Strengthening Your Grip

SERMON OUTLINE:

• (1). The Prayer for Strengthening (vs 14-16)

• (2). The Result of Strengthening (vs 17)

• (3). The Reason for Strengthening (vs 18-19)

• (4). The Power for Strengthening (vs 20-21)

SERMON BODY

Ill:

• Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard used to tell a parable;

• It was the story of a community of ducks;

• Each Sunday they waddled off to duck church to hear the duck preacher.

• The duck preacher spoke eloquently of how;

• God had given the ducks wings with which to fly.

• With these wings there was nowhere the ducks could not go,

• There was no God-given task the ducks could not accomplish.

• With those wings they could soar into the presence of God himself.

• Shouts of "Amen" were quacked throughout by the duck congregation.

• At the conclusion of the service, the ducks left,

• All of them commenting on what a wonderful message they had heard;

• And each one waddled back home!

• TRANSITION: not just the acquisition of truth that counts;

• It is also the application of truth that matters.

• The apostle Paul wants these Christians in Ephesus to change;

• He wants them to become strong, to be strengthened in their faith.

• God wants them (and us) to know that they/you have strength.

• We can feel so weak in our Christian walk;

• But God wants them/you to know the strength that is accessible to you.

(1). The Prayer for Strengthening (vs 14-16)

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,”

Ill:

• There was a pastor who had a parrot.

• All the parrot would say was, “Let’s pray, let’s pray.”

• The pastor tried to teach him to say other things but to no avail.

• All the parrot would say was, “Let’s pray, let’s pray.”

• Then the pastor learned that one of his deacons also had a parrot.

• Only the deacons parrot would only ever say, “Let’s kiss. Let’s kiss.”

• So the pastor decided to invite the deacon and his parrot over to his house.

• They put the parrots into the same cage to see what would happen.

• Later on in the day the two men went to listen to the parrots:

• The deacon’s parrot continued to say, “Let’s kiss, let’s kiss.”

• And the pastor’s parrot said, “Thank you, Lord. My prayers have been answered.”

• TRANSITION: The apostle Paul returns to his prayer for these Christians,

• He mentioned it in chapter 1 verses 16-19.

• And he picks up the thread again in this section.

Question: What are the top three prayers on your prayer list right now?

• Perhaps there’s a prayer for someone’s healing.

• Maybe there’s a prayer for a friend’s salvation;

• Or a prayer for someone whose marriage is struggling.

• Too often when it comes to my own prayers,

• Most of them centre on the things I want God to do for me.

• I tend to ask God to make my life easier and to take away my problems.

• Of course, I also pray for friends and family,

• That God would provide for them and help them through their own struggles and trials.

• These kinds of prayers aren’t wrong because God wants us to cry out for his help.

• Though prayer is certainly not less than this,

• It can also be so much more.

• In these verses the Apostle Paul shared some of things on his prayer list;

• He prayed specifically for the Churches he planted and the ones he visited.

His prayer for these Christians, is that they would be:

“strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being.”

• Paul prays that God would strengthen these Christians with power.

• But notice that the goal is not physical strength but spiritual strength.

• It is their inner being that is being strengthened.

• He is praying that God would making them spiritually strong.

Ill:

• When my son Arlo was smaller we used to play wrestling;

• And we would lock arms in a challenge of strength,

• I would almost let him defeat me then right at the last minute;

• Use my strength to gain the victory

• I would then tease him by saying, “Arlo you are so strong!”

• Then the punchline, “but…strong in smelling!”

• This would wind him up for another battle;

• And so the fun would continue.

• TRANSITION: He thought I was praising his physical strength;

• But I was teasing him about smelling strongly,