Power Prayers

Introduction

Living life without prayer is like trying to live without breathing…you don’t breath then you suffocate…and if you don’t pray then you suffocate spiritually. Ephesians has many different important truths about prayer. We have learned in 2:18 that prayer is a conversation with the Father, through the Son, by the Spirit. In 1:17-23 we learned to pray for divine illumination. Now we learn more into a glimpse into the Apostle Paul’s prayer life and another truth we should be praying for. This prayer is right in the middle of the two sections in this book! The first three chapters were about who we are in Christ. The next three chapters are about how we are to live. Understanding both is essential to the Christian life, but you need more than knowledge of these things. And right in the middle of the two sections is a prayer for POWER. This is a huge reminder for all of us that WE MUST HAVE GOD’S POWER TO DO GOD’S WILL.

Pray with Humility (14-16a)

The first thing we need to realize in verse 14 is Paul’s posture. It says that Paul was bowing on his knees. Kneeling was not a common thing for Jewish culture because it was a sign of humility. But whenever someone is kneeling in prayer in the Bible, he is indicating deep humility and deep emotion before God. That doesn’t mean that kneeling while praying is the only correct posture for praying. Some people walk while praying, sit while praying, stand while praying, drive and pray (with your eyes open lol), but I want to emphasize the heart of the idea of kneeling. I think as we think about Paul’s posture, we can draw out application about three things: gratitude, desperation, and confidence.

Humble Gratitude

Paul was stunned at God’s grace in saving sinners individually and at His grace in uniting them corporately together.

When we think of God’s amazing grace, it should lead us to get on our faces before God. He called us, adopted us, redeemed us, and forgave us.

Prayer is not striking a pinata or asking God for goodies. It begins and ends with WORSHIP. Look at what the psalmist says in Psalm 95:6-7 “Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, the sheep under His care.”

APPLICATION: When was the last time we bowed in humble gratitude to God like this?

Humble Desperation

Kneeling is also a sign of desperation! When we realize that we are approaching the only One that can act on our behalf, it gives us a proper sense of helplessness. Paul is not a cold theologian, writing sophisticated arguments for philosophers to read and debate. He is a deeply passionate leader. He sets a good example for us. In Acts we see Stephen fall to the ground in desperation and prays for his prosecutors (Acts 7:60).

Why is Paul so passionate and desperate in Ephesians 3:14? I believe it’s because he knows what the Ephesians need is something that can only come from God: Notice that Paul prays that God would “grant” them to be strengthened. He knew God’s power was a gift, so he was desperate for God to answer. WHEN YOU ARE DESPERATE FOR GUIDANCE, DIRECTION, AND POWER FROM GOD YOU WILL PRAY WITH GREAT EXPECTATION AWAITING GOD TO ANSWER!

Application: Are you coming to God desperately? Do you realize you are helpless and powerless without God? John 15:5 says “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” This should humble us and make us desperate, but it should also encourage us. YOU CAN DO MINISTRY WITH HIS HELP.

Humble Confidence

Paul’s introduction here shows us that we should come before God with confidence. Not arrogance thinking God owes us His blessings, but with humble confidence. WE CAN PRAY WITH CONFIDENCE BECAUSE OF OUR POSITION IN CHRIST. Because of Christ’s reconciling work and our union with Him, we have ACCESS to God.

God the Father is sovereign, powerful, and gracious! GOD LOVES TO GIVE GOOD GIFTS TO HIS CHILDREN, ESPECIALLY PERTAINING TO THE SPIRIT, NOT JUST MATERIAL BLESSINGS BUT THE SPIRIT’S GUIDANCE AND WORK. (Luke 11:11-13 “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Pray for the Fullness of God’s Power and Love (16b-19)

What are the two things that Paul asks of God to grant to the Ephesian believers? Power and Love. Notice the phrases that Paul uses about power and love in verses 16-19:

“Strengthened with power”

“rooted and firmly established in love”

“able to comprehend [God’s love]”

“to know the Messiah’s love”

“filled with all the fullness of God”

“according to the power that works in us”

Paul is praying for the readers to EXPERIENCE what he has just talked about in the previous chapters: Christ’s supreme power and God’s great love towards sinners. We need to know that that prayer and teaching always go together. It is one thing to teach it or to hear it; it is another to experience it.

We Need to Be Strengthened by the Spirit’s Power (16-17)

Paul asks God to strengthen the believers with power in the “inner man”. We need strength and power on the inside! This is how we fight sin, how we proclaim the gospel with courage, and love people the way Christ has loved us. In 2 Corinthians Paul says that the outer man is wasting away and the inner man is being renewed.

When Paul says “that the Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith.” He is pointing to something deeper than Christ just dwelling in our hearts. Paul isn’t just saying that Christ should dwell in our hearts, he is saying that Christ should be RULING in the heart. Paul’s choice of word for dwell is important because it actually means “to settle down.” That’s important because IT CARRIES THE IDEA OF A PERMANENT RESIDENT, NOT A SHORT-LIVED RESIDENT. I love this illustration that D.A. Carson uses: “When Christ by his Spirit takes up residence within us, he finds a moral equivalent to trash, black and silver wall paper, and a leaking roof. He sets about turning this residence into a place appropriate for him, a home for which he is comfortable…When a person takes up long-term residence somewhere, their presence eventually characterizes that dwelling…When Christ first moves into our lives, he finds us in bad repair. It takes a great deal of power to change us; and that is why Paul prays for power…[He is] transforming us into a house that pervasively reflects his own character.” (Spiritual Reformation, 186-187)

We Need Power to Grasp Christ’s Love (17-19)

Paul moves on to say that we need strength to love. Know that this isn’t saying to focus on your love for Christ (which that is a good thing to pray for) but it is a prayer that you might know Christ’s love for you! Paul is saying that the Ephesians and us also do not appreciate Christ’s love as we should.

WHEN WE BEGIN TO GRASP CHRIST’S LOVE FOR US, WE LIVE A CRUCIFIED LIFE. What do I mean by that? Well look at Galatians 2:19-20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Paul isn’t asking us to just merely become more able to talk about the greatness of God’s love in Christ or to grasp it in your mind alone. NO! He is asking God that they might have the power to grasp the dimensions of that love in their experience in life with Christ!!!!

GOD’S POWER AND LOVE ARE TO BE KNOWN AND EXPERIENCED! Peter says in 1 Peter 1:8 “And though not seeing Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with inexpressible and glorious joy.” That is not mere head knowledge. It is a love that is knowable and explainable but it also MUST BE EXPERIENCED.

So, know that you are secured in God’s love.

Know the limitless dimensions of God’s love.

Know that this love surpasses knowledge.

Know God’s love that you may be mature.

Pray with Great Expectations (20-21)

Finally Paul moves to praise. He shows us the greatness of God and calls the Ephesians and us today to consider His greatness:

Paul says that God is “able.” What is God able to do? GOD CAN DO MORE IN RESPONSE TO ONE PRAYER THAN WE CAN DO IN ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF PLANNING!!! Do you believe that God alone is the only Sovereign?

How does God work beyond our imaginations? “according to the power that works IN US” Think about the examples in the Bible. Think of His work in the lives of Abraham, Moses, Gideon, David, Elijah, Isaiah, Nehemiah, the disciples, and the church. GOD IS ABLE TO DO EXTRAORDINARY THINGS THROUGH ORDINARY PEOPLE BY HIS POWER AT WORK WITHIN THEM.

Why does God do these things? Paul says: “To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” God blesses His people for His own glory.

Application

Pray on our knees. Pray for God’s power to strengthen us and for God to show us and to help us to KNOW and EXPERIENCE His great love for us!