We continue with our series on the apostolic prayers of Paul. Also see Part One.
Ephesians 3
Ephesians 3:14-21 14 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 from 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 through His Spirit in the inner man,
17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height–
19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,
21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
The family of God
In vs. 14 Paul again directs his prayer to the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus taught us to pray to the Father in His name (John 16:26; Matthew 6:6).
Vs. 15 “…from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named”.
Firstly, we are a part of a great family of believers stretching back through the whole history of mankind. This family includes not only our fellow believers in Jesus, but also our Jewish brethren going all the way back to the time of Abraham, and even before that.
We are named sons and daughters of God. The whole concept of family comes from Father God.
We are called Christians, first in Acts 11:26. At first it was actually applied by outsiders as a derogatory term. It wasn’t until after the time of the apostles that believers adopted the term for themselves, and began to wear the name proudly.
Strengthened in the inner man
Vs. 16 appeals for a grant, a bestowment, to come from the riches of His glory. Remember from Ephesians 1:18 that Paul prayed we would have a revelation of the riches of His glory.
“…to be strengthened with might [Gr. Dumamis: ability, power, and strength] through His Spirit in the inner man.”
That “inner man” is our own human spirit, that the Holy Spirit indwells. In a sense the Holy Spirit is strengthening His “home” in us.
Vs. 17 “…that Christ might dwell [AMP: settle down, abide, make His permanent home] in your hearts…”
We’ve spoken of what the heart is in other places. Hebrews 4:12 describes is as the division, or boundary, between soul and spirit. It contains elements of each.
1 Peter 3:4 4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.
I’ve heard it taught that the heart and spirit are one and the same. But that to me contradicts other teachings, even by the same people who say the heart is the spirit, where they say the spirit is recreated in the image of God and is perfected and holy. That is a true statement.
But then what do you do with scriptures like Hebrews 3:12?
Hebrews 3:12 12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;
Peter speaks of “…the hidden person of the heart”, not the “hidden person which is the heart”. The spirit is contained within the heart, but the heart also contains parts of the soul. It has elements of both. Believing is an action that takes place in the heart (Romans 10:10, “…for with the heart one believes…”).
Vs. 17 “…that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.”
Faith and doubt both involve believing. We normally think of doubt as the absence of faith, but it it is not a lack of believing – it is believing the wrong thing.
Ephesians 3:17 Passion Then, by constantly using your faith, the life of Christ will be released deep inside you…
Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. We can turn that around and say that faith pleases God. We can see Jesus’ delight in the gospels when He encountered people who had great faith, such as the centurion who said “Speak the word only and my servant will be healed”. Or the Syro-Phoenician woman who said even the dogs get to eat of the crumbs under their master’s table.
What is faith? Faith believes in who God is and what He says. It then takes action and alters behavior based on that belief.
But faith also is believing in who you are – what God has made you, what you can do in Him. And then acting like it.
Rooted
Vs. 17: “…that you, being rooted and grounded in love…
Rooted, grounded, established: having a stable foundation. In Mark 4, the parable of the sower, Jesus speaks of the group of people that had no root in themselves. As a result they had no endurance, and were not able to stand firm when circumstances and opposition came.
Think of a tree. The roots are a bas from which the tree draws nourishment, and strength and ability from. The roots going deep enable it to stand in a storm.
Jesus also talked about the importance of a firm foundation when he spoke the parable of two houses, one built on said and one on the rock. The same storm hit the two houses; one was destroyed and the other not even shaken. What did He liken to the house built on the rock? Those who heard His words and did then. (See Doing the sayings of Jesus).
Know the love
What are we to be rooted and grounded in? “…in love”.
Galatians 5:6 Faith works by love
1 Corinthians 13:13 Faith, hope, and love remain – but the greatest is love
1 John 4:7-11 God is love
In John 3:16, called the gospel in a nutshell, God’s whole motivation for sending Jesus was love.
John 3:16-17 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
Whole books can be (and have been) written about God’s love. Paul prays that we take root in that love.
1 John 4:16 16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.
Vs. 18 “…that you may be able to comprehend…” AMP: that you may have the power and be strong to apprehend and grasp.
Able: to have full strength, be entirely competent.
Paul then uses words to help convey the vastness and magnitude of that love – “.. the whole width and length and depth and height…” He wants you to get the idea that it is big.
Passion …the great magnitude of the astonishing love of Christ in all its dimensions.
“…to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge”
There is a difference between comprehending something and knowing something. To comprehend is to understand about something. The word know (Gr. Gnosko) is intimate relational knowledge, that involves experience. Think of comprehending as academically learning about something, whereas knowing is to live and experience it.
It is interesting that Paul prays that we would come to know the love of Christ, then he says that love surpasses understanding. We will always be learning and delving deeper into that love, even throughout eternity.
Ephesians 3:19 Living Bible 19 and to experience this love for yourselves, though it is so great that you will never see the end of it or fully know or understand it.
The fullness of God
“…that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
Say what?
If God is love, and you are filled with His love, then you are full of God.
But it says filled with all the fullness of God. How could we even contain it? The reality is, we cannot. But we can have every inch of our being filled with God.
AMP …may have the richest measure of His divine presence, and become a body wholly filled and flooded with God Himself.
Above all we ask or think
Paul prayed big prayers – so much so that when you actually see what he is saying you would say “no way that could happen”. But then, almost in anticipation of our reaction, he goes on to say
Ephesians 3:20 20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think,
Paul knew he was talking big things beyond human comprehension – but God is not limited to human ability. His power to bring revelation is as great as His power to save – we just have to put ourselves in the position to receive it.
“…according to the power that works in us.”
If you are filled with the fullness of God, then there is great power within you, in the Person of the Holy Spirit.
If God wanted to put limits on our vision, He did a pretty poor job of conveying that in the scriptures. Everything Paul is praying is to increase our vision and awareness of what we have been called to and is available.
Closing praise
Ephesians 3:21 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
And we say Amen to and agree with that also!
