For The Ephesians (3:14-21)

by Lindsay Woods, Cullybackey, Northern Ireland | Category: Paul's Prison Prayers | Sept 1996

'Ephesians' was probably written during Paul's first imprisonment at Rome (AD 60-64) where he was kept under house arrest. He was literally 'an ambassador in chains' (Eph. 6:20); chained to a soldier night and day. To appreciate this gives us a very real perspective of the circumstances in which he wrote and prayed. Even though this 'prince of preachers' was now immobilized he was still untiringly occupied serving his Lord and Master. His exercise in writing and prayer must have been a powerful witness to the changing Roman guard. He describes himself so appropriately as 'the prisoner of Christ Jesus in behalf of you Gentiles' (Eph. 3:1). A worthy ambassador for Christ!

One of Paul's great gifts was preaching, but behind all his dynamic exercise was prayer. He was burdened daily for the spiritual welfare of the churches of God, many of which he had been personally involved in planting and establishing. This great pioneer of the gospel to the Gentiles was ambitious for all the saints. In a very particular way we feel these longings for the disciples in his rich prayers as he is transported into the heavens before the throne of grace.

Robert Murray McCheyne said, 'What a man is in his prayer-closet is

what he is'. Paul's prayer-closet on this occasion had few comforts, and little privacy, but we cannot fail to sense the depth of this man's spiritual experience as we are taken up with the quality of his prayers. 'No Christian is greater than his personal life'. * 'Prayer means that I never have to say, There's nothing I can do'.* Paul knew that things would deteriorate in the churches, particularly after his death (see Acts 20 where he called the elders of Ephesus to meet him at Miletus) and so his prayer is intense. When we feel the burden of Paul's prayer for the Ephesian saints we are challenged to examine our own prayer lives, and the content of our prayers. 'Prayer is not a religious exercise, it is a human necessity.* God has given us 'the privilege and the responsibility to pray for one another, which ought to drive us to ask, as did the Lord's disciples Lord, teach us to pray' (Luke 11:1).*

Ephesians reaches dizzy heights in the realms of great spiritual mysteries as Paul, led by the Spirit, soars in the heavenly regions with the great truths of the Church which is Christ's Body, and the foreordination of believers to eternal glory. Paul's great desire was that all those in the Church the Body would grow in the knowledge of Christ and the profound truths that had

been revealed to him. His was not a selfish ambition in that others would see the Church of God in Ephesus as evidence of his work and to his glory, but rather, that in all their appreciation and service of Christ they would be united as one and the glory would all be to God, the Father of glory (Eph. 1:17). As in his earlier prayer (Eph. 1:15-23), Paul shows a deep appreciation of the greatness of God, and at the same time, the intimacy that he enjoys with the Father.

'For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father' - with holy reverence Paul bows his knees beside the soldier to whom he is chained and speaks with his God, his Father. So it should be in all our private prayers; and together in public prayer we bow our spirits with deep reverence and awe before our great God and our heavenly Father. The God before whom we bow is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, and yet we can speak to Him as the Lord teaches us 'Our Father which art in heaven...' (Mat. 6:9).

'From whom every family (margin - fatherhood) in heaven and on earth is named' - fatherhood is perfectly seen in God, and all who want to be good fathers in Christian homes do well to understand how our Father deals with us, His children. All believers in Christ are in the same family, members of the Church which is His Body, and 'joint-heirs with Christ' (Rom. 8:17). Many in this family have gone to heaven and many more of us still on earth await the day when the Body will be complete and all in the family will be united in heaven. Luther's translation of part of this verse may help our appreciation i.e. 'all who bear the name of children'.

'That He would grant you' - Paul asks specifically, he has his prayer list, his intercessions are ordered. Much more of our praying should be directed to the building up of believers. 'Prevailing intercession will cost us - sleepless nights, unseen tears, the sacrifice of personal desire and convenience, and whatever else is necessary to fill up that which is lacking in the sufferings of Christ... only as death works in us will life work in those ,for whom we pray'.*

'According to the riches of His glory' - there's so much to be tapped into, so much that He wants to give us. Ephesians overflows with riches; the riches of His glory, of Christ (3:8), of the glory of His inheritance in the saints (1:18), and of His grace (1:7; 2:7). And there are others in Paul's writings - the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering (Rom. 2:4; 9:23), His wisdom and knowledge (Rom. 11:33).

Having approached the throne with humility and reverence Paul launches himself into his rich prayer list. Let's just take it point by point.

1. 'That ye may be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inward man'.

Spiritual vitality from the indwelling Spirit. Our new life will develop, our inward man will grow strong. With such lives there is power. There is power within every believer, which, if allowed to work, will show itself in Christ-likeness. It's the same power level as shown in Christ's resurrection! (Phil. 3:10) but it will only be effective in meek and humble people. How much of the Spirit's power and fruit are really seen in our lives? Let's pray for each other that we might be '...made powerful with all power, according to the might of His glory' (Col. 1:11 RV margin). Paul knew the secret for he said 'when I am weak, then am I strong' (2 Cor. 12:10) and again 'I can do everything through Him who gives me strength' (Phil. 4:13 NIV).

2. 'That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith'.

