Sermons of Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

When Scripture speaks of believers being indwelt by Christ Jesus, it is referring to a real experience, not simply an emotional reaction. In this sermon on Ephesians 3:17 titled “The Heart Prepared,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones brings this foundational truth to bear because it is something all believers should experience as they grow in maturity, faith, and understanding of Christ. There is no special indwelling only for ministers and preachers, but this is something all Christians can and should experience. Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that this is not an experience of faith, as opposed to true and tangible experience. He looks to many ordinary saints throughout the many centuries of the church as testament to this truth. We see men and women who had a real, life-altering experiences of this indwelling. However, like all aspects of the Christian life, it is not something humans do apart from the grace and power of God. For it starts with salvation and conversion, and is a part of the ongoing work of sanctification in the lives of believers. This great truth should encourage all Christians to seek growth in Christ and to come to know Him more and more as they live in faith and love.

All Christians should seek to know and love God more. In this sermon on Ephesians 3:17 titled “The Indwelling Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that part of this pursuit is what he refers to as the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This indwelling should be thought of differently from the sealing of the Holy Spirit that all believers experience when they are saved and regenerated. This experience of the indwelling of Christ is one that comes when Christians seek to cultivate deep and abiding love for Christ and his word. It is not a one-time experience or action, but it should continue throughout the life of all believers. This relationship can be thought of as a mystical union whereby Christ and the believer are united in a special and mysterious way. This is an objective experience that is not simply emotional, but it is born out of a real knowledge of who Christ is and what He has done in His death. Dr. Lloyd-Jones cautions that this great truth should not promote feelings of spiritual superiority in believers, but it should strengthen all believers in their pursuit of Christ in this life. This is not a special experience reserved for the spiritual elite, but it is something that all Christians can experience by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The indwelling of Christ in the hearts of believers that Paul speaks of in Ephesians 3:17 is not referring to Christians receiving Christ in their hearts at salvation. In this sermon on Ephesians 3:17 titled “Christ in the Heart,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says it is Christ manifested in the hearts of those who already believe. This kind of manifestation of Christ is fundamentally different from what happens in regeneration when the believer becomes united to Christ in faith and the Holy Spirit. This is a continual indwelling whereby Christ is always present throughout the life of the believer by comforting and guiding them. This is one of the most important truths of the Christian life, for in it is seen all the working and striving as a result of Christ who Himself is working in and through the believer to accomplish all these things. When the Christian understands who Christ is and what he has done for them, it is vain and fruitless to fight sin and temptation with one’s own strength and power. This comforting truth presented by Dr. Lloyd-Jones both humbles and encourages by showing just how weak people are on their own. It shows how great Christ is who indwells and empowers the Christian to live as He has called them.

In this sermon on Ephesians 3:16 titled “The Importance of Spiritual Growth,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones seeks to answer the question of why it is so important that the Christian grow spiritually. He says that the inner self must be continually strengthened because of the continual battle against sin that all Christians experience as they live in a fallen world. There are many forces that Christians must always fight against and some of these come from within, such as sinful desires and the flesh. Others come from without, such as the world and the temptations of the devil. It is evident when Christians fail to grow spiritually and into maturity. They are beset by sins that they are unable to overcome, and they show a lack of interest in God’s word. They are often unable to understand God’s word because, as Paul says, they are babes and are not able to eat meat. This is why, Dr. Lloyd-Jones says, it is so vital that Christians continually seek and pursue Christ and His word. Christians must fight sin not only by fleeing what is evil, but by growing in Christ as mature believers who desire the holy and good things of Christ more than they desire the evil and sinful things of this world.

In this sermon on Ephesians 3:16 titled “The Inner Man”, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones expounds on the profound importance of the transformed inner man. He begins by pointing out Paul’s manner of prayer for the Ephesians. Paul begins by praying for the spiritual needs of the Ephesians and then goes on to pray for specific things that the Ephesians need. He does not pray that his own circumstances would be changed, nor that the circumstances of the Ephesians would be changed. Instead he focuses on spiritual need and specific needs. Dr. Lloyd-Jones then expresses the importance of the inner man and the heart, the center of the believer. For if the center (the thinking) and the heart of a person is set right, then everything else will fall into place. Dr. Lloyd-Jones points out that it is not that when one becomes a Christian that suddenly everything in the world is set right. The world is fallen and sinful, consequently full of disease and tribulation of many kinds, so that cannot be. Rather, when one becomes a Christian, they are being renewed daily in the inner man though the outer man is wasting away (2 Corinthians 4:16). The joy of the Lord is now their strength no matter the circumstance or the state of his outer self.