Ephesians 3:19

and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

The only sound reason why any of us would seek to obey our Lord and Savior is because we love Him. That is a tall order to achieve for some of us because we have developed trust issues from failing to find love ourselves.

We all want to be loved and seeking it in this world has the inherent danger of trusting in someone who is not trustworthy. Coming to a place of trusting in Jesus Christ in the same way we trust another human is fraught with danger. This is because the faith to know Him is not an emotional journey it is a spiritual journey.

When we expect the wrong things we will be emotionally disappointed. This is why studying HIs Word and knowing what to expect of our Lord is so vital. Unrealistic expectations can only lead to disappointment and disappointment is the enemy of trust.

What exactly do we expect when we hear this passage that says we can hope to be filled with the fullness of God? What we expect must match what we know about God and what we know about God comes from two primary sources, what we are taught and what we have experienced.

Given that Israel had experienced God saving them out of slavery and that it was insufficient to trust God enough to obey His commandments, then what does God have to do to gain our trust?

That depends on what we as individuals expect. Since we are different in needs then we must look within ourselves to recognize what is required for us to trust Christ enough to give Him a chance to prove Himself to be faithful.

Our ability to be faithful to Him is directly related to discovering His faithfulness and that is dependent on realistic expectations.

What we are taught creates expectations and if we are taught wrong how can we ever hope to discover this love that surpasses understanding?

Romans 10:14

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

Why would anyone listen to a preacher?

Deuteronomy 6:5

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

This is the great commandment. It is a commandment. Who has the right to give us orders?

Psalm 68:18

You ascended on high, leading a host of captives in your train and receiving gifts among men, even among the rebellious, that the Lord God may dwell there.

We only obey an authority that lives with us.

Isaiah 57:15

For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.

Ephesians 3:16-19 English Standard Version

16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

To know Him is to love Him and we cannot know Him until He abides with us. He cannot abide with us until we surrender this life for the better promise of this life in Christ.

Philippians 1:21

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

• Romans 5:2
  Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
• Ephesians 3:12
  in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him.

We can only gain access by placing the faith God gave us in His Son Jesus Christ and then and only then can we hear by faith the commands of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

But we still have to choose to obey.