God Wants Us to Pray Like the Apostle Paul - Part 2
Ephesians 3:14-21
Sermon by Rick Crandall
Series: The Book of Ephesians
(Prepared April 19, 2024)
REVIEW:
*Today we will continue our study of Paul's wonderful prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21, and when it comes to prayer, this is some of the highest ground we can ever reach. God wants us to reach this high ground in our own prayer lives, and by God's grace, we can. God wants us to pray like the Apostle Paul.
*Last time we saw that God wants us to reach out to Him with humble reverence for the all-powerful, but merciful Heavenly Father that He is. The Bible calls this reverence "the fear of the Lord, and Paul's heart was full of this reverence when he prayed. We can see it in vs. 14-15 where Paul said, "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named."
*Paul showed proper, humble reverence to God by bowing down to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. But remember that what really matters is not the position of our body. It's the attitude of our hearts. People in the Bible sometimes prayed standing, sitting, kneeling, and face down on the ground. So the important thing is to pray with the humble, godly reverence that the Bible calls "the fear for the Lord."
*John Gill explained that "the fear of the Lord" is not a fear of punishment, of hell, wrath, and damnation. Instead this attitude in prayer knows God as a kind Heavenly Father. It knows the love, grace, and forgiveness of Jesus Christ, given through the cross, and received by everyone who will receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Godly fear is marked by humility, affection, devotion, love, and worship toward the Lord. (1)
*This humble, healthy fear of the Lord is one of the most important things that people need. The Bible stresses this truth many times. For example, Psalm 19:9 says, "The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether." Psalm 111:10 and Proverbs 9:10 both say, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."
*Proverbs 16:6 is also a great example because it connects this humble, reverent fear of the Lord with God's merciful forgiveness and redemption. There the Word of the Lord says, "In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity; and by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil."
*Psalm 130:1-4 also connects God's forgiveness with godly fear. There the Bible says:
1. Out of the depths I have cried to You, O LORD;
2. Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive To the voice of my supplications.
3. If You, LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?
4. But there is forgiveness with You, That You may be feared.
*Humble reverent fear of the Lord is a good thing. It puts us on the right path in life. It doesn't hurt us. It helps us. Godly fear doesn't blot out the mercy of God. It helps us see how much we need His mercy. No wonder Paul reached out to our Heavenly Father with humble reverence, and Christians so should we!
*But we should also pray for more spiritual strength. This was Paul's request for the Ephesians in vs. 16 when he asked that the Heavenly Father "would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man."
*One of the main reasons why Paul prayed for their spiritual strength is because we all need more! Paul did during the long years of his 3 missionary journeys, and even more when he wrote this letter as a prisoner in Roman chains. Surely God answered those prayers and gave the Ephesians the same kind of strength Paul had in Philippians 4:13 where he joyfully declared, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!"
*In the summer of 1999, I got to take part in a "Day of Champions" in Tallulah. Bill Glass Ministries sponsored that soul-winning event at the Tallulah Correctional Center for Youth, and dozens of the inmates were saved.
*That day, we saw some awesome feats of strength performed by Keith Davis from the Power Team. Keith took a wooden baseball bat and pushed it against his thigh until it snapped like a toothpick. (I told Bobby Wilson I probably could have broken that bat . . . with my car!) Then Keith took a one-inch steel bar about 6 feet long, wrapped a rag around the center, put it in his mouth, and bent it into the shape of a "U." Keith then gave his Christian testimony, and he said, "My true sign of my strength is not my bench press. My true sign of strength is this." And he held up that broken bat in the shape of a cross.
*Christians: We may not be able to break a baseball bat across our leg. But we have the same source of spiritual strength that Keith Davis had. It comes through the cross of Jesus Christ! And we can echo the words of Psalm 46:1-2, "God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, Though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea."
*Humble reverence for God, being in the family of God, and spiritual strength from God are great things we see in Paul's prayer. But there is much more to discover, so please listen to this prayer again in Ephesians 3:14-21.
