rather, it encompasses us and causes the Good Fruit to grow. (Galatians 5:22-23)