God's Construction Plan
Ephesians Your Place in the Family of God • Sermon • Submitted
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God’s Construction Plan
Remembering one another in Prayer
I heard the story of a Pastor who said people would share personal needs with him as they shook hands with him at the end of the service. They would ask him to pray for them. All of which he was grateful for. The issue was, there were often multiple requests. How could he remember? So, he learned to pray on the spot so to speak. As they asked him to pray, he would say “Yes, I will pray for you.” In his heart and mind, with his spirit and soul he would immediately lift that person up in prayer and then go about greeting others.
That has always been a great reminder for me to remember people in prayer right then and there on the spot and if possible even to pray audibly right then and there. However, Paul helps us to see that there is more than on the spot prayer… There is an on going prayer for people; a prayer that will encourage one another in their Love for God and one another.
As we’ve learned, this was a circulatory letter. The Apostle Paul wasn’t with the people who received his letter, but he did provide them with the encouragement that he was praying for them. And he was very specific in terms of what he prayed for.
Today we are going to look at how we can grow in our prayer life for one another and some specific things that will help us to remember, even after on the spot praying has taken place.
I learned a long time ago that consistency in prayer in not one of my strengths. But what I have also learned is that there are ways for me to become more consistent in my prayer.
Paul began by making an affirmative statement about the church… and why prayer was so important for him...
Before I get to that, let’s look at why Paul prayed and what he prayed for.
Paul prayed because of the faith the people had in the Lord Jesus Christ.
In Verse 15 Paul acknowledges two reasons why he prays for others.
He prays because of their Loyalty to God. (That is there love and Faith in the Lord)
He prays because of their love for one another.
William Barclay states that these are two Vital Characteristics of the Church… “Loyalty to God” and “Love for one another.”
Jesus commanded us to
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
To show our love and loyalty to God is to love Him AND our brothers and sisters in Christ… but it also includes loving all people.
Even though a neighbor or friend may not be easy to get along with or agree with, does not void God’s command to love one another and to Love your neighbor as yourself.
Just this week there was a video of Road Rage… it showed two men confronting one another. It appeared one man kicked in the headlight of the other, then began to walk back to his car… the other man followed him and then slugged him, knocking him to the ground.
Even though a neighbor or friend may not be easy to get along with or agree with, does not void God’s command to love one another and to Love your neighbor as yourself.
For this reason Paul prays…
When I set out to prepare this message I entitled it “God’s Construction Plan” But as time went on it became God’s Prayer Plan… and believe me, this is just one small segment of prayer, but it is a way to engage with God and to encourage one another to build their life upon Faith in Christ.
There is a song from long ago that I remember, entitled, “Prayer is the Key to Heaven, but Faith Unlocks the Door.”
Prayer is the key to Heaven But faith unlocks the door
Words are so easily spoken Prayer without faith is like a boat without oars
Have faith when you speak to the Master That's all he asks you for
Prayer is the key to Heaven But faith unlocks the door
Have faith when you speak to the Master
That's all he asks you for
Prayer is the key to Heaven But faith unlocks the door
For Paul Prayer began by acknowledging their ‘Faith.’ Faith in the Lord Jesus. This is important because people can have faith in God; that there is a God. But, do they have faith in Jesus as God; God who came to earth in human form; Died on the cross paying the price for our sins with his shed blood and rose again from dead… It is imperative that we have faith ‘In Jesus’ because is it by Him, through Him, and in Him, that we have been created and saved.
Faith in Jesus is the Key to unlocking the door of salvation, hope, and peace. Paul prayed thanking God for them because they had come to put their faith in Jesus. Now He wants them to know what his prayer is concerning them. It is something we can pattern our prayer time after as well.
Paul prayed, Giving thanks and Remembering them. He is thankful for their spiritual progress; their own spiritual growth.
with Giving thanks and Remembering others...
As you pray, ‘For what and for whom’ do you give thanks?
Paul prayed giving thanks for the faith of the people in the church.
As a church, we have much to be thankful for...
For leadership, for teachers, for nursery workers, for those who take care of the church building, for those who lead worship, for those who come to worship, for those who receive the offering, for those who give; for those who greet you when you walk in… for those who cast the vision for a ‘Radio Ministry’ for those who saw the need for an elevator; for those who see a need to do summer ministries, ice cream socials; for those who visit the sick or shut ins… there is much to be thankful for.