MESSAGE:
1. FIRST TODAY, WE SHOULD PRAY FOR GOD TO FEEL AT HOME IN OUR HEARTS.
*This was Paul's request in the first part of vs. 17 where he prayed "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith."
*Before we get saved, the Holy Spirit of God knocks on the door of our hearts. He works to convict us of our sinfulness. He works to convict us of the righteous judgment we deserve from God. He works to convince us of the salvation we can find in the cross of Jesus Christ. Then, if we open our hearts receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, God's Spirit comes in, and He makes our hearts His permanent address.
*Well, Paul was speaking to Christians here, so why did he pray "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith"? William McDonald helped us understand when he said, "Actually, the Lord Jesus takes up His personal residence in a believer at the time of salvation. But that is not the subject of this prayer.
*Here it is not a question of the Lord being in a believer, but rather of His feeling at home in us with full access to every room and closet. That He might not be grieved by sinful words, thoughts, motives, and deeds. That He might enjoy unbroken fellowship with the believer. And the more we are strengthened by the Holy Spirit, the more we will be like Jesus Himself, so He can feel completely at home in our hearts.'"
*As Christians, we want Jesus to feel at home in our hearts. And this is the goal, but a whole lot of transforming has to take place for Christ to feel at home in our hearts. How can we get there? 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 gives us the key. There Paul wrote that "The Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2)
*In other words, the more we keep our eyes on our glorious, perfect, merciful Savior, the more we will be transformed to be like Jesus. J. Vernon McGee said, "Listen to me. Do you want to be Christlike? Then spend time looking at Jesus. I recall that Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer at the Dallas Theological Seminary used to stop us when we would sing the song, 'Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord.' He would say, 'Change that first line. Let us sing "Take time to behold Him."'
*Then McGee asked, "Do you want to be holy? Then behold Him. 'Turn your eyes upon Jesus; Look full in His wonderful face; And the things of earth will grow strangely dim In the light of His glory and grace.'" And McGee said, "I need this. I hope you, too, sense a need of seeing Jesus Christ on the pages of the Word of God so that you might grow to be more like Him." Amen! (3)
*Down in vs. 19 Paul also prayed for us to be "filled with all the fullness of God." And the great news is that we really can be "filled with all the fullness of God." Praise the Lord! Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explained the "The way to approach this is to remind ourselves that the Holy Spirit is a Person. The Holy Spirit is not just an influence. He is not a substance, and not a power like electricity. The Holy Spirit is a Person. He is the third Person in the blessed Holy Trinity." (4)
*So it makes sense for us to pray for Jesus to feel at home in our hearts. It also echoes Paul's great desire in Philippians 3:10. There Paul had been a Christian for many years, and I am sure that Paul knew the Lord as well as anybody ever has. But Paul wrote that he still longed to "know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death."
*Everyone should open their hearts to receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Let Him come in today! Then we should pray for God to feel at home in our hearts. Pray this request for yourself, and pray it for the people all around us.
2. ALSO PRAY FOR US TO KNOW THE LORD'S INFINITE LOVE.
*This is Paul's prayer request we see in vs. 17-19, where he prayed:
17. that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
18. may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height
19. to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
*Christians: God wants us to fully know the Lord's infinite love. And to help us get started, Paul shows us how we are already connected to the love of Jesus Christ. At the end of vs. 17, Paul speaks of us as "being rooted and grounded in love."
*Bible scholars tell us that this tense is talking about something that God already did for us in the past. It's a past action performed by God that has existing and ongoing results in our lives. So as Christians, we are already firmly rooted in God's love, and God Himself did the planting. But Paul also said we are grounded in God's love. The original word for "grounded" was a building term talking about something being laid on a firm foundation. And as Christians, we surely are laid on a firm foundation! (5)
*This truth along with what Paul said about us at the end of the last chapter. In Ephesians 2:19-22 Paul tells Christians:
19. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
20. having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,
21. in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,
22. in whom you also are being built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit.
