Teaching Summary: Wholehearted: Formed in Love

Ephesians 3:16–19, 1 Corinthians 13:13, Mark 12:28–31, Romans 5:5, John 15:9, Galatians 5:22–23, John 13:34–35, 1 John 4:18, 1 John 4:19, 1 John 3:16, Psalm 86:11

We live in a world where many of us want more love, more joy, more peace, and more hope. Yet we often feel like something inside us is too small to hold the life we long for. A simple image helps us understand why.

When you buy a new plant, it comes in a small plastic pot that’s just big enough to keep it alive, but not large enough for it to grow. If a plant stays in that container for too long, it eventually becomes root-bound and begins to show signs of stress. No matter how much light, water, or fertilizer you give it, if the container is too small, the plant cannot flourish.

Many of us live with a kind of “inner container” that is too small. We want to live with greater freedom and love, but something inside us limits our capacity. We bump into emotional limits, relational limits, and spiritual limits—not because we don’t desire God, but because the inner life has not expanded enough to receive the fullness of God’s love.

The Apostle Paul understood this deeply. In Ephesians 3, he is writing from prison, confined on the outside, but free and expansive on the inside. Paul’s prayer for the church is not that they would become more disciplined or more impressive. Instead, he prays for something to happen within them. He asks that their inner being their container would expand so they could receive the fullness of Christ’s love.

He writes:

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power…to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.” — Ephesians 3:16–19

Paul is not simply teaching about God’s love; he is praying that we would be able to receive it. Many Christians struggle not with believing that God loves them, but with letting themselves be loved. Deep in our inner world—in the places shaped by wounds, fear, and old patterns of self-protection—we often hear the whisper: Don’t trust that. Don’t open that door. Stay guarded.

But God desires to form us in love so that our inner capacity grows. Scripture shows us several ways that God’s love works in us:

1. The Holy Spirit fills us with love.

Romans 5:5 says, “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.” Love is not something we produce; it is something God pours into us.

2. Love flows through connection with Jesus.

In John 15, Jesus invites us: “Abide in me.” As we stay connected to Christ, love flows from Him into us, like sap flowing from a vine into its branches.

3. Love expands through Christian community.

Hebrews 10:24–25 reminds us that encouragement, fellowship, and shared faith stir up love within us. We grow when others speak grace into our lives.

4. Love grows through discipline and hardship.

Hebrews 12 teaches that God’s loving discipline shapes our character. Growth is not always comfortable, but it is always rooted in love.

5. Love is defined by self-sacrifice.

1 John 3:16 says, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.” Love ultimately looks like Jesus giving Himself away for our sake.

As God’s love works in us, we begin to notice certain signs of growth. When someone truly listens and your shoulders drop, God’s love is softening your inner being. When silence no longer feels threatening, God’s love is strengthening you. When you stop rejecting compliments or encouragement, God’s love is widening your capacity. When God speaks kindness to you and you don’t argue back, His love is taking root.

Many things can get in the way of receiving love. Some of us build walls to protect ourselves. Some try to be impressive, thinking love must be earned. Others hide their tender places, fearing exposure. And sometimes we don’t realize how limited our capacity has become until we notice certain patterns in our lives like constant criticism, comparison, or the need to control. These are signs that our container is too small for the love God wants to pour into us.

But God does not call us to live constrained, fearful lives. He calls us into abundant, spacious, flourishing lives filled with love. As Scripture says: “Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). When Jesus was asked the greatest commandment, He answered simply: Love God and love your neighbor (Mark 12:28–31). Love is the heart of the Christian life.

One way we can grow in love is through blessing others. To bless someone means to speak well of them, to speak God’s heart over them. When we bless and encourage others, we help them internalize their worth and dignity, and we open our own hearts to receive God’s love more deeply.

As we bless, we practice receiving and giving love. And as we do, God expands our inner being so we can be filled with His fullness and become wholehearted people of love.