Paul's Second Prayer

For their Preparation (v17a); For their Perfection (v17b); For them to know their Purpose (v18a); For their Prosperity (v18b); For the Fulness of His Power in Them (v19)

Concerning the Placement of Christ (v20-22) - At the Right Hand of the Father; Above Everyone and Everything Else; At the Head of the Church

Concerning the Position of the Church (v23)

You Were Dead, but Now Alive (2:1-10)

It’s Personal (v1)

You were Dead; He made you Alive

Our Past (v2-3)

Our Path was Perverted; Our Conversation was Corrupt; Our Nature was Offensive

God’s Passion (v4)

Regardless, God…; The Riches of God - His Mercy, His Love

God’s Power (v5)

To Give Life to the Dead; To Give Fellowship to the Fallen

Our Placement (v6-7)

He has Elevated Us in Christ; He has Provided an Expectation of the Ages

Our Present (v8-9)

Salvation is by Grace through Faith; It’s a Gift to be Redeemed, not a Wage to be Earned, Glory is therefore God’s Not Man’s

Our Purpose (v10

Created In Christ, Unto Good Works; Expected by God to Walk Therein

You were Far Off, but Now Nigh (v11-22)

They’re Called to Remember their Past (v11-12)

They were Pagans, Aliens, Strangers, Hopeless & Alone

They Must Recognize their Present (v13-18)

Christ made us Nigh, Brought us Peace & Given us Access

That they Might Realize their Place (v19-22)

In the Household of God; As an Habitation for God

What was Mystery is Now Known (3:1-13)

Paul the Prisoner (v1)

A Preempted Prayer (v1a); A Prisoner for Purpose (v1b)

Paul the Prophet (v2-7)

The Dispensation (v2); The Revelation (Concerning the Jews & Gentiles - v3-6); The Custodian (v7)

Paul the Preacher (v8-13)

The Riches of Christ (v8); The Revelation (v9-10); The Reasons for Christ (v11); The Resiliency in Christ (v12-13)

At the beginning of this series, I mentioned that if you were to break this book down in it’s most basic form, you’d divide it in this manner:

Who they are in Christ (Eph. 1-3)

How to live in Christ (Eph. 4-6)

So as we close out this portion of the letter today, Paul concludes it with prayer. As we noted, this is the second time in these chapters that Paul is praying for this church. This prayer is different from the first however.

In the first prayer, Paul prayed for their Enlightenment.

In this prayer you will see that Paul is praying for their Enablement.

He prayed that they would know - now he’s praying that they will do.

This serves as a bridge between the two sections of this book - because in order church to LIVE FOR Christ, we must be ENABLED BY Christ - as you cannot live the Christian life in the flesh.

We look for at the Posture

I. The Posture

Paul states that he ‘bow my knees’. This is the situation or state that Paul addresses the Father. It’s one of Humility

With Humility (v14a)

I’m not saying that you must come before the throne of God on bended knee. Throughout Scripture we see Godly men in various positions other than bowing praying:

Abraham stood in Gen. 18:22.

David sat in 1Ch. 17:16.

Jesus ‘fell on his face’ in Mat. 26:39.

I think it’s good to bow, but it’s not necessary. What IS necessary is that you are bowing before God internally.

There’s been men who have bowed before the LORD physically, but internally stood in either defiance, indifference, or entitlement.

When we come before the LORD in prayer, we must understand:

The Great Grace wherein we are afforded the opportunity

The Great Price that has given us the opportunity

The Great God of whom whose presence we are in

We must come before the LORD in Humility - because He is our Authority (the Father)

Unto our Authority (v14b)

Notice please the person to whom Paul is praying to - the Father.

Jesus instructed prayer unto the Father:

Matthew 6:9 “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”

Jesus directed prayer to the Father

John 16:23 “And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.”

Concerning prayer, there are distinctive roles concerning the Triune God:

The Father is the Object / Recipient

Jesus is the Intercessor

The Spirit is the Director

So - TO the Father, THROUGH the Son, IN the Spirit

And as we proceed through this prayer - you see in the prayer all three aspects of God - the Father, the Son & the Holy Spirit - being recognized and Glorified.

We see the Posture

First we see the Posture. Secondly, we see the Person - speaking of Jesus

II. The Person

We’re of course speaking about Jesus - the name above all names!

