Exceedingly Abundantly

The words on the merch are these: exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. The small label under them is the Message Merch™ logo.

Those words are from the Bible. They are not a slogan we made up.

Who wrote it

A man named Paul wrote them. He put them in a letter to believers in Ephesus, a city in what is now Turkey. Most of them were Gentiles, not Jews. Paul was in prison when he wrote it. He calls himself “the prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles.” You can find the line in Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 20.

The prayer around it

The line comes at the end of a prayer. Paul says he bows his knees to the Father. Then he asks for three things.

Then he stops asking and praises God:

“Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to him be the glory in the assembly and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:20–21 (WEB)

What it means

Paul had just asked for big things: strength from God’s Spirit, Christ living in them, and a love too big to fully know. Then he said God can do more than that. It is more than we know how to ask for, and more than we can think of.

Notice where the power is. It is “the power that works in us.” It is God’s power, working in his people. Earlier in the same letter, Paul said it is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead.

Notice where it goes, too. “To him be the glory.” The line does not end with us. It ends with God.

What it does not mean

What to say if someone asks

Start with the prayer.

“It’s from the Bible. Paul prayed that people would know how much Christ loves them. Then he said God can do more than we could ever ask or think.”

If they ask more:

“He wasn’t talking about getting stuff. He wrote it from prison. He meant God’s power working in us, and the glory going to God.”

If they want the place: Ephesians 3:20.

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