“I Have Heard About Your Faith”
The theme is God’s promise in the letter to the Ephesians, which is an invitation to active listening, which is the ground of our prayers. Following the example of the letter (Ephesians 1:15-19), where the author praises the church for their faith in Jesus and love toward all the saints, the worship service contextualizes the witness of the saints with the stories from Taiwan.
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For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, 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 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 boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might
Ephesians 1:15-19 New American Standard Bible
Paul gave thanks to God for the Ephesians living out their love and faith. He prayed that they would receive a spirit of wisdom and revelation and would “come to know [God]” through the light and inspiration of the Holy Spirit! Paul asked God to enlighten the disciples, so that they could see these three truths:
- The hope to which God has called the disciples
God’s calling has a meaning and a purpose. It calls us to turn to Christ and become holy, to put away our old selves and to put on our new selves, to live out a new life in abundance, and to glorify God’s name. This is a call that brings change to life. Furthermore, in Jesus Christ, we have been designated for adoption as God’s children and have been given the hope of our inheritance toward redemption. (Ephesians 1:5, 11, 14 and 1 Peter 1: 3–5).
- The riches of God’s glorious inheritance among the saints
As mentioned above, believers have been designated for adoption as God’s children and have been given the hope to obtain inheritance from Him. And here, it is emphasized that God’s disciples are God’s inheritance.
God once told the Israelites through Moses, “Now therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples” (Exodus 19:5). Thankfully, this privilege is not limited to the Israelites in the Old Testament, it is also given to the followers of Jesus in the New Testament (1 Peter 2:9). Hebrews Chapter 11 enumerates several biblical figures who are examples of faith. Up until this day, there are still tens of thousands of God’s faithful servants that dedicate their lives to spreading the gospel and sharing the love of God to all nations. These are God’s glorious inheritance among the saints in history!
- The immeasurable greatness of God’s power
Paul elaborated upon the greatness of God’s power in Ephesians 1:20–23:
- Jesus Christ is risen from the dead and seated at God’s right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion!
- Jesus Christ is the head over all things for the church. The church and disciples will look to this great power to accomplish the Great Commission that Jesus Christ has bestowed upon us (Matthew 28:18–20).
