When You Need Strength
- Chad Lee
- Jun 7, 2025
- 5 min read
". . . that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being . . ."
-Ephesians 3:16 ESV
Sometimes when you crack open the Bible, you really have to work to extract the meaning. But there are other times when the riches of Scripture immediately leap off of the page at you like a powerful leopard jumping from a tree. Every word seems to be infinitely deep with meaning. Each phrase is significant and inexhaustible. It's like an endless well of refreshing water.
That happened to me this week. I'm currently moving through Ephesians word by word in my devotional reading. I've been trying to take a verse or two each day and look at the Greek words and constructions that Paul used. When I hit Ephesians 3, I sensed God speaking to me about his love.
First, before we dive into the text, let me give you a backstory. I was blown away this week after listening to Francis Chan, in his interview with Lecrae, when he talked about how many people (including pastors!) struggle with truly believing that God loves them. Then, he made an incredible comment that went something like this: many of us haven't experienced genuine love so we settle for approval.[1] The more I thought about that, I realized how often I've used various things in my life to seek approval. Maybe I was seeking these things to earn approval as a substitute for love. But as I see it, the problem is exacerbated when we project this onto God. We think: "If I can just do _____, then God will approve of me." We don't really believe that God loves us, so we think that we need to somehow at least earn his approval.
We don't really believe that God loves us, so we think that we need to somehow at least earn his approval.
Okay, now let's dig into the text. In the doctrine of justification, we know that God has declared us righteous in Christ. He already approves of us because of Jesus. (Of course, this doesn't mean we can live however we want! We must still pursue sanctification, living a holy life.) But, as I saw in Ephesians 3 this week, God wants you to know far more than the fact that he approves of you in Christ. He wants you to know his love for you, and he has taken significant steps to do so.
I have my phrasing outline of Ephesians 3:14-19 at the bottom of this article for reference in case it is helpful. (It may not display correctly on smaller screens, but if you view it on a desktop it should display correctly.) But here are a few thoughts that I'm reflecting on.
We need to pray to the Father for strength.
Why do we need strength? Well, maybe like the Ephesians, there is a constant temptation to lose heart because of the troubles of life (Eph. 3:13). We get discouraged and beat up. Life isn't always easy. Paul says that when he bows his knees and prays to the Father, he's praying to the one who created everyone and everything in heaven and on earth. Moreover, he says that the Father is rich, and according to the riches of his glory, he can give strength to us. Paul uses a passive Greek verb for the word translated "to be strengthened". In other words, it is something that needs to happen to us. We can't do it. So, who does it?
We need strength from the Spirit.
God the Father strengthens us through the Holy Spirit. Notice in verse 16, Paul says that this strength comes to us by the Holy Spirit, and it is delivered to us in our inner being. So, we need to pray to the Father for strength and the Spirit will strengthen us in our inner being. (Paul uses two Greek words here. The first means "within" or "inner", and the other means "man" or "person".)
We need strength to understand the love of Christ.
In verse 18, Paul shows that the strength is given for us to understand the love of Christ. Christ is actually dwelling in our hearts by the Spirit (v. 17). His love is so enormous (v. 18) that it is actually larger and more intense than we can even know (v. 19).
Consider this analogy: his love is so strong that we can't comprehend it just like the sun is so bright we can't look at it. Yes, the sun is there. We know that it is bright. We don't question these things. But we can't look directly at it. Similarly, Christ's love is so powerful and intense that we know it's there but we can't comprehend it. Just as the sun is more than our eyes can handle, his love is more than our minds can handle.
His love is there, but sadly, we often live as if we question it. Sometimes you may think: Jesus loves other people, but not me. But, as Paul says, Christ loves you so much and so intensely that you can't even understand it. It is beyond comprehension. Humans can solve complex math formulas, send people to space, build skyscrapers, domesticate animals, and all kinds of other complex things. But we can't comprehend the love of Christ. So, all of the members of the Trinity are working for you to know the unknowable love of Christ, and that gives us strength that can get us through anything.
And yet, we settle for trying to earn his approval.
Father, strengthen us today so that we may know some measure of your love. Blow us away with a glimpse of even a fraction of your love for us. Fill us and strengthen us with your Spirit. Help us to comprehend another facet of the love of Christ each day for all of eternity.
[Eph 3:14-19 ESV]
14 For this reason I bow my knees
before the Father,
15 from whom every family
in heaven
and on earth is named,
16 that according to the riches
of his glory
he may grant you to be strengthened
with power
through his Spirit
in your inner being,
17 so that Christ may dwell
in your hearts
through faith--
that you,
being rooted
and grounded
in love,
18 may have strength
to comprehend
with all the saints
what is the breadth
and length
and height
and depth,
19 and to know the love of Christ
that surpasses knowledge,
that you may be filled
with all the fullness of God.
End Notes:
[1] "Why Francis Chan Abandoned His Megachurch for Living Rooms," Deep End with Lecrae, May 23, 2025, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5GD9ftscFQ.