He is our LORD (v14c)

Keep in mind - Paul says that he’s our LORD because he’s speaking to the Church.

That being said Paul tells Timothy concerning Jesus: 1 Timothy 6:15 “Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;” But I want to speak about two different things for a moment:

First this is His Position:

Jesus IS Lord! This is the position that He holds unto all mankind.

Lord (def) master; supreme in power & authority; ruler; governor

This is the position that Christ holds unto you and I. He is our MASTER; our HEAD; our RULER; our GOVERNOR. And the Bible makes it clear: Philippians 2:10–11 “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

This is the Position of Jesus - but my question to you is, is this the Practice of Jesus

The Practice of Jesus

In other words, Jesus may hold the Position, but does He get to practice the Position?

(Ill.) I watched a clip of the show ‘Undercover Boss’ one time and the owner / CEO of a gym company was working and the manager was teaching them to make smoothie’s. And he would say ‘but the book says this… and she said ‘Yeah, I know - but I’m telling you this…’ In other words, she had an authority, but she continually undermined her authority.

What about you Christian? He holds the Position - but does He get to practice that position, or are you constantly undermining His authority?

He is our LORD

He is the Christ (v14d)

Christ is not Jesus’ last name - it’s an epithet (def) a name added - an adjective expressing a quality.

Christ is a quality - so what does ‘Christ’ mean? (def) The anointed; the Saviour; Messiah

Jesus is ‘The Christ’, ‘Messiah’, ‘Saviour’

Jesus is our LORD, and He’s our Saviour

He’s our Saviour, because…

… of His great love wherewith He loved us

He’s our Saviour, because…

… He paid our sin debt upon the Cross of Calvary.

He’s our Saviour, because…

… He died, was buried - yet 3 days later rose in Victory!

Jesus truly is the Christ! He’s my Saviour - I pray that He’s yours as well.

He is the Christ, but we see something else as well

He is our Namesake (v15)

Listen, Christian - you bear the name of Christ, and as such, you should do all you can to bring honour unto that name!

(Ill.) I had always desired for my children to honour the name McGraw. It’s the name that my daddy gave to me. It’s the name that my wife took when she said ‘I do’. I want them to honour it because it’s a reflection upon me. It speaks to who I am and how I’ve raised them.

How much more does the name ‘Christian’ reflect upon the Christ?

It speaks to HIS Character

It speaks to HIS power

It speaks to HIS upbringing

(Ill.) My daddy has lived as an upstanding citizen of the community - a law abiding family man. He had a brother who was a drunkard tended to stay in trouble. BOTH were a reflection of their father, and both gave a vastly different testimony about him.

My question for you is, what kind of reflection is your testimony upon the name of Christ?

He is our Namesake

We see the Posture and the Person. Next the Petition

III. The Petition

Here we see ‘the ask’. What is Paul asking God for them?

Four things - and we’ll see that they build one upon the other

For a Strengthening (v16)

A Powerful Strengthening

‘…according to the riches of his glory…’

Let me say this: My God is RICH in Glory!

He told Moses: Exodus 33:20 “And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.” He told Moses that He’d pass by & Moses could see his back parts - once he saw, he fell face first into the ground - then when Aaron saw him afterwards, the Bible says: Exodus 34:30 “And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.”

God’s glory was so great if affected Moses - to the point where others noticed! (That’s a lesson for us - for us to get so close to God that His glory rub off on us that we might shine for Him!)

Paul said ‘according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened’

It’s a Powerful Strengthening He sought

A Divine Strengthening

‘by His Spirit’ - Paul sought a Divine Strengthening

Paul recognized that true strength comes from God.

If we’re to accomplish our purpose in life - it’ll be by the power of the Spirit

If we’re to shine for Christ - it’ll be by the power of the Spirit

But thank God, we as Christians have that power! Jesus said: Acts 1:8 “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

It’s one thing to have the power, it’s another to rely on that power.

Us Christians have been given that power - we’ve been sealed by the Holy Spirit of God - BUT WE MUST LOOK TO THAT POWER AND RELY ON THAT POWER IF WE’RE TO ACCOMPLISH HIS GOALS FOR OUR LIFE!

He prayed for a Divine Strengthening

An Inner Strengthening

Paul wasn’t looking ‘without’, he was looking within.

I want to point something out here. Church, when you look at Paul’s first prayer, this prayer - and other prayers of Paul from his prison epistles, he’s focusing on the inner man.