So look around today and give thanks for the person sitting next to you and for those who serve, wanting to do the will of God who sent them.
Let’s look at the Prayer Paul offered on behalf of the people… AS we do, remember that he is praying to God the Father, the Only one who is able to meet all their needs.
Specifics
Spirit of Wisdom
As we pray for a Spirit of Wisdom, it is important to remember that enlightenment and wisdom comes from the Holy Spirit. With the natural mind, we cannot understand the things of God. Turn in your Bibles to
However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—
these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.
This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.
The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,
for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—
these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.
This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.
The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,
for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—
these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.
This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.
The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,
for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
The Holy Spirit reveals truth to us from the Word, and then gives us the wisdom to understand and apply it. He also gives us the power—the enablement—to practice the truth (). He adds to the Spirit of Wisdom, Revelation or enlightenment...
Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 14). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Revelation - In verse 18 Paul’s prayer is that your heart might be enlightened.
Eye of the heart to be opened - In the Bible, the heart means the inner man, and includes the emotions, the mind, and the will. The inner man, the heart, has spiritual faculties that parallel the physical senses. The inner man can see (; ), hear (; ), taste (; ), smell (; ), and touch (). This is what Jesus meant when He said of the people: “They seeing see not, and hearing they hear not” (). The inability to see and understand spiritual things is not the fault of the intelligence but of the heart. The eyes of the heart must be opened by the Spirit of God.
Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 15). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 15). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Another way of saying this is that the heart matters.
Eye of the heart to be opened
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
but in the Bible, the heart means the inner man, and includes the emotions, the mind, and the will. The inner man, the heart, has spiritual faculties that parallel the physical senses. The inner man can see (Ps. 119:18; John 3:3), hear (Matt. 13:9; Heb. 5:11), taste (Ps. 34:8; 1 Peter 2:3), smell (Phil. 4:18; 2 Cor. 2:14), and touch (Acts 17:27). This is what Jesus meant when He said of the people: “They seeing see not, and hearing they hear not” (Matt. 13:13). The inability to see and understand spiritual things is not the fault of the intelligence but of the heart. The eyes of the heart must be opened by the Spirit of God.
To Know God Better… There are people who call themselves ‘Atheists’ and those who call themselves ‘Agnostics’
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
The atheist claims there is no God for us to know, and the agnostic states that if there is a God we cannot know Him. But Paul has met God in the person of Jesus Christ, and he knows that a man really cannot understand much of anything else without a knowledge of God.
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
The atheist claims there is no God for us to know, and the agnostic states that if there is a God we cannot know Him. But Paul has met God in the person of Jesus Christ, and he knows that a man really cannot understand much of anything else without a knowledge of God.
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
The atheist claims there is no God for us to know, and the agnostic states that if there is a God we cannot know Him. But Paul has met God in the person of Jesus Christ, and he knows that a man really cannot understand much of anything else without a knowledge of God.
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
The believer must grow in his knowledge of God. To know God personally is salvation (John 17:3). To know Him increasingly is sanctification (Phil. 3:10). To know Him perfectly is glorification (1 Cor. 13:9–12). Since we are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–28), the better we know God, the better we know ourselves and each other. It is not enough to know God only as Saviour. We must get to know Him as Father, Friend, Guide, and the better we know Him, the more satisfying our spiritual lives will be.
To Know God personally is salvation
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
The believer must grow in his knowledge of God. To know God personally is salvation (John 17:3). To know Him increasingly is sanctification (Phil. 3:10). To know Him perfectly is glorification (1 Cor. 13:9–12). Since we are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–28), the better we know God, the better we know ourselves and each other. It is not enough to know God only as Saviour. We must get to know Him as Father, Friend, Guide, and the better we know Him, the more satisfying our spiritual lives will be.
Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
To Know God increasingly is sanctification
I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
To know God perfectly is glorification
For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.
For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Three: Read the Bankbook (Ephesians 1:15–23)
The believer must grow in his knowledge of God. To know God personally is salvation (John 17:3). To know Him increasingly is sanctification (Phil. 3:10). To know Him perfectly is glorification (1 Cor. 13:9–12). Since we are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–28), the better we know God, the better we know ourselves and each other. It is not enough to know God only as Saviour. We must get to know Him as Father, Friend, Guide, and the better we know Him, the more satisfying our spiritual lives will be.
