Paul prayed joyfully and regularly for the Ephesians after he heard of their faith and their love for the saints. His first request in v. 17 is that God would grant them “the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,” and this request is clarified in v. 18 where he reveals just how this spiritual knowledge is transferred to believers: the eyes of our understanding must be enlightened.

For anyone to grow in the wisdom and the knowledge of God, the eyes of our heart must be opened to receive this revelation. Before we were saved, Satan was blinding our eyes (2 Corinthians 4:4). After we are saved, we can still become blind, like the Laodiceans. Since the devil and our human frailties all are working together to blind us, we should be vigilant to pray consistently that God would actively open the eyes of our understanding so we can continue to grow in grace.

So fellow pilgrim, do you yearn for the wisdom and knowledge of God for yourself, or for your spouse, children, and coworkers? Paul has given us not only the words to pray, but the reason why we should pray. God must open our eyes to see Him.

Tom Day

Arthur W. Pink said that, “The Law of God [Ten Commandments] is an expression of His love, a manifestation of His mercy, a provision of His grace.” Deuteronomy 33:2-3 confirms this truth that “God’s fiery law” is because “He loves the people.” Pink goes on to say, “While divine love provided the Law, the prime purpose of God in giving it was that His authority should be maintained. Israel must be brought to see that they were under His government.”

By providing this people with the Mosaic law, they would be able to feel safe, they would be able to own property, and there would be provisions that allow them to enjoy life rather than take from it. The law of sin, that we instinctively operate by, is a law that hinders our freedom and places us in bondage and in opposition to the God we are accountable to.

As Christians under grace and not the Mosaic law, we have an even greater relationship under God’s governing — Christ living inside of us, directing us on the path that leads to life. The 10 commandments have not been replaced by Christ, but rather made possible for us to live out because of Christ. God’s instruction for His saints is always to keep us out of bondage, and as a redeemed people of Christ, may we view His instruction to us as a provision of grace that grants us more freedom, not less.

Pastor Jason Witt

The story of Joseph is one that we are all familiar with. We go to this story when confronted with sin. We tell ourselves, we have to be like Joseph and run. Joseph had the proper perspective of who he was. He knew what his position was in the office he held. He respected his master and all of the power that came with the position. He also understood where he stood before a Holy God. Notice what he says, “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”

If Joseph were to commit this sin, he would not only be sinning against his master who gave him the position he held, but more importantly it would be sinning against God. This serves as a good reminder to me when I sin. My sin is not only against those who I sin against but more importantly, it’s against God. This should drive us to think about what we’re going to do before we sin the next time.

If today you find yourself struggling with sin, ask yourself the same question Joseph did, “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” and run from it knowing that God makes a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Joshua Navarro

Jesus Christ came to this earth for the purpose of fulfilling the will of the Father, which was to bridge the gap between Himself and mankind. But the problem was that men were all sinners separated from God and until that sin was dealt with that gap would not be bridged. So that’s why Jesus came, to pay for our sin. He said in Luke 19:10, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

So, praise the Lord when we put our faith in the fact that Jesus Christ died on the cross for all our sins and we believed, we received forgiveness of those sins and in that moment we were born again. God’s Spirit came to live inside of us and we were regenerated, redeemed, and justified. This is a free gift that we do not deserve; this is the love, mercy, and grace of Almighty God.

What a good thing to remember today, and a great thing to share with someone who is still separated from God.

Pastor Doug Hardin

In verses 1-5, James describes our bent to leave the Lord and pursue our selfish desires by befriending the world. Friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God, it is a direct rebellion and a position that states you do not trust that God is for your ultimate good. What amazes me is God’s response to our betrayal, “He gives more grace.” God’s grace is always greater than our sin and it is not even close. Grace blows sin out of the water, it crosses the finish line, goes home, takes a shower, changes, eats a sandwich, and then sin crosses the finish line.

