Heavenly geometry

‘That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.’ Ephesians 3:17–19

Suggested Further Reading: 1 Corinthians 13:4–13

If we shall reach the point indicated in the text, we shall then begin to imitate the love of God in its four aspects. I am sure, if we shall ever learn the breadth of Christ’s love, our love will grow broad: we shall no longer confine our love to our own church, but shall care for all the churches of God; we shall feel an affection not only for Christians of our own name, but to Christians of all names. Then our love will gain length also. We shall love Christ so that we cannot leave off loving him. We shall persevere in love, we shall abide in his love as he abides in it. We shall constantly have the flame of our love going up to heaven. And then our love will acquire depth. We shall be humbled on account of our own sinfulness, we shall sink lower and lower in our own esteem, and our love will become deeper and more grounded as it descends more fully into the core of our nature. And then love will climb the heights. We shall forget the world and the cares thereof; we shall become Christians who lie no longer among the pots, but who have received the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold. We shall attain to such a height in our love, that we shall scale the mountain tops of the promises, and with our foreheads bathed in the sunlight shall look down upon the world that still lies in darkness, and rejoice that we are made heirs of light; till our love mounting to heaven shall there be in its height as we appear before the great white throne, and cast our crowns with many a song before him who loved us, with a breadth, and length, and depth, and height of love that even in heaven shall surpass all measurement.

For meditation: God’s love to us is not only to amaze us, but to be our example of how to love him by loving one another (John 13:34; 15:12; Ephesians 5:2; 1 John 4:11,19–21).

Sermon no. 707
19 August (1866)