14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
20 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,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Ephesians 3:14-21
Last month we began our study on the two prayers of Paul in Ephesians chapters one and three. We looked at the prayer in Chapter 1. This month we are going to consider the prayer in Chapter 3.
For this cause, refers back to verse 13: Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you,… (June study). Paul says, I will pray for you so you do not get discouraged in view of my imprisonment.
I bow my knees
The bowing of the knees has all but been done away with in the church. There was a time the front of the church had altars and when the invitation was given sinners came and knelt at those altars and gave their heart to Jesus. Believers would follow and address issues in their life as the preached word had convicted them. There were seasons of crying, other times of great joy as those tarrying in prayer had a break-through, and some would be filled with the Holy Ghost and begin to speak in tongues. Talking about the Pentecostal church. Well eventually the altar benches were removed, preachers went to promising fame and fortune, and sinners remained sinners sitting in the pews every Sunday. Now, if anything, it’s come up and stand here at the front and a quick prayer is given so that the preacher can be the first in line at Cracker Barrel, and those who came to church looking for something the church is supposed to have, left disappointed and never came back. The goal is to make the service as short as possible, with the most time given to musical performances, and the least time given to the preaching of the Word of God. Offering time is longer than the sermon. Sunday school is out, prayer meetings have been eliminated for lack of in-terest, and so that the people don’t get too tired of God, the Sunday night services were deleted so the folks could have more freedom Sunday afternoon to get excited over football or the diversion of their choice. We want to relegate Revelation 3:20 to the sinner inviting Jesus in, but it is really talking about Jesus standing at the door of the church asking to be let back in.
Paul was still an old-fashioned1 Christian and he bowed his knees in humble posture before the Father. And he prayed. He directed his prayer to the head of the family, the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ and of those children who have gone before and those that remain.
1. Something no longer used, done, or believed by most people, because it has been replaced by something that is more modern.
He directs his request toward the inner man.
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
1. Outward, physical weakness carries its own discomforts and limitations. The weakness of the inner man also affects the outer man and while the outer man can receive relief by food, medicine, and exercise the inner man can only be renewed by God. God will use his word and prayer which can move his Spirit within us and bring the needed encouragement, comfort, and revival. Another of God’s ways to manifest his abundant glory in us is as Jude declares:
20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost.
Paul elaborates on that in 1 Corinthians 14:2,4:
2 For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.
4 He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.
This is also called prayer but is of a different dimension. It is private communication between you and God. Paul refers to it as speaking. Now, Christians can speak things to themselves that are not edifying. This kind of speaking will bring in the might of God that will dispel the spiritual malaise.
No wonder Paul concludes that lesson with:
39 Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.
You don’t have to call the prayer line. You are the prayer line. Amen.
Now, that is for those Spirit filled believers. If you ain’t one, become one.
2. Next, Paul speaks of the heart. Not the physical blood pumping organ but the spiritual inner man heart.
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,…
That Christ may make himself at home in the center and seat of your spiritual life, your heart. And that, by faith. Our faith must be totally in Christ and his work on the cross, unwaveringly. Then, our love for him must follow suit. A deep-rooted and well-founded love for him.
With that in order we are to move in to an understanding of God’s four dimensional love for us, for you and me.
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge,
So wide you can’t get around it, so long you can’t get to the end of it, so deep you can’t see the bottom of it, and so high you can’t climb over it. In other words, the love of God for all saints is immeasurable and incomprehensible.
3. That ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
That amazing love is the fulness of God we need to be filled with. The ultimate inner work of God. Paul’s prayer seems to go beyond the realm of possibility. BUT..
4. Let us read his conclusion. The final inner work:
20 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,
This oft quoted scripture which believers like to apply generally to all difficult circumstances, actually is dealing with the ability of God to answer this prayer of Paul. Paul prays for the believer to experience some mind boggling, “can I really have all this?” kind of blessings. The religious would say, “Well. It’s impossible to attain all of that. That’s just Paul praying some super spiritual prayer.” But God can make it happen even for the most skeptical. Paul is proof of that. I pray it is real for you too, and, you may want to pray these prayers over yourself and see what God can do. There is power working within you. Amen.
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Let the church say amen and give glory to the eternal God. -PJF-
And now a word from our Pastor…
Train Up a Child
Proverbs 22:1-6 provides a good list of lessons we should be teaching our children, especially as people of God.
Proverbs 22:1-6
1 A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.
A good name is worth a lot. There is nothing wrong with having a lot of money. There are many benefits to having money. Wealth is not a bad thing; however, the way you obtain wealth matters. Being dishonest in business dealings, selling stolen or illegal goods, is not the way to go for anyone, especially a believer. Do things right. Be honest. Be reliable. Be fair. In the end, it is your reputation that truly matters.
2 The rich and poor meet together: the Lord is the maker of them all.
God created everyone equally. He created us in His image. He did not create some to be poor and he did not create some to be rich. Regardless of the situations we were born into, our existence began the same: a male reproductive cell uniting with a female reproductive cell.
3 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.
Teach your children to be prudent. Guide them so they can recognize dangerous situations even when there are no signs. Do not allow your children to remain simple, foolish or ignorant. Teach them, it will save their lives.
4 By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life.
Your children will learn this by watching you, their parents. The example you live out in front of your children speaks louder than the words you speak. I could elaborate for hours on this one, but I will refrain. A life committed to Jesus Christ produces blessings. We honor the Lord in our choices and in our actions. Words alone are not enough.
5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.
Froward means willful and disobedient, crooked or deceitful. There is nothing good or prosperous for those who choose to live their lives in willful disobedience to the law or, more importantly, to the will of God.
6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
Dake’s foot note on verse 6 says: “train up or hedge in a child in the way it should go, and when his responsibility to stay in it comes, he will do so” (Dakes, 1963. p. 657).
Your job as a Godly parent is to teach your children to stay with God. When life gets rough, they will remember the Godly example lived in front of them. They will remember that Jesus loves them and died to save them. They will remember to worship the Lord in the midst of trials. They will remember to ask God for wisdom in choosing a husband or wife. They will remember that God has a divine plan. God will work things out for those who love him and are called according to His purpose. They will remember these things and they will not depart from God. -SAF-
Reference
Dake, F.J. (1963). Dake’s annotated reference Bible. Dake Publishing.
The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Proverbs 28:1
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Pastors PJ and Shirley Flores
Purpose! Ministries
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