Rooted in the Soil of Love
a sermon based on Ephesians 3:14-21
by Rev. Frank Schaefer

The one word that stands out in Paul’s discourse is the four letter word that makes the world livable: LOVE.  After reading this passage in preparation for this sermon children’s song entered my mind:  We all know it well:  "Jesus Loves Me This I know for the Bible tells me so."   Well, our passage is indeed an example of the Bible telling us about Jesus’ love.

There is a story about an astronomer and a theologian who were seated next to each other on an airplane. The astronomer smugly turned to his seatmate and said: “Is it true that your religion can be summed up in one simple phrase: Jesus Loves Me This I Know, for the Bible tells me so?'” After a short pause, the theologian replied, “It’s as true as the notion that the science of astronomy can be summed up in the simple phrase, 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star.”

The truth is that Christianity is about more than Jesus loving “me.”  That Jesus loves me is an important truth and it is a cornerstone of my personal belief, but Christianity is, of course, about so much more. Love is about so much more.  Love is not unilateral, but it is trilateral. God’s Love should cause us to grow in our own love, both toward God and neighbor.  

Paul, in our passage, offers a prayer for the Christians at Ephesus, and by extension, actually prays also prays for all Christians everywhere, including us: "I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with the fullness of God."

Talking about a rich prayer!  Some of the verses that jump out are:

·        That you may be strengthened in your inner being

·        As you are being rooted and grounded in love

·        The power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth,

·        That you may be filled with the fullness of God.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the prayer points Paul is making here:

In Verse 3:17 Paul says:  “…and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.”

Paul prays for us to be rooted and grounded in love.  The metaphor he employs is that of an organic process.  Perhaps he was thinking of a tree.

How does a tree get grounded or rooted in the soil?  It’s a natural process that doesn’t happen over time.  At the beginning, the sapling needs a lot of care, the soil needs to be just right—soft and filled with nutrients.  The soil needs to be watered and the tender stem of the sapling needs to be protected from pests.

Perhaps this is the stage in which we first experience God’s love.  This is the “honeymoon” phase that follows our spiritual awakening to the experience and knowledge of God’s unfailing love for us.

As the tree continues to grow, it is subjected to dry spells, storms, and the wintry weather.  It is during those “rough” times that the roots grow deeper and that the tree is being established.  Before a tree can become tall and strong it needs to grow strong roots.

Paul knows that the “post-honeymoon” phase is just as important in the grounding of God’s love as the honeymoon phase itself.  This phase will be marked with tests.  Our love and patience will be tested as we need to learn to respond in a loving manner toward people around us--even those who attack us, mock us, and test our patience.

Paul knew what he was talking about, because he wrote these same words, he prayed this prayer from a prison cell.  He had been beaten, mocked, and persecuted and he had endured the dangers of exhausting missions trips many times.

Paul continues: “I pray that you may have the power to comprehend with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with the fullness of God."

Here, Paul talks about knowledge; the knowledge of the length, the width, the height and the depth of God’s love.  In other words: all its dimensions. He is quick to add that this knowledge is unlike any other knowledge.  To know the love of Christ is to possess knowledge that surpasses all other knowledge.

How is this knowledge of Christ’s love different from other forms of knowledge?  Sometimes we can define a term best by describing what it is not.  The knowledge of Christ’s love is not . . .

·        book-knowledge,

·        it is not “street” knowledge,

·        it is not common sense knowledge or intuitive or inert knowledge. 

It is a knowledge that is rooted in the experience of God himself and his love.  This knowledge requires a personal relationship with God.  It requires walking with God, on God’s path and in God’s love. 

It is a knowledge we gain from . . .

·        moments of grace when we realize that God is willing to forgive our mistakes,

·        moments of comfort when God’s peace overcomes us when we think there is no way out,

·        moments of rejoicing, when we realize that we have shown love to a person who has been unkind or unfair to us.

Paul’s prayer and message is intended to encourage us.  In Paul’s theology, nobody has become rooted and grounded in Christ’s love overnight.  Paul knows we are all human and we need prayer.  The good news is that as we hang in there; as we start praying this prayer of spiritual growth for ourselves, we will see it happen.

There is a contemporary Christian song by Cheri Keaggy that expresses this message so well:

My faith will stay! My faith will grow!
Sometimes fast, sometimes slow
Through the wind and through the rain
By Your grace, my faith will stay.

As we make Paul’s prayer our prayer for spiritual growth we are confident in Christ that our love will stay, that our love will grow!  Amen.