*Christians: We already are firmly rooted and grounded in God's love. That's why here in vs.18, we are "able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height" of Christ's love. Here Paul was praying for us to have a much better understanding of God's love.
*So how wide is God's love? -- Wide enough to reach anyone who will turn to God and trust in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. How long is God's love? -- So long that it lasts forever! Mary Lewis explained that "God's love is forever and always. It isn't just available on Sundays. There are no regular business hours for God's love, and the love of God doesn't take holidays. This also means God's love doesn't give up on us. His love is more enduring than the Energizer bunny. It just keeps on going and going and going!" (6)
*That's the length of the Lord's love. But how deep is His love? -- Deep enough for Jesus Christ to leave His throne in Heaven, and come all the way down to earth for us; deep enough for Jesus to go all the way down to death for us, even the death of the cross. The Lord's love is so deep that He took all of the depth of our sins on Himself. That's how much He loves us!
*And how high is the Lord's love? -- For everyone who knows Jesus in a personal way, His love is so high that "it will take us all to Heaven!" So pray for us to know the width and length and depth and height of the Lord's infinite love.
*But also notice in Ephesians 3:19 that Paul prayed for us "to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge. . ." How can we do that? How can we "know the love of Christ which passes knowledge?" The answer is that Paul was not praying for us to just mentally know that God loves us. He was praying for us to know and experience God's love in a close, personal way.
*There's a huge difference, and Mary Lewis used the example of water. She said, "I know that water is H2O, a combination of two molecules of Hydrogen and one molecule of Oxygen. But that doesn't do much for me on a blazing hot afternoon in August when I've worked hard outside, and my throat is so parched that when I try to swallow I just feel a dry ache.
*I could care less about H2O as a chemical formula. My understanding of water doesn't quench my thirst. My need is not for deeper insights into the meaning of water. I don't need more knowledge about water. I need water! I need a long, tall glass of water." (6)
*That's the kind of knowledge Paul prayed for in Ephesians 3 when he asked for us "to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge. . ." He wanted us to spiritually drink in God's love so to speak, experiencing His love by experiencing Him. So basically, the only way to know God's love better is to know God better, and this makes sense, because 1 John 4 tells us twice that "God IS love." And it all comes back to the cross. When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, His love was fully devoted to the Heavenly Father and fully devoted to us. So pray for us to know the Lord's infinite love. That's how the Apostle Paul prayed.
3. BUT ALSO FEED YOUR FAITH ON GOD’S ABILITY.
*That's how Paul prayed in vs. 20-21 when he praised God for His infinite power, and said, "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 glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."
*Church: Our God is able! He was able to create the universe and everything in it by simply speaking it into existence! As Psalm 33:6 says, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth." In Genesis 7, God was able to flood the whole world to bring judgment on that generation. In Exodus 14, God was able to part the Red Sea so that two or three million of His people could cross over dry land to safety.
*Our God is able! As Christians, we know that Jesus was able to die on the cross, and take all of the guilt for all of our sin! We know that Jesus was able to rise again forever from the dead, able to forgive all our sins, and able to give us everlasting life.
*In Romans 14:4, Paul tells us something else God is able to do. There Paul was talking about us judging other Christians, and Paul said, "Who are you to judge another's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand." Hallelujah!
*Hebrews 7:24-25 tells us that Jesus, "because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He ever lives to make intercession for them."
*And Jude 1:24-25 says, "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen."
*Church: We know all kinds of amazing, wonderful, miraculous things that God is able to do. Even on your darkest days, God is able to answer in a superabundant way, so feed your faith on God's ability.
4. BUT BE SURE TO GIVE ALL THE GLORY TO GOD.
*That's what Paul did in vs. 21 when he closed his prayer by writing, "to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."