When we fully grasp God’s grace, it changes us to our core. We are no longer proud people, rather we humble ourselves before a righteous God who is rich in grace. Words cannot fully express the greatness of our God!

For the King,

Pastor Daniel Batistelli

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Do you remember saying this when you were younger? Words can’t hurt me, but physically I can be hurt. Now that you’re older, how much have you seen this not to be true? Our words and other people’s words hurt!

That is what Solomon is saying here. Your words have an effect on people and it will either be a like a sword or a knife that stabs someone or it provides health or life for those that hear your words. Anger, frustration, bitterness, and wild emotions can cause us to have words like swords that only damage and wound. The Lord would have us be wise with what leaves our mouth and encourage, direct, and love others. I challenge you today, consider your words and how you speak to others!

In Christ,

Pastor Sean Boehm

Here’s a good way to start your day. Spend some time in prayer and let your request be, “Lord help me to follow this command in everything I do today.” So why, in Jesus’ own words, is this the first and greatest command? Because God knew when He originally gave this to the Israelites in Deuteronomy 11:13 that if they would love Him first and keep that as their focus, everything else would fall into place.

That principle hasn’t changed through the ages and still stands true today. Love God with every part of who we are and all the other aspects of our lives (relationships, finances, employment, etc…) will fall where they belong. Not that we won’t have trials and testing along the way but our consistent love for God will see us through those times.

Praying for strength to obey that First Commandment,

Pastor Gerard Deleeuw

As a Children’s Pastor, I hear much from the kids I teach about things they are learning in school. They are being taught evolution from a young age before they can form an argument. Their only defense might be Genesis 1:1, In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Yet that simple argument, when paired with the verse above, is more than enough.

Evolutionary scientists continually try to refute the first verse of the Bible because if they can get young ones to question the Scriptures from the very beginning, those same kiddos will have doubts about the rest of the book. Yet God says here in Job, “Were you there when I formed the earth?” Because He was!

God’s question here is to Job himself, who had built himself up as a holy man and was starting to question God’s motives in all of the troubles sent his way. God’s answer throughout Job 38-through-41 doesn’t explain what He did, it just defines what He is – a powerful God who has all of the answers. That should be enough for us and it should be enough for our kids.

Worshiping the Creator,

Pastor Ron Kitchell

Paul, writing to this young church in Thessalonica, was so thankful to hear about their growing faith that Paul said he was bound or obligated to thank the Lord, for this was His work in them. He deserved all the glory after all. Likewise, you and I and the church are the result of God’s work through His Word and by His Spirit.

The Thessalonians faith had grown exceedingly, a compound Greek word meaning to increase beyond measure or be bursting at the seams. Their faith in the Lord and His Word allowed them to grow in this wicked, large city despite the tremendous pushback and persecution. And their love for all was growing as well. What a testimony to God’s work in surrendered lives. What do others thank the Lord for when they think of you? Today may it be your demonstrated faith and love!

Wanting to have faith and love on display,

Pastor Jack Abeelen

For the second time in this chapter, Paul references a mystery about the nature of the Trinity. It is simply astounding that God the Father is also the God of our Lord Jesus Christ (see Ephesians 1:3). Furthermore, Paul describes Him as “the Father of glory,” emphasizing for the sixth time in this short chapter the underlying purpose in everything God does—His glory.

First, Paul prays that God would give the Ephesians the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. He wrote to the Romans, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33). The wisdom and knowledge of God are infinite, and our joy in heaven will be to discover them throughout eternity. In this life, as in the next, there is always something new, wonderful, and precious to discover.

The wisdom and knowledge of God are also extremely valuable—more to be desired than gold! It grieves my heart that at this critical time in history, so many of us pursue worthless things, spending our time poring over social media and godless video entertainment, while so little time—or none at all—is spent searching out the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God. Our minds need to be rewired and transformed by God’s word, not numbed by the world.

Oh that our eyes would be opened to how desperately we need to be transformed by the wisdom and knowledge of God! So how will you spend your time today?

Tom Day