How vast the love of God

In Ephesians 3 Paul wants the Ephesians ot have the power to be able to comprehend or to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. Again Paul does not pray in the way that we tend to. He is looking much higher. He has in mind the love of God, which is vast. He imagines its dimensions. It has great width and length and height and depth. It is broader than the 17 lane M61 in Manchester, broader than a vast continent; it is longer than War and Peace by Tolstoy, longer than the Amazon and the Nile combined; it is higher than the Empire State Building, higher than Mount Everest or the highest clouds, it is deeper than the Mponeng gold mine, deeper than the Mariana Trench in the Atlantic Ocean, 7 miles down. Practically, it is broad enough to encompass Jew and Gentile, long enough to take us into eternity, deep enough to reach to the worst sinner and high enough to go on taking up our thoughts and praise forever. Paul's prayer is that somehow these believers may have power to grasp this love.

He wants them to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that they may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. This love is beyond knowledge in fact, of course. We used to sing with the children that God's love is so high you can't get over it, so low you can't het under it, so wide you can't get round it. It is a little like paddling in the ocean when we get even a little idea of it. It does surpass knowledge but Paul wants them to know it and so to be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. The phrase is not immediately clear. Does he pray that they may know all that God has to offer or does he pray, even more boldly, that we may be brought up to the standard of perfection that is found in God? Whichever way we take it, Paul has an eye on the heavenly perfection that comes to every believer in Christ. He is praying for an increasing and Godlike perfection in every believer. What a thing to pray!