Then Paul prays that they will …
To know the hope for which you’ve been called
The Greek word for church is Ecclesia … meaning ‘Called out.’
Paul acknowledged that ‘He’ had been called out by God’s grace. .
To know the Riches of your glorious inheritance
He reminded Timothy that believers have a ‘Holy Calling’
In 1 Peter we are reminded that what have been called out of Darkness and we have been called to ‘Glory’ God calls us by His Grace and not by any merit that we might possess.
The ‘Hope’ we have, is an assurance of our eternal future, not a wishful thinking! The hope that we have should be a dynamic way of thinking. It goes beyond any material thing we might have. No matter how bleak things may seem, in Christ we have hope beyond measure and this earthly world.
2279 Cape Of Good Hope
The southern tip of Africa used to be called “Cape of Tempests.” Its swirling seas and continuously adverse weather conditions caused sailors great anxiety and took many lives.
But a certain Portuguese, determined to find a safer route through those seas to the renowned Land of Cathy, discovered a safer passage round this promontory. And the area was renamed the “Cape of Good Hope.”
Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 565). Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.
This brings us to our glorious inheritance...
To know the Riches of ‘His’ glorious inheritance in His Holy People.
This isn’t about ‘our’ inheritance in Him, it is about ‘His’ inheritance in us. God looks at you and me as part of his wealth; you are his creation, created in his image, created to live a holy life, which represents Him in all of His glory; in all of his awesomeness. God gets glory from his investment in us as the church. He pours himself into us through the Holy Spirit; we bear fruit of the Holy Spirit in love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self control. As we grow in our knowledge of him; in our relationship with him, we become part of his glory for all people to see.
Another way of looking at it is become all that God intended us to be. As we grow in our relationship with God, we learn to appreciate all that we go through because we know that God is shaping us and preparing us for eternity, but that eternity has begun in who are now becoming in Christ.
What an amazing blessing and privilege to be so valued by God that we are part of his inheritance.
This past week there was a news report done about a teacher retiring. One of his former students came back in his honor and performed an arial dance. I can only imagine how this teacher must have felt when she said how her teacher inspired her to become who she was today. That’s how we honor God and become the riches of his glorious inheritance.
To know His incomparably great power - this something Paul offers to challenge our faith!
It is the exceeding greatness of his power to us who believe!
It is the working of his mighty strength (vs. 19)
It is the exerted power that raised Jesus from the dead (vs. 20) God wants us to use our lives approprieatly. That is to use our energy for him. Not to rely upon ourselves, but to rely solely on Him, trusting in him for all things.
Paul wrote in
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
We need God’s power to do what he created us to do.
Secondly, we have an enemy out there who wants to stop us from doing what God created us for. We know him as the evil one; Satan… who rears his ugly head, a wolf, clothing himself like a lamb. He is mean and intent on destroying anything God has for you.
Paul wants us to see and know; experience God’s power in our lives daily. Today we know that power in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. it is a power over all other power; it is a power to overcome temptation, addiction, discouragement, disappointment, doubt, depression. It is there for the daily in-fusement, by plugging into God by faith, through prayer, reading the Bible, fellowship with other believers, talking to non-beleivers, so they know the Good News of God’s lavished love and Amazing Grace.
Conclusion
So God’s prayer plan as demonstrated by Paul to pray for one another, because we are brothers and sisters in Christ; we have a faith in Christ that unites us; we have wisdom that comes from him, as well as power to achieve and overcome any and all things. He want’s you to know him; to experience him; to trust him, to give him praise.
We can pray for one another, asking God to give us the Spirit of wisdom and understanding. to know him better; to know what our hope is and to know his power.
Now comes the point where the rubber meets the road. What is it that you are doing so that God can do these things in your life and the life of others? Are you investing yourself in the love of God that will help you love other; be willing to serve sacrificially; be willing to wait for God to do his work in you and through you?
Paul wants us to know Christ’s position in God’s Kingdom
He is seated at the right hand of God … he is God’s right hand man
He is above all rule and authority, any power or dominion
All things are placed under his feet
He is the Head of all.
This is where we put our faith; this is why we pray, waiting and trusting; look for and anticipating God’s working in us, through us, and around us… all for His glory… For This Reason, I Never Stop Remembering You In My Prayers. Amen.