Christ needs to be a real part of every area of our lives. He brings revelation (the burning heart: Luke 24:32), reality, renewal and refreshing. He wants to have a personal and intimate relationship with us. John knew such an experience, for he says 'Our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ' (1 John 1:3).

First the indwelling Spirit, and now the indwelling Christ. Paul could speak from experience, and what he knew he unselfishly wanted the saints to enjoy. 'Christ lives in me' he said (Gal. 2:20) and to the Colossians he wrote 'Christ in you the hope of glory' (Col. 1:27). Such an experience is only possible through faith; faith that grasps the unseen and accepts it as real, faith that brings Christ into our lives, faith without which 'it is impossible to be wellpleasing unto Him' (Heb. 11:6).

3. 'To the end that ye, being rooted and grounded in love...' - lives that are firmly established on love, and draw their motivation through roots put down deep into love; love for God, for Christ, for each other, for God's house and for God's service and glory.

4 & 5 '...may be strong to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge'.

These two requests cannot be separated, first to apprehend (or grasp) and then to know the love of Christ. This is not a mere mental activity, a head knowledge, but a work of the divine Spirit. We can grasp the truths of the love of Christ as we dig and unearth its treasures in the Scriptures but what Paul asks for is that the saints might know it! It's something we need to share with all the saints. We can know to a certain extent what passes knowledge, trace out to some degree what is 'unsearchable' (Rom. 11:33) and have revealed to us what transcends human thought (1 Cor. 2:9). This love of Christ is immeasurable, incomparable, infinite divine, and yet we can apprehend it in some measure. Here again we are sure that the apostle is revealing to us one of the most important secrets of his great strength in the service of God.

6. '...that ye may be filled unto (the measure of) all the fulness of God'.

But each can be filled only according to his or her personal capacity. When we know the power of the indwelling Spirit and the love of the indwelling Christ then we will be full, our experience will be full 'to the measure of all the fulness of God'. That surely is what we want, to live full spiritual lives. Christ is described as the One in whom dwells 'all the fulness of the Godhead bodily' (Col. 2:9) and His Church is the 'fulness of Him that filleth all in all' (Eph. 1:23). Paul's desire for the saints is the ultimate for any Christian's experience; to know, and be enveloped in, the fulness of God, the Christ of God.

This kind of praying should encourage us to pray for one another, pray that our experience may be enriched and fuller so that God will be glorified in our lives. 'God has chosen to work through His people, and through their prayer. Perhaps if we could say, I am always praying for you, we could also say, I am confident that what God has started He will complete'. *

Paul then bursts into his doxology (from the Greek word doxa meaning glory, literally then 'glory-words'). No prayer should be without it - giving praise and glory to God. 'Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us'. With our God all things are possible; we know it, but do we believe it? God wants us to have the sort of faith through believing prayer that will allow Him to move mountains. We can sense the longing in the Lord's words to His disciples in John 16:23,24 - 'If ye shall ask anything of the Father, He will give it you in My Name. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My Name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be fulfilled'. It's His Name that makes all the difference. Daniel's -three companions said as they faced the furnace 'Our God whom we serve is able' (Dan. 3:17). And He will do immeasurably more than we ask or even imagine. 'Things which eye saw not, and ear heard not, and which entered not into the heart of man, whatsoever things God prepared for them that love Him' (1 Cor. 2:9). They will be revealed to us and we will enjoy them through the Spirit, 'the power that worketh in us'.

Creating, renewing, strengthening, empowering and transforming.

'Unto Him be the glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever. Amen.' What a glorious end to this short but beautiful prayer! All that we do, all that we desire, all that we pray for should be for the glory of God and His Son, Jesus Christ. 'We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves' (2 Cor. 4:7). 'For of Him, and through Him, and unto Him are all things. To Him be the glory for ever. Amen' (Rom. 11:36).

'That the Father may be glorified. Here is the supreme motive for all praying. When my motive for asking is the same as His for answering, I'm on praying ground' .*

Was Paul's prayer answered? Of course! The saints at Ephesus certainly knew the blessing of God as a result of Paul's prayer, but for how long? God loves to answer prayers like this, but too often He can't answer as He would like because those being prayed for are not ready, or willing, to receive the blessings requested. Paul's prayers were brought to an abrupt end a few years after this letter was written when, it is believed, he was beheaded at Rome for the testimony of Jesus. Such praying would be sadly missed and when we go to Revelation chapter 2 we learn the spiritual state of the Church of God in Ephesus some thirty years later. The saints were putting in a lot of work and effort, they were doing things 'according to the book' but they had left their 'first love' (Rev. 2:4). They had left the very thing that Paul prayed earnestly for. The Christ, who is Son over God's house (Heb. 3:6), who walks up and down in the midst of the lampstands, called them to repent and 'do the first works' (Rev. 2:5).

Their priorities needed to be reordered to line up with Paul's prayer -work motivated by love; love for Christ, and service done for the glory of God. Although persistent in service, strong in order and discipline, their love for Christ had gone cold. We ought to learn from their mistakes. We know what we need to do. Personally and collectively we must continue steadfastly to bow our knees to the Father and pray for all the saints that God will enrich all of our lives with Christ.

Bibliography: 'All the quotations are taken from Don't Just Stand There, Pray Something by Ronald Dunn.

Lindsay Woods, Cullybackey, Northern Ireland | Sept 1996
Paul's Prison Prayers