A PRAYER FOR THE CHRISTIANS TO EXPERIENCE THE LOVE OF GOD

A PRAYER FOR THE CHRISTIANS TO EXPERIENCE THE LOVE OF GOD

By Fr. Felix (African Times Guest Writer)

This heartfelt and enthusiastic prayer

stressed by fact that the author is kneeling at

the end of the exposition of the ‘mystery’ harks

back to the prayer at the beginning, read in the

final two days . The two prayers

bracket the explanation. The first statement

here, about God’s fatherhood, can be

understood on two levels: the verbal level, that

all fatherhood is understood from God’s

fatherhood; this is principally a lesson about

the concept of fatherhood modelled on the care

and affection, delicacy and firmness of God.

And the factual level, that God’s fatherhood is

the originator of all fatherhood, from which all

human paternity is factually derived. In either

case it involves a warm appreciation of the

fatherhood of God.

The passage also gives us a fine Trinitarian

statement. It is through the glory of God that

the Christian is strengthened in the Spirit and

so enabled duly to live out the works of the

Spirit, rather than remain a gong booming or a

cymbal clashing. And this is possible only

through the love of Christ and faith in Christ.

Thus the three Persons of the Trinity are

integrally interwoven in translating the mystery

into action.

The whole teaching section on the mystery

ends with a doxology to God. It serves both to

conclude the prayer and to prepare for the

exhortation which forms the second half of the

letter.