A Prayer For Spirit-Empowerment (Ephesians 3:14-21) Series

Over the past few weeks, we've read about how God is now revealing to his church something that was a closely guarded secret for centuries. God had this hidden, master plan to bring all things together, in heaven and on earth. And what that looks like on earth, is that God is making one single, holy family who will live in peace with God and with each other. What God wants on earth, basically, is the church. The church is the earthly half of God's secret plan.

And God made the church, through Jesus.

It's through Jesus, that God rescued us from being slaves to satan and other demonic forces. God rescued us from slavery to sin. God raised us up into a new kind of life, where we can live as a clean and forgiven people, who are empowered by the Spirit to obey God. In the past, Paul could hold up a mirror to us, and we'd readily admit that we were an ugly people, who did ugly things. But now, God's expectation is that the mirror shows something quite different.

Now, there are times when God's people look in the mirror at their own lives, and they find themselves embarrassed, and ashamed, at how they live. There are times when they question whether they look any different at all. Where's the power, to live a clean and holy life? If Jesus makes such a difference, and if the Holy Spirit makes such a difference, then where is that difference? And why is it, on a very practical note, that we find it so hard sometimes to love each other, and get along with each other? Why does the church sometimes look like a hot mess? And if we find that this is us, what's the solution? How do we change the reflection?

If we read Ephesians 3:14-21 with the first part of chapter 4, we will see that there's a solution to all of this. This week, we'll see there are things that God is willing to do, to help us. And next week, in chapter 4, we will see that we have a responsibility as well.

So, when Paul looks at the Ephesian church, he sees that there is a gap between God's vision for his family, and what that church actually is. The mirror doesn't show what God wants to see. And so the first thing Paul does, is pray for them. God will help.

Now, if you compare my translation to most English Bibles, it's going to sound a bit different. You'll notice in the translation that I have an A, B, and C. Three times in this prayer, Paul uses the same word "hina," which can mean "that," or "in order that."

Do you see them?

So Paul has these three "that" or "in order that" things that he prays for the church. Think of these three things as three dominos.

And the question translators find themselves asking, is this: Is Paul is listing three separate prayer requests for the church, 1, 2, 3? Or are these dominoes in a chain, where one prayer request leads to two other things happening?

I could be wrong, but I think Paul is listing three distinct, but interconnected, prayer requests. And if you want to chew on this later, feel free. I might be wrong. But that's my take on it. So let's start with just the first prayer request, verses 14-17:

(14) For this reason I bend my knees toward the Father-- [The One] by whom every family in the heavens and on earth is named--

(16) (A) in order that He may give to you in accordance with the riches of his glory,

with power to be strengthened through his Spirit in the inner person,

(17) so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith(fulness),

in love having been firmly rooted and established;

Our God is a wealthy God. He's rich in glory. In every picture and vision in the Bible that we see of God enthroned in the heavens, we are overwhelmed with his power, and majesty, and holiness. In Psalm 50, God talks about how He's wealthy by human standards, as well. Every wild animal of the forest belongs to God, the cattle on a thousand hills. God knows all the birds; everything that moves in the field is his. In fact, the entire world belongs to God. So God is just flat out rich, and He's rich in glory.

So the first thing Paul asks, in verse 16, is that God would give in a particular way-- in accordance with the riches of his glory.

Imagine that you're a close relative to Jeff Bezos, or Elon Musk, and that it's your birthday. You'd hope, in that situation, that your close relative is going to give in accordance with his riches. If he does, the gift you open will be expensive, and extravagant. That relative loves you, and wants to bless you, and he's in a position to show that love and blessing in a big way.