Ephesians 3:16
Have you ever had someone say “I’ll be praying for you?” You maybe you are the person who said it. You ever say it and then not pray for the person? Have you ever heard it and wondered if they were really going to be praying for you?
Now to be totally honest, I have told people that I would pray for them and didn’t follow through. Maybe I got distracted or maybe I just forgot, but somewhere along the line I dropped the ball. Here is a helpful hint . . . if you want me to do something, remember something or pray for something don’t just tell me at the door on Sunday Morning, because I have at least one more service to get ready for and everything else just falls through the cracks. If you tell me at the door, follow up with an email or phone call.
But what I do is now when I’m tempted to say “I’ll be praying for you” I try very hard to say “Can I pray for you right now?” and then I take the time to pray for the person right there.
First it means that I do pray for them but it also acts as a reinforcement to remind me to pray for them later. And if in response to a Facebook post, email or tweet I commit to pray for someone, I do it then.
There are times I will type out a prayer and email or text it to the person. I want them to know that they are being prayed for and I’m not just saying it as a social courtesy.
Paul was one of those folks who would say, “I’m praying for you.” At least 18 different times in the letters he wrote he tells the early church that he was praying for them. And not just a little bit, we read in Romans 1:9 God knows how often I pray for you. Day and night I bring you and your needs in prayer to God, whom I serve with all my heart by spreading the Good News about his Son. And he writes in Ephesians 1:16 I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly,
And he prays that God will give them strength and wisdom. That they will be able to resist temptation and to do what is right, that their love will overflow and that they will be encouraged. And over and over again in his prayers he thanks God for the early Christians.
And when he’s not telling the early church that he’s praying for them, he’s asking that they pray for him.
And that bring us to this week’s 3:16. If you haven’t been with us for a while, this summer our series is entitled 3:16 and we are looking at various Chapter 3 Verse 16s throughout the bible.
We started with the most obvious John 3:16 but that was only the beginning.
This week we have landed in Ephesians 3:16 where we read Ephesians 3:16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.
This is the beginning of a prayer that Adam Clarke refers to as “. . . one of the most grand and sublime in the whole oracles of God.”
We’ve mentioned before that this section of the bible is referred to broadly as the Epistles, and more specifically as the Pauline Epistles. Now understand the epistles were not the wives of the apostles, it means letters. Or in this case the letters of Paul. And so the book of Ephesians was a letter that Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus. We are reading someone else’s mail here, it’s like we pried open our neighbour’s mailbox and read the letters we found there.
Or to bring it up to date, like we hacked into somebody’s email account. But because this is one of the letters that was preserved for us as a part of the New Testament the assumption is that there is a message for each of us here.
So the prayer that Paul prayed for the church in Ephesus is also the prayer that he prayed for us 2000 years ago.
When I started looking at the words of this prayer I discovered that it isn’t just a “bless Denn” prayer, but it is multi layered and each layer leads to the next one and depends on the one before. And while it might be “Paul’s” prayer he is simply praying that God’s purpose will be fulfilled in our lives. He’s praying that Christians will be all they should be and all they could be.
So let’s dive in and see where it takes us. Paul begins this section of his letters with these words, Ephesians 3:14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father,
So let’s begin with The Posture of the Prayer It’s easy to jump to the assumption with a statement such as; “Well, it’s obvious that the only proper way to pray is to kneel down.”
But that is a little simplistic here. Paul isn’t saying that he always kneels to pray, although that might have been in the case, but here he says that he falls to his knees for a reason. So what was the reason? Well, the verse starts by saying “When I think of all of this”, so another question what was he thinking about?
It is the theme of the book, Paul has used this phrase in Chapter 3 vs. 1 and then goes off on a bit of a tangent, but know he’s back. The world at that time was a mess, the Roman Empire was dissolving into political and moral decay. William Barclay writes this about the world of the Ephesians “This world is a disintegrated chaos; there is division everywhere, between nation and nation, between man and man, within a man's inner life.”
And Paul sees the solution to the problems of the world as being in Christ. And there are those today who see the same problem and the same solution, but they seek to politicize the message and try to legislate the behaviour.
But Paul’s prayer wasn’t that the culture would become Christianized, his prayer was that the church would reflect the true nature of Christ and that through that, that the world would be transformed. And that passion drove him to his knees. Scholars tell us that the normal posture for prayer 2000 years ago for the Jews was to stand with their arms outstretched and their palms open to heaven. But the burden was so great that Paul finds himself not just kneeling but prostrate in prayer.
