“Never stop praying” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 NLT)
”So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” (Hebrews 4:16 NLT)
“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” (Mark 11:24 NKJV)
Let’s go even deeper with the Holy Spirit into Philippians 3:3-11…
……“My prayers for you are full of praise to God as I give him thanks for you with great joy! I’m so grateful for our union and our enduring partnership that began the first time I presented to you the gospel. I pray with great faith for you, because I’m fully convinced that the One who began this gracious work in you will faithfully continue the process of maturing you until the unveiling of our Lord Jesus Christ! It’s no wonder I pray with such confidence, since you have a permanent place in my heart! You have remained partners with me in the wonderful grace of God even though I’m here in chains for standing up for the truth of the gospel. Only God knows how much I dearly love you with the tender affection of Jesus, the Anointed One. I continue to pray for your love to grow and increase beyond measure, bringing you into the rich revelation of spiritual insight in all things. This will enable you to choose the most excellent way of all — becoming pure and without offense until the unveiling of Christ. And you will be filled completely with the fruits of righteousness that are found in Jesus, the Anointed One—bringing great praise and glory to God!” (Philippians 1:3-11 TPT)
We are continuing to make our way through the first point in our study outline…
…Step 1: Probe the prayer under the light of the Holy Spirit.
Today we are probing verse 9…
…“I continue to pray for your love to grow and increase beyond measure, bringing you into the rich revelation of spiritual insight in all things.”
Jesus made it clear that the stand out characteristic of being his disciple was love…
…“Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (John 13:25 NLT)
Love that is visible and vocal between those who claim to be disciples of Jesus is the evidence of that discipleship. On the other hand, lack of the evidence of love proves just the opposite.
“If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see?” (1 John 4:20 NLT)
Paul’s prayer speaks to the evidence of love. In verse 8 he spoke of his love for these believers flowing from the love of Christ. Now in verse 9 he is praying for the believer’s love. He prays that their love will “grow and increase beyond measure.” Look at this verse in the Amplified Bible…
…“And this I pray, that your love may abound more and more [displaying itself in greater depth] in real knowledge and in practical insight”
The key phrase that I noticed are the two words “displaying itself.” The love that Jesus was talking about, and Paul is praying for, is active and alive. It is demonstrated and displayed as it is shared between people in an open visible manner. It can be seen. Paul prays that this highly visible love will “increase beyond measure.”
I think that there is a “hidden nugget” of truth here. In the Kingdom of Heaven things run counter to things in this world (the Kingdom of Darkness). Things are inside – out and upside – down. As a disciple of Jesus the quickest way to increase is to decrease. This is best exemplified by the words of John the Baptist in reference to his life and ministry in comparison to that of Jesus…
…“He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30 ESV)
If I desire to be lifted to a place of influence and impact in and for the Kingdom then I must humble myself…
…“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God [set aside self-righteous pride], so that He may exalt you [to a place of honor in His service] at the appropriate time,” (1 Peter 5:6 AMP)
Finally, in the Kingdom the quickest way to receive and expand what you have is to give it away…
…“Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.” (Luke 6:38 NLT)
Do you see the pattern? In the verse that we are probing, this pattern applies to Paul’s prayer for increased love. He knew that as he demonstrated his love for the Philippian believers his capacity to love them would increase. He also knew that the way in which God would fulfill his prayer for their love to increase was for them to share it among themselves. The more that they gave love the more love they would receive. Hence, the “hidden nugget” to unlock exponential increase in love is to give it away.
The most interesting thing to me about this verse is the way that Paul links it to “rich revelation of spiritual insight in all things.” Other versions describe these linked characteristics as…
…”knowledge and depth of insight” (NIV)
…“knowledge and understanding” (NLT)
…“knowledge and all discernment” (ESV)
…“knowledge and in all judgment;” (KJV)
…“clear knowledge and keen perception” (WNT)
…“knowledge and all intelligence” (SLT)
When I put all of this together I get a sense of the fact that the love that both Paul and Jesus are speaking of is a love that is guided by and results in the increase of knowledge, perception, discernment, understanding, and insight. Wow! What a difference from the love that is pumped into our heads and hearts from social media, music, movies, TV, books, and demonstrated all around us.
The world’s love is guided by and results in an increase in unhealthy relationships based on physical involvement, selfish desires, seeking that which makes me feel good for the moment, lust, and the list could go on and on.
Let the Holy Spirit take from here…
…Eric’s Life Lesson # 479: Praying With Paul – Philippians 1:3-11: Part 5