*I don't think any other Christian has ever done more for the cause of Christ than the Apostle Paul. Would any of us have come to know the Lord without Paul? I don't see how.
*But Paul was always careful to give God the glory for any good thing he ever did. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:31, "He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.'' And in Galatians 6:14 Paul said, "God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."
*When we pray like Paul, more great things will surely happen. And all the glory goes to God, because God deserves all the glory. Praise the Lord!
CONCLUSION:
*My wife Mary used to work at Lakeshore School with a lady named Jan Ramsey. I think she was a member of First Baptist Church in Swartz. Jan gave this prayer testimony about her dad, James, and I think he was 81 at the time.
*One day James was on a 4-wheeler spraying grass around their catfish pond. Suddenly, the 4-wheeler flipped over and threw James into pond. That was a giant emergency because James couldn’t swim.
*He was over his head, and went down 4 or 5 times. James fought and thrashed around, but in his panic, he was only getting farther from the bank. That old man was completely worn out when he noticed a willow tree hanging low over the water. It was about 40 feet away, and James prayed this prayer, "Now God, -- either you’re going to have to take me home or let me get to that willow tree."
*James said he went down again but when he came up, he was under that willow tree! He grabbed it and started yelling for help. Their Labrador retriever jumped in first. Every time James’ head would go down, the dog pushed his chin up, and the dog stayed with him until James’ relatives pulled him to safety.
*God surely answered James' prayer in an amazing way. After that James said that God had something else for him to do in this world.
*Christians: As long as we are in this world, God has things for us to do too! And one of the most important things is pray. Pray like Paul, knowing that we can trust our Heavenly Father to always answer at the right time in the right way. Pray like Paul, always giving all the glory to God.
*And if you have never prayed to receive our crucified and risen Savior Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, that is the most important prayer you need to pray! And you can call on the Lord to save you right now, as we go back to God in prayer.
(1) JOHN GILL'S EXPOSITION OF THE BIBLE by Dr. John Gill, D. D. - 1697-1771 - Published in 1746-1766, 1816 - Proverbs 1:7 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(2) Sources for "Dwell" - Strong's 2730 in Ephesians 3:17
-STRONG'S HEBREW AND GREEK DICTIONARIES - from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance by James Strong, S.T.D., LL.D. - Published in 1890; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-THAYER'S GREEK DEFINITIONS - Published in 1886, 1889; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-BELIEVER'S BIBLE COMMENTARY by William MacDonald - Edited by Arthur Farstad - Thomas Nelson Publishers - Nashville - Copyright 1995 - "Paul's Prayer for the Saints" - Ephesians 3:14-19 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-WORD PICTURES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT by Archibald Thomas (A. T.) Robertson - Published in 1930-1933 - Ephesians 3:17 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(3) Sources:
-"Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord" by William D. Longstaff.
-THROUGH THE BIBLE WITH J. VERNON MCGEE by J. Vernon McGee - Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville - Copyright 1981 - "Contrasts Between the Old and New Covenants" - 2 Corinthians 3:6-18 - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-"Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus" by Helen Howarth Lemmel (1863-1961)
(4) Adapted from "Life in the Spirit - in Marriage Home and Work" by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, p 47 - 1973 - Baker Books - Source: SermonCentral illustration contributed by Clark Tanner
(5) Sources:
-Adapted from "Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible" Compiled and Edited Spiros Zodhiates, AMG Publishers - Chattanooga, TN - Copyright 1984
-vancouverbible.org/Studies/Ephesians_Lesson_11.pdf
-STRONG'S HEBREW AND GREEK DICTIONARIES - from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance by James Strong, S.T.D., LL.D. - Published in 1890; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
-THAYER'S GREEK DEFINITIONS - Published in 1886, 1889; public domain. - Downloaded to e-Sword by Rick Meyers - Copyright 2021
(6) Adapted from SermonCentral sermon "Four Dimensional Love" by Mary Lewis - Ephesians 3:14-19