We have a lot of ailments and maladies in our life. From Covid’s & Cancers and everything in between. But what happens is that we get lost of purpose and begin focusing on this robe of flesh to the neglect of the Spirit.

I’M NOT SAYING IT’S WRONG TO PRAY FOR THE PHYSICAL - but I believe that if that’s our focus, we’re focusing on the wrong things.

You see, no matter what we do or how much we pray - every body of flesh will find it’s way to a grave eventually. BUT WHAT HAPPENS INSIDE - in the inner man - LASTS FOREVER!

You see, you can live 100 years and not accomplish a thing - or you can live 34 years and save the world. “It’s not the years of life, but life within the years that matters”

He prayed for an Inner Strengthening

For an Indwelling (v17a)

“That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith”

Notice he’s not speaking about the Spirit - but that Christ would dwell.

Paul will speak to this church in the next chapter about being sealed by the Spirit, but what does he mean here? Why pray for the indwelling of Christ?

That Christ Reside

‘To dwell’ (def) reside - stay

The Cause of Christ

The Attitude of Christ

The Mindset of Christ

The Hope of Christ

The Desires of Christ

All of these things that caused them to be known as ‘Christians’ - Paul prayed that would DWELL - STAY - RESIDE

I think most Christians experience times of textbook ‘Christianity’ - but for most, the Spirit of Christ is fleeting - Paul prayed that it would stay.

Stay during the Mountaintops - when we’re tempted to reject Christ for we have no need

Stay during the Valleys - when they way is dark and hope is lost

Paul prays that Christ is ever-present in their lives

He prays for an indwelling

For Comprehension (v17b-19a)

The word ‘comprehend’ doesn’t mean ‘to understand’, as we commonly use it today, but rather ‘comprehend’ (def) attain; apprehend.

So as we see these verses, Paul is praying:

They’re rooted in the love of Christ

They apprehend the vastness of it

In other words - not a shallow grasp, but the enormity of it

‘To know’ = to experience it

Paul prays that this love will permeate their every being.

Church, to know God is to love God

To experience Christ’s love is to expel God’s love

So Paul is praying for their Comprehension - SO THAT ‘ye might be filled with all the fulness of God’

For a Fulness (v19b)

So many Christians leave so much on the table. They experience some of what Christ offers, they experience some of the blessings of the Christian life - but so few experience the FULNESS OF GOD!

You’ll never know the joy of winning souls unless you love men enough to share the Gospel

You’ll never know the joy of leaning upon the bosom of Christ unless you spend time with Him in prayer

You’ll never know contentment until you fall at His feet and say ‘Here am I - send me’.

Paul desired that the church experienced these things - and I pray that you do as well! God has so much that so many leave on the table.

Paul prayed for a fulness

IV. The Praise

In closing this prayer, Paul spends a moment praising the LORD

Which is always a good thing!

He is Able (v20a)

Think about that statement!

Did you know that God is ABLE to do more than you can even fathom in your mind?

Church, you’ll rarely see God do big things, lest you ask for them.

If we will just line up our hearts with His - get our minds focused on eternity, we’ll see God do great things - BECAUSE HE’S ABLE!

Paul praised God because He’s able

He Has Enabled (v20b)

‘the power … in us’

Paul spoke a moment ago about the Spirit strengthening us. It’s the Spirit that works in us - He has enabled us to do great things.

Not because of who we are, but because of what works within us - the Holy Spirit of God!

Paul praised God because He has enabled

He is Worthy (v21)

Church I must say - if you’re coming here, and you’re not giving glory unto God, you’re doing church wrong.

If God’s glory isn’t shining through you - then something is wrong.

We should be glorifying God with our tongue, manner and might - because He is Worthy!

Paul praised God because He is worthy - and he closes with ‘Amen’ which means ‘truth’; ‘surely’

God is worthy church - He’s a good God!

Conclusion

In summary - in Paul’s prayer we see:

Paul bowing before the LORD - physically and Spiritually

He prays that they are strengthened,

By Christ dwelling continually in their hearts, that they are

Rooted in the Love of Christ, they lay hold on and experience it, SO THAT

They will live a fulfilled Christian life.

May I ask you - does this describe you? Are you experiencing the depth of what God has for you, or are you swimming in the shallow end?

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