Verse of the Day 9/13

Verse of the Day 9/13

 

Ephesians 3:16-17  New Century Version (NCV)  I ask the Father in his great glory to give you the power to be strong inwardly through his Spirit.¹⁷ I pray that Christ will live in your hearts by faith and that your life will be strong in love and be built on love.

 

We ended yesterday's devotional with Ephesians 6:10, telling us to be strong in the Lord and the power of His might.  This verse leads into the passage which deals with "putting on" the full armor of God, armor which is needed because whether we realize or acknowledge it or not, there is a spiritual battle going on all around us every day, scheming and striking at our spirit our inner self.

 

In Ephesians 3 Paul prays for the Ephesians and Christians through the ages that we be strengthened by the Father, through the Spirit, that Christ would live, dwell, and abide in our hearts so that love might overcome the evil that is set against us.

 

John MacArthur writes, "Spiritual power is a mark of every Christian who submits to God's Word and Spirit.  It is not reserved for some special class of Christian, but for all those who discipline their minds and spirits to study the word, understand it, and live by it.  Although the outer, physical person becomes weaker with age, the inner spiritual person should grow stronger through the Holy Spirit, who will energize, revitalize, and empower the obedient, committed Christian."
 

There is an old hymn that speaks of the joy in serving Jesus.  May we draw upon that power today and have that joy.

 

There is joy, joy Joy in serving Jesus              
Joy that throbs within my heart
Every moment, every hour
As I draw upon His power
There is joy, joy
Joy that never shall depart

 

Blessings,
Mike
Follow the verse of the day at www.mikesvotd.blogspot.com

 Through the Bible - Judges 16-18, John 5:25-47

 

Ephesians 3:14-20  New Century Version (NCV) The Love of Christ

 ¹⁴ So I bow in prayer before the Father¹⁵ from whom every family in heaven and on earth gets its true name.¹⁶ I ask the Father in his great glory to give you the power to be strong inwardly through his Spirit.¹⁷ I pray that Christ will live in your hearts by faith and that your life will be strong in love and be built on love.¹⁸ And I pray that you and all God's holy people will have the power to understand the greatness of Christ's love—how wide and how long and how high and how deep that love is.¹⁹ Christ's love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with the fullness of God.

 ²⁰ With God's power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine.