Praying with Paul: Having Hope
Praying with Paul • Sermon • Submitted
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Intro:
15 Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:
Tonight, we will continue a study entitled, Praying with Paul. The subject of my message is Having Hope.
We dedicated all oF 2021 to prayer. We Focused on praying every Wednesday. I believe that God has heard our prayer and delights in the that prayer is a part of church culture.
Last week we began a new series. I have often wondered:
How did the early church leaders?
What was it like to listen to them pray?
I have attended many prayer meetings. People have knelt, walked, or sat to pray.
They have prayed out loud, quietly, or in silence.
Some have had someone leading in prayer, while others had people praying as they felt led.
But what was it like for an early Christian to listen to one of the Apostles pray. While we will not get to sit with them and listen, some of their prayers are written for us to read.
The Apostle Paul took time to record on paper how he prayed.
He shared his spiritual desires for the church in Ephesus. We will break down his prayer and look specifically what He asked God to do for the Ephesians.
He told them that he did not stop praying for them. He mentioned them to God every time he prayed.
We will spend some time dissecting a prayer of Paul’s to the church in Ephesus. We started last week.
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
Paul wanted people to have knowledge, wisdom, and revelation.
Many know ABOUT God, they have head knowledge of who He is, but God wants us to know Him on a deeper level.
Paul desired that the Ephesians would receive wisdom and revelation from God.
Wisdom helps us apply God’s word in our lives, revelation gives us insight from God. Possessing both will increasing our understanding and knowledge of the Lord.
Tonight, I want to continue with these verses, focusing on three words, [Knowing], [Hoping], [Calling].
Let’s begin
1. Knowing
1. Knowing
18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
Paul wanted God’s people to know. Knowledge is power. When we take knowledge and infuse it with God’s wisdom and revelation, we possess supernatural power.
I find it fascinating that the Holy Spirit would inspire Paul to pray for us to KNOW anything about God.
When we compare our God to the gods of this world, one of the major diFFerences is that we can KNOW Him.
Think of that, our Finite minds have an opportunity to KNOW our inFinite God. The one who made the heavens and the earth. The one who possesses all knowledge, power, and is everywhere at once.
Knowing God was a common theme in Scripture. In Fact the inFluential people listed in God’s Word are those took the efFort to know God on a personal level.
Knowing the Lord was a priority for Paul.
10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,
Paul did not want God’s people to walk around cluelessly and aimlessly. Instead, he showed through his writings and his lifestyle that people can know God on a personal level.
I am thankful I know the Lord and He knows me. But it remains overwhelming that He even desires to spend time with me. He willingly drops what He is doing whenever I call on His name.
Knowing God is vital. God wants us to know him.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
Knowing God should be the aim and desire of every Christian.
2. Hoping
2. Hoping
18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
Once God opens our eyes and our hearts and we begin to know Him, something will develop on the inside. We will walk counterculture, meaning, we will not allow ourselves to sway back and Forth in our relationship with God.
One of best word to describe the feeling that comes from knowing God is HOPE.
Hope is more than feeling anxious about something good. Hope literally means to expect with confidence.
What is the connection between hope and Jesus?
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Notice the two words— know and hope.
When we really know in whom we believe, it changes our perspective and outlook on life.
From the outside looking in, there is little cause for hope. In Fact, it appears that we live in a hopeless world.
And on the surface, hopelessness seems appropriate with everything going on in society. But for the child of God, there is a reason to HOPE.
We possess and expectant attitude that God does not leave us comfortless or alone.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
Without hope, life seems pointless and meaningless. But there remains a level of hope within every believer who prays. For in times with God, we get glimpses of what He has for us.
We have hope that Jesus will:
forgive us
empower us
heal us
listen to us
help us
deliver us
return for us
Paul prayed for the Ephesians to have the knowledge of God, because that would give them hope.
3. Calling
3. Calling
18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
Often, when people hear the word calling, they imagine someone answering the CALL to preach the gospel.
While that is a facet of callings, one that I personally appreciate, we must remember, EVERYONE has a calling from God. He does not leave us alone or forgotten.
Instead, when we come to Christ as our Savior:
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
One day, God called our name and we answered. We submitted our lives to Him and He gave us knowledge and hope that He called us.
Realizing God called us will change our perspective on life. For it is from the position of a called person, we humbly serve the Lord.
What comes with being called?
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
Paul explained to the Roman Church that everything works out for those He called. Then he proceeded to tell them HOW and WHY God called them.
Who is glad that the Lord called us to the Kingdom for such a time as this?
Close:
How did Paul pray?
There was much that went into Paul’s letters and prayers., One of biggest need was that for his readers to realize what they possessed in Christ.
Begin a follower of Jesus makes us unique. We are not better, but we live with a different perspective and culture.
I see Paul’s prayer as something we should desire from God in our lives today.
Like the Ephesians, we are in desperate need of God’s help and direction.
I want us to pray with Paul this evening.
We need to KNOW the Lord.
We need to have HOPE in Him.
We need to walk in our CALLING
How do we know the Lord?
We spend time with Him!
How do we display our hope?
Live a liFe that chooses to expect with confidence all oF His promises.
How do we live out our calling?
We willingly obey and do all God has called us to do.