Bible Studies at Bristol Road

Baptist Church

Life in the Body of Christ

EPHESIANS
STUDY SIX : THE PRAYER

Chapter 3 14-21

David A. Green BD
March 2003
 Ephesians
Life in the Body of Christ

Study No. 6

PAUL THE PRAYER

Chapter 3 verses 14-21
14
For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom his whole family in heaven
and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may
strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ
may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and
established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how
wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that
surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of
God.
20
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and
in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

This is not the first prayer of Paul in this letter. It is worth placing both prayers side
by side: Chapter 1 15-19, and our passage 3 14-21
15
For this reason, ever since I heard about
your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for
all the saints, 16 I have not stopped giving
thanks for you, remembering you in my
prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may
give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation,
so that you may know him better. 18 I pray
also that the eyes of your heart may be
enlightened in order that you may know the
hope to which he has called you, the riches of
his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and
his incomparably great power for us who
believe.
14
For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15
from whom his whole family in heaven and
on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of
his glorious riches he may strengthen you
with power through his Spirit in your inner
being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your
hearts through faith. And I pray that you,
being rooted and established in love, 18 may
have power, together with all the saints, to
grasp how wide and long and high and deep
is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love
that surpasses knowledge—that you may be
filled to the measure of all the fullness of
God.
20
Now to him who is able to do
immeasurably more than all we ask or
imagine, according to his power that is at
work within us, 21 to him be glory in the
church and in Christ Jesus throughout all
generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

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Life in the Body of Christ

(You might also want to take this exercise a stage further and compare the prayers
in Colossians, Ephesians and Philippians – and for that reason I have printed them
out for you side by side.)

Notice than in both the prayers in this book Paul links his praying to their experience
and their need. Both prayers begin with the phrase “For this reason…” – as indeed
does the prayer in Colossians.

Both prayers present a broadly similar range of requests centred in the indwelling
Christ.

Both focus on the power of God.

Here are the strands of each prayer teased out:

OPENING PRAYER THIS PRAYER

that God may give you.. wisdom…so that He may strengthen you with
that you may know Him better power through His Spirit…

that your heart may be enlightened … that Christ may dwell in your hearts
to know Him better

the eyes of your heart...be enlightened be rooted and established in love

…to know the hope …to know the love of Christ…

…the riches …his love that surpasses knowledge

…the power …filled (with) the fullness of God

The doxology.

Of course it is all about KNOWING CHRIST and THE POWER OF CHRIST – and that
reaches a crescendo in the doxology which has already occupied us this year in our
motto text.1

So in this study we can allow ourselves the luxury of a closer examination of the
words of this prayer – verses 14 – 19.
1
Sermon: “Immeasurably more…” 29 Dec 2002 am

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 Ephesians
Life in the Body of Christ
14
For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom his whole familya in heaven and
on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with
power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts
through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power,
together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of
Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the
measure of all the fulness of God.

In these six verses we have much to learn about the way Paul prayed, as well as his
prayer requests for this group of believers.

The attitude of his praying “I kneel…”

The focus of his praying “the Father….”
The subject of his praying knowing Christ deeply and fully
The climax of his praying the doxology of verses 20 and 21

The Attitude of Paul’s Praying

“For this reason I kneel before the Father….”

This is not the common attitude of a Jew praying. You will remember the story that
Jesus told about the Pharisee and the publican at prayer. Both are standing. Luke 8
11,13. Compare this with Mk 11:25:
24
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And
when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive
you your sins.”

(In Gen 18 22 – Abraham stands and 1Chron 17 6 – David sits)

In the New Testament “bending the knee” is used of homage or worship – and then
only by Paul, and in each case as part of an Old Testament quotation. (Ro 11:3; Ro
14:11; Phil 2:10 – quoting from 1Kings and Isaiah.)

Clearly Paul wants to stress the force of his praying, like his Master in Mt 26 19.
Psalm 95 v 6 comes to mind:
6
Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;
7
for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.

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The Focus of Paul’s Praying the Father

14
For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom his whole family in heaven and
on earth derives its name.

Paul reminds us that prayer is addressed to the Father. The pattern prayer reminds
us of that. There is little evidence of prayer addressed “to” Jesus, and even less of
prayer addressed “to” the Holy Spirit. It is a family conversation – and this is borne
out by the verse that follows.

