v 5. The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith.
Once again we find the purpose of Paul’s preaching and teaching. He is no mere academic (although he was certainly intelligent and well-trained as a Jewish leader – his testimony in Acts 22:3 makes that clear: ‘ Paul said, “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, and I was brought up and educated here in Jerusalem under Gamaliel. As his student, I was carefully trained in our Jewish laws and customs. ‘) But when it came to speaking with people his learning did not intrude on his practical purposes of building faith and love. He longed to see the growth of love in disciples, with strong characteristics of ‘a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. ‘Some knowledge can be gained overnight by assiduous reading and study, but Paul was aiming for growth of faith and character resulting in love, a process that takes time.
So here is a second practical issue on which to reflect: has your growth group discussion promoted love amongst you? How do you know – what is the visible evidence? Has it resulted in you praying for the group members, using some of the requests apparent in Paul’s prayer in this passage from Ephesians 1. Take these words and add them to your regular prayers for the members of the group: give them spiritual wisdom and insight so that they might grow in their knowledge of God .. that their hearts will be flooded with light so that they can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called— also pray that they will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him.
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