Immeasurably More | There is More to More
The Immeasurably More Promise
Ephesians 3:16-21 (NIV) 16I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Paul prays for 3 very specific things.
1) To be strengthened in the power of the Holy Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in our hearts. The more space Christ occupies in our hearts the less room there is for the stuff that weakens us.
2) To have a deeper experience and gain a deeper understanding of the love of Christ.
There is more to the love of God than salvation.
3) To be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God…
Literally, this means to be completely saturated with God's presence, character, and love, essentially living a life fully aligned with God's will and experiencing the richness of His nature to the fullest extent possible. In a very heartfelt and descriptive way, Paul is praying for us to have more of God.
God of the Ask
…who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.
Hyper-ek-perissou = Immeasurably More
Hyper = Over and above.
Ek = adds the idea of exhaustlessness.
Perissou = exceedingly, abundantly, beyond what is expected, imagined and hoped for.
We pray to an immeasurably more God who wants us to experience more of Him and His love than we do right now and who wants to accomplish more in us, with us and through us than we could ever dream. But, but there is still more to more.
Matthew 6:25-34 (NIV) 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little [notice the contrast to more] faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But [an alternative way to spend your first energy] seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Two equal and opposite errors in the perception of God.
1) God is a minimalist God. All we are promised are our immediate needs, we will have to wait for His “riches” until heaven.
2) God is an abundant God. His central desire is for His children to blessed with abundance.
Here is a “more better” perception of God.
God’s way of supplying immeasurably more is immeasurably beyond my ways and my comprehension.
What God supplies is precisely what I needed.
Here is a “more better” way to perceive yourself.
What you have or don’t have, in your hard and easy, on a mountain top or in a valley… have nothing, nil, zip, zero, zilch, nada, goose egg, to do with your worth and value to God.
God isn’t looking for worthy people on which to bestow His immeasurably more. God is looking for faithful people who have surrendered all they are and all they have for the expansion and explosion of the Kingdom of God in the people and places around them.
2 Main Problems of More.
Problem #1 More is a problem when more is a substitute for trust/faith.
God was trying to cultivate a people that would trust Him in the harshest of circumstances so they would follow Him in the best of circumstances.
2 Main Problems of More.
Problem #2 More is a problem when the more is all about me.
Luke 12:16-21 (NIV) 16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ 18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
Proverbs 3:9-10 (The Message) Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best. Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over.
The problem with more is when we don’t honor the person responsible for the overflowing barns with our first and we misuse or mistake the purpose of what fills the rest.
Stewardship is more than good management. Stewardship is about using God’s resources in a manner that honors Him, reflects His character and expands His Kingdom.
Faithful stewardship of God’s resources leads to more stewardship opportunities.
“Money makes a great tool but a lousy boss and God makes a great boss but a lousy tool.”
Here is the foundation you need for more.
God is more important than His more.
God’s more is for more than just me.
When I steward more, God trusts me with more to steward.
God wants to do immeasurably more in you, with you and through you. And at the same time God wants to do immeasurably more for you so He can do more in you, with you and through you.
“Everything is impossible until it isn’t. If you want God to do the super you have to do the natural.” Mark Batterson: A Million Little Miracles: Rediscover the God who is bigger than big, closer than close and gooder than good says,
Here are some of the natural movements in response to this message today.
1. Repent of how you are stewarding what God has given you. Give your stewardship a 180° spin.
2. Commit to expand God’s Kingdom wherever and whenever and with whatever you currently have.
3. Don’t be afraid to ask God for more, especially if you are in a place of lack. God deems you worthy.