How big are we talking here? That might be a question that you have discussed if you have ever built a house or a church or any other kind of building.  Before we start building, we want to know the size and scope of the project.  That is the question Paul seems to be addressing in Ephesians 3:14–21. In Ephesians 1 and 2, Paul reminds the Ephesian Christians that they are chosen in Christ and that they are saved by grace through faith, not through works. This is foundational for Paul’s main concern in Ephesians: that is, should the church, the body of Christ, be for both Jews and Gentiles, indeed for all people?

While there had at one time been a building with a dividing wall to separate Jew from Gentile, there is no longer such a wall for those in Christ.  The temple of Christ’s body was put to death on the cross and then raised so that there is only one new man, one new temple, that is, the one body of Christ. Paul brings back the imagery of a building in 2:19–22 to explain what the new building project looks like. The foundation is the apostles and prophets with Christ as the cornerstone. All who believe in Christ are being built into the dwelling of the Spirit of God.

Paul is praying that all who hear this Word of the Lord will be able to see the blueprints, so to speak, for the new church construction project, that is the building project of the church of God, the body of Christ. Of course whenever you have a major building project, you always have to ask how big it will be, who will be allowed to use it, who will pay for it, and so on. And who will be paying for, working on, and completing this massive project? That answer comes in 3:20–21: the Lord of course, who is able to do more abundantly than all we ask of think.

How big are we talking here? This question really must first be asked of the builder.  What is the breadth and length and height and depth of the love of God?  How big is He really?  Big enough to take all your sin to the cross. Big enough to swallow up death itself.

For this reason, Paul kneels in prayer before the Father.  He’s not afraid of looking too Roman Catholic or being too high church.  He bends the knee in a posture of worship and acknowledgment of, of the depths of God’s love revealed in Jesus, and of Jesus’ sovereignty.  Faith does not leave the body unmoved.  Our outward actions are to reflect our inward belief.  Both in our praise for God and in our love for others.

This is where Paul takes us in Ephesians chapter 3.  He commends God’s people for their faith in Christ and now offers a call to action.  Our love, that flows from God’s love for us in Christ, is expressed throughout all aspects of our lives.  Not just a love expressed in word, but also in deed. 

This part of St. Paul’s letter is a prayer to that effect. It’s a prayer that we might have the spiritual strength to do the good works that God has prepared for us to as ones who have been saved by grace through faith.  Our love for God, even though it is small, cannot be separated from faith. Our love and glory is not something that we can render to God from our own resources.  But these belong to God, reflected back to Him by those who stand in His presence. It is Christ who gives us access to the full glory of God and who enables our praise back to Him and our service to others.

We must do good works, not in order to be saved, but because we are in Christ, rooted and grounded in His love for us upon the cross.  In Christ, we are rooted and grounded in His love.  What do roots do? They anchor the tree into the ground.  They hold the tree steady when the winds come. From the roots come nourishment that feeds the tree. 

We are rooted and grounded in the love that God has for us in Christ.  That is what keeps us steady when we are tossed around in our lives by heartache, by temptation, by sin, death, and the devil.  And then our love grows up and out from the love that Christ has for us.  We are nourished by Jesus’ love for us, watered by baptism, delivered to us in His Word, fed by His body and blood.  This is why Word and Sacraments are so important. This is why attending Church is so important. Because this is how and when God roots us in His love and causes our faith to grow. 

That growth takes place out into the world.  So, how big are we talking here, Zion Lutheran Church?  Have we conceived of the building project of Christ’s church as too narrow, too short, too shallow, or too small?  Have we as a congregation been hesitant to include a certain demographic in our neighborhood as the Jewish Christians were excluding Gentiles in Paul’s day? Have we said, or thought, or acted as though we should not do something in our community because it might attract the wrong kind of people? 

These are hard questions, and we are called to repent of our sinful exclusions, our attempts to take over God’s building plan of His church, of trying to root our faith and our actions in anything else but Jesus.  Repent, and believe in Christ the crucified for the forgiveness of your sins. He is our cornerstone. He is our builder. He is about6 do to for more abundantly than all we ask of think, for to Him be the glory in the church, throughout all generations. Amen.