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Sermon #4088

Able to Comprehend

A Sermon on Ephesians 3:18-19

Originally preached Feb. 17, 1957

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Scripture

Ephesians 3:18-19 ESV KJV
may have strength 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, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (ESV)

Sermon Description

How can one know the love of God? In this sermon on Ephesians 3:18–19 titled “Able to Comprehend,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches how the apostle Paul speaks of the knowledge of God’s love not simply as intellectual comprehension, nor as a result of abstract thought. But there is a real experience of God’s love and presence in the life of believers that creates this intimate and personal love of God and Christ Jesus. This is true of all biblical truth. For the word of God is a living and active source of teaching, rebuke, and reproof in the life of all God’s children. This is why the love of God that comes from knowing Him is not reserved for the scholars and thinkers of the church. True knowledge and worship of God is never a matter of the intellect alone, but it requires every human faculty. For ultimately this love is only received by grace through the working of God’s Holy Spirit in the lives of fallen men and women. For this reason, no one has any grounds for boasting in themselves. To do so would be to deny that it is entirely of God’s grace. This is both a humbling and an encouraging teaching because it shows how great God’s love is. It tells of what He has done in renewing hearts so that His people can receive this love.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. Knowing the love of Christ is the highest attainment in the Christian life.
  2. This knowledge is possible for all Christians.
  3. The way to this knowledge is by being rooted and grounded in love. Love recognizes love.
  4. Though we have love, we still need to comprehend the love of Christ more. The more we have, the more we get.
  5. We must start climbing the mountain of God's love and not get discouraged. Each step brings new revelations.
  6. God's love is inexhaustible and endless. We can spend eternity knowing more of it.
  7. We must ask God to strengthen us to know Christ's love.
  8. We must trust in Christ's love, obey his commands, and go deeper in our walk with him.

The Book of Ephesians

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.