nd remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to
warn every one night and day with tears."

There were no divisions in this church as at Corinth; there were no
heresies as at Galatia, and no dissensions as at Philippi; and yet, for
all that, he prays most earnestly. The natural question for us to ask
is, just what is it for which he prays, and the question is easily
answered.

First: For advancement in knowledge; he asks God that the eyes of their
understanding might be enlightened. Under this general petition there
are three special requests.

(1) _That they might know the hope of their calling_. We have but to
study Paul's Epistles to realize that this calling involved:

A perfect vision, for one day it is Christ's promise and teaching that
they shall see him as he is. The hope of this would keep them faithful.

It involved, in the next place, a perfect likeness, for, seeing him as
he is, they would become like him, and the hope of this would keep them
clean.

It involved, in the third place, a perfect union, for when this hope of
their calling is fulfilled there is no possibility of anything coming
between the believer and Christ; so the fellowship must be perfect.

(2) Paul also requests that they may know the riches of the glory of
his inheritance in the saints. That is very wonderful. He does not
say the riches of the saints in him--that could be easily understood;
but what an inspiration it is to know that he has glory in us, and that
the mere possession of poor, frail creatures like ourselves is to him a
perfect delight! We sometimes say that we could not get along without
Christ, but how inspiring it is to know that he could not and he would
not get along without us!

(3) The Apostle also prays that the church at Ephesus might know what
is the exceeding greatness of Christ's power towards us. It is not
simply a great power that is described but an exceedingly great power.
There is absolutely no limit to what he can accomplish in and through
us if we but yield ourselves unreservedly to him.

Second: Another question, may naturally come to us. Why have we not
this power of his? The answer is simply because the eyes of our
understanding have not been enlightened. We have been too much
self-centered and too closely wedded to the world. We need a stronger
vision. There are stars in the heavens to-day that have never yet been
seen, not because they do not exist but because there ha