But there is nothing in the bible that would give us direction as to the posture of our prayers.
In Matthew 6 when Jesus taught the disciples to pray, he said nothing about the posture they were to assume but there are times in the bible, both in the Old Testament as well as the New Testament that people were driven to their knees in a sense of desperation and urgency. And there has been times in my life that praying standing or sitting just doesn’t seem enough and I find myself on my knees.
So let’s keep going, Ephesians 3:14-15 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.
So the next thing we discover is The Person of the Prayer Paul is directing his prayers to the Father and throughout the book of Ephesians Paul speaks of the Father and he almost develops a complete theology of Father God.
There is no doubt to whom Paul is praying.
In Ephesians 1:17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. We are told he is the Father of Jesus, but more than that we are told he is the Father of all in Ephesians 4:5-6 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all.
And we discover that he is the creator of things in Ephesians 3:14-15 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.
And We discover in Ephesian 3:12 that we have access to the Father Ephesians 3:12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence. And that through that access the Father wants to give us the wisdom needed to grow in our Christian walk. Ephesians 1:17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.
And through of all this we are told that Ephesians 5:20 And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
There might be a Father’s Day message here.
Moving along we read in this week’s 3:16 Ephesians 3:16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. It’s here we discover the The Progress of the Prayer As I mentioned earlier while this is one prayer, it has a number of layers or levels, and they don’t stand alone.
You can’t take number 3, without first having number 1 and 2 and an expectation that you will move to number 4.
Paul is praying for the Ephesians to become more mature in Christ, a theme that occurs in all of the letters that Paul writes. There is never an expectation that the Christian will be born again as a mature Christian. But neither is the expectation there that the Christian will never move beyond the point of their salvation.
So let’s begin where Paul begins Ephesians 3:16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.
So the first thing that Paul asks for this people of this church that the Father God would empower believers with an Inner Strength.
The first thing that Paul acknowledges is that we don’t have what it takes on our own to be the follower that Christ wants us to be.
Notice that he doesn’t begin by asking that God will empower us with the things on our list. You know, the things that we believe will give us power, Extraordinary human strength or human beauty, political clout, or financial resources.
Instead he asks that God will give us inner strength, a fortitude, and specifically a fortitude that comes through the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes I think our philosophy of Christian growth and character comes from a book, and not the book. Too often we take our cues from “The Little Engine That Could” and our mantra is “I think I can, I think I can.”
As an aside, it was Les Brown who said “You’ll never be like The Little Engine That Could if you sit around on your caboose.” And while that might be a great philosophy for life, and career and education, and I believe that we can do so much more then we think we can and are told we can, and I’m a big proponent of positive self-talk. I don’t think that we can be all that God intends for us to be as Christians simply because we think we can.
When Jesus told the Apostles that he would be leaving them they went into panic mode, but then he tells them that in his place he is sending the comforter. And from then on in the Bible we are told that the Spirit will empower us and strengthen us, and give us the words we need to speak, and teach us, and guide us. It’s from the Spirit that we receive our spiritual gifts and the spirit who produces, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in our lives.
It’s interesting, as pastor I’m often asked to pray for people, and the majority of those prayers are for outward strength, physical healing. And not to take away from that the scriptures tell us we ought to ask for prayer for healing, but very, very seldom am I asked to pray for someone’s inner strength or character.
And so this inner strength that comes from the Spirit is where Paul prays we will start. But that’s just the beginning. Ephesians 3:17-19 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. The next thing that Paul prays for in our lives is Christ’s Presence Sometimes we think this is a give-me. That when we become a Christian that Christ’s presence is with us all time. And it is.
This verse is talking about a control issue, a commitment issue. The heart was seen as the central part of a person’s life. You know the entire “I love you with all of my heart, to the moon and back thing.”
When we invite Christ to be a part of our lives do we mean every part of our lives? Not just the Sunday morning part. The what we do for a living part? And the how we do the what we do for a living part? The what we do for entertainment part? The what we watch on TV and our Computer part? The how we treat our spouse and our kids part? The what we do with our money part?
