ESOCS Devotional 24 December 2023 – The Inner Man
MEMORY VERSE: “That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.” Ephesians 3:16
TEXT: EPHESIANS 3:4-21 (KJV)
Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;
6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:
7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:
12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.
13 Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
What is your inner man? Many take this to mean the soul, with its faculties of reason and emotion and will. But I don’t think this is what Paul means here, because in 2 Corinthians 4 he gives us a clue about what he does mean when he says the inner man. There he says that our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day (2 Cor. 4:16 NKJV). That is, for Christians there is something about us that is getting old, decaying and deteriorating; but there is also something about us that is getting more vital, increasing and becoming richer and deeper and stronger every day we live. And that is what he calls the inner man.
Your soul grows old as well as your body. It is clear that the soul is part of our life linked with the outer person, which is perishing day by day. But that is not the inner man. The inner man is the human spirit. It is here that God begins the work of recovery. Not in the realm of our feelings, but in what psychologists would call the realm of the subconscious, the deep-seated part of our life, the fundamental element of our nature. When you are really discouraged, really brokenhearted and have given up, your condition is often described as dispirited. That is an accurate term. Your fundamental nature is dissatisfied. It is not merely a question of temporary boredom. That would be in the realm of the soul. But this is something that touches the spirit, right at the deepest level of human life, and you find yourself filled with despair and indifference.
This is where the recovery must begin. And what the apostle tells us about here is the capability of the Creator himself our loving Father, to give us a fresh infusion of strength by His Spirit into our spirit, the inner man. In 1 Corinthians 12, speaking of believers, Paul says, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body, . . . and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (v. 13). That is what our human spirits are for—to drink of the Spirit of God so that we are refreshed and revitalized. Just as taking a drink refreshes your body, so drinking of the Spirit refreshes your spirit, at the deepest level of your life.
That is not the realm of feeling. We get so hung up in this process of spiritual recovery by always wanting an instantly good feeling. Relief will come, but it doesn’t start there. It starts down at the level of the spirit and may be nothing more than some consciousness of reassurance that things are going to work out. This beginning step is not your responsibility; it is God’s. All that is necessary is that you ask Him for it. Paul prayed that these Ephesians might have this granted to them. When we ask on that level, God promises to give.
- What do we really know about our inner man? Perhaps we have yet to really know by faith Christ’s life in us? What is our responsibility in that regard?
- Thank You, Father, that I can come to You asking that You would strengthen my inner man, and because of Your great love I trust that You will answer this cry of my heart.
FURTHER READING: Isaiah 59:15–21; 52:1-10; John 12:1–17
ESOCS Devotional 24 December 2023