This is more about Christ controlling our lives then it is about Christ simply being a part of our lives. Have you ever heard of a remora? Sometimes it’s called a shark sucker fish, and they attach themselves to a shark and they go along for the ride.
Here is a picture of one, but they really are just on the outside of the shark’s existence, they co-exist. Sharks don’t eat them and they get rid of parasites on the shark’s skin.
Sometimes I think there are some folks who are quite happy to have Jesus as a Spiritual Remora. He offers us some benefits and isn’t real annoying so we allow him to come along for the ride.
This isn’t what is meant by Christ making his home in your heart. This is more than Jesus as Saviour, this is Jesus as Lord. This is Jesus having control. And that can’t happen without the Spirit providing you with the inner strength that you need.
Ephesians 3:17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. The next thing that Paul prays for in the life of the believers was Deep Roots
This was something that Jesus talked about in the parable of the seeds and the soils. You might remember that in that parable he spoke of how seeds grew in different soils, and then he compared them to how people respond to the word of God. Sounding familiar? A little bit maybe? Here’s a refresher. That part of the parable was told in Mark 4:5-6 Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seed sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn’t have deep roots, it died.
Then later in the story he gave the application for responding to God’s invitation in our lives. Mark 4:16-17 The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word.
And so Paul prays that the roots of the believer will grow deep and strong. We do that by talking to God, that’s called prayer and by hearing from God. That’s reading his word.
Ephesians 3:18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. The next step that Paul prays for is that people would Understand God’s Love and that goes along with the next step which is Ephesians 3:19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Not only is Paul praying that people will understand God’s love but also that they would Experience Christ’s Love
This goes back to the first 3:16 John 3:16 “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
And maybe you are thinking that this should be the first on the list. It is usually only after we’ve been serving God for a time that we begin to understand the depth of God’s love.
How much it cost God for you to have eternal life and what that means for you that you begin to grasp the enormity of his Grace. And then you need to accept it, to experience it, to believe that it is for us. And this is the reality that the love of God is better experienced than explained. And you can experience it even if you can’t understand it.
Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. God saved you by his grace, when? When you believed. It’s not enough to understand the love of God until you experience the love of Christ.
And it’s only when we truly begin to understand and experience God’s grace in our lives that we can a) forgive ourselves and b) forgive others. And I’m not sure which is tougher, but they both need to be done if we are going to mature in our Christian faith.
Forgiveness depends on repentance, which of course depends on remorse for our sinful behaviour. But once we have been forgiven we don’t have to continue to be remorseful, otherwise that diminishes the entire concept of forgiveness.
Here is the secret to understanding God’s love, God loves you so much that through the sacrifice of his Son he is able to forgive you. And that means that when he forgives you then you have been, ready for this? Forgiven. It’s gone.
Now if you continue to sin, that’s a different story. You can’t ask forgiveness for the things you haven’t yet done. As you contemplate the sins that you are considering committing you don’t need forgiveness you need obedience.
Let’s continue with Paul’s prayer, Ephesians 3:19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Which leads us to what Paul has been praying for all along, Fullness of Life This is what Jesus promised the Apostles, when he said he had come to not just give them life but to give them abundant life, a life overflowing, a fullness of life.
Without God, life isn’t complete.
Oh, I’m not saying that life can’t be good without God, or that life can’t be enjoyed without God but life isn’t complete without God.
Without a relationship with our creator, life is never complete, there is always a piece missing, because we were created to have a relationship with the creator. I’ve said before, it’s like we were all born with a God shaped hole in our lives that needs to be filled.
And people try to fill it with all kinds of things, sometimes things like religion and morality and good deeds.
And sometimes people try to fill it with harmful things, toxic relationships, casual sex, addictions and hate.
But the piece never fits, it’s like having a missing piece in a jigsaw puzzle and trying to force or trim the wrong piece to fit into the spot.
But Paul’s prayer was that we would discover a fullness of life, and that only comes from the life giver himself.
So where you at?
Let me pray for you,
Father, I pray that from your glorious, unlimited resources you will empower these people with inner strength through your Spirit.
Christ we ask that you will make your home in their hearts as they trust in You.
May their roots grow down into your love and keep them strong. And may they have the power to understand, as all your people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep your love is.
May their experience Christ’s love, though it is too great to understand fully.
Lord, may they be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from you.
Now all glory to you, Lord, who is able, through your mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.
Glory to the Father and to Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.