If you are using the AV or the NKJV you will know that the translators have included
the phrase “of our Lord Jesus Christ” – most translations leave that phrase out, not
because it is not appropriate – but because there is little textual warrant for it. But
what is striking is the description of the Father that follows:

From whom his whole family in heaven and earth derives its name NIV NKJV

From whom every family in heaven and on earth is named RSV

Paul has used the phrase “Father of glory” or “glorious Father” in the earlier prayer –
here he expands on that to embrace the godly in every generation. (Although some
have tried to see a reference to the heavenly “family” of angelic beings in glory.)

The word used is that from which we obtain PATRIARCH – and a reference to
Abraham in Genesis 12 2 and 3 is appropriate:
2
“I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”

Our Lord’s commentary on the Fatherhood of God is found in John 8 – where the
reference to Abraham and the family of God is spoken about clearly.

God is the God of relationships – and from Him every concept and rule of family and
earthly groupings derives. The sense of family is important in Paul’s stress on unity.

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The subject of Paul’s Praying

16
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his
Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray
that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the
saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know
this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fulness of
God.

One sentence across four verses, which revisits Paul’s favourite word in this letter
“riches” and concentrates upon the work of the power of God in the believer.

This is indeed at the heart of “Life in the Body of Christ” which we have taken for our
title to this series.

The central thoughts are expressed in the verbs:

strengthen 16
indwell 17
have power 18
grasp 18
know 19

and summed up in the closing phrase before the doxology:

“Filled with all the fulness of God.”

Paul is asking for this group of Christians a deeper knowledge of God and to that
end he asks the Father to empower them as only He can.

In that sense his prayer here directly mirrors his earlier prayer that God will give
them the “spirit of wisdom and revelation” (Ch.1 v 17). It is – as our Lord Himself
told us “the Father’s good pleasure to GIVE us the Kingdom” – so Paul is building his
prayer upon the very character of God and the promise of God to give.

If you look at these verses in a different way you will see where the work of God is
focussed:

in your inner being

in your hearts
in your minds (“..to know…”)

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Life in the Body of Christ

We must not separate the reality of God’s working into aspects that appeal either to
heart (emotions) or mind (knowing and grasping) for we are created to feel and to
know, to experience and to “grasp” the rich giving of the Father.

Neither must we perceive of this work of God as something for the individual only. As
elsewhere in the letter Paul wants us to “have power, together with all the saints…”
(18) (see also the earlier prayer, also verse 18 in chapter 1) The work of God is
seen here “in the heart” as it was in Chapter 2 an indwelling by the Spirit of the
Church as temple of God.

How easily as individual believers we distinguish between the way God works in our
emotional feeling beings and our intellectual and reasoning activities – but God
wants to possess the whole not the part.

How easily too as individual believers we focus on the work of God with us as
individuals and fail to see that His is a FAMILY WORK with the whole Body of Christ.

Perhaps in the light of Paul’s prayer we should ask searching questions about our
experience of the power of God in our lives:

How do I recognise His strengthening me in my inner being?

How am I aware of Christ dwelling in my heart through faith?

How am I rooted and established in love?

How much do I know of the power that helps me to explore all the dimensions
of the love of Christ?

In short:

How do I know that I am filled to the measure of all the fulness of God?

I believe that we do experience the work of the Spirit at a deep personal level, we do
know the indwelling Christ in our individual lives through faith – but there are deeper
and more wonderful realities waiting to be experienced – not in isolation – but “WITH
ALL THE SAINTS”.

All of our society concentrates on the personal and the individual – and this affects
our spiritual lives too. We can and do experience God in our hearts – but we are in
danger of missing out on the blessings that come to the family together.

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Life in the Body of Christ

Paul’s requests for the Ephesians show us the possibilities that exist within the
Father heart of God for us – less as individuals and more as part of the Body of
Christ.

He is praying for “Life in the Body of Christ”

His requests from the middle of verse 17 are to be answered in the Church together:

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together
with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and
to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the
fulness of God.

We have been reminded about revival recently. That is a phenomenon of the

Church together isn’t it? Yes, God can revive my slow, unfeeling, unresponsive
heart – but revival is a function of the Holy Spirit at work in the Body of Christ. It is
something He does in His family – in His people – in The Church.

I doubt very much if we may hope to see Paul’s prayers for us answered if we
remain divided, or preoccupied with individual matters.

Being rooted and established in love is something which is to be seen when I know
the riches of Christ applied to me within the body of fellow believers.

That’s where love is tested – and where it grows.

I may have power – but God intends me to have it “together with all the saints”
so that – AS A GROUP we may grasp how immense is the Love of Christ, and know
not just for myself – but for the CHURCH AS A WHOLE the love that surpasses one
man’s knowledge.

So I suggest to you that there are things God longs to do for us that will only be
realised as we recognise our part within the whole, as we are “rooted and
established in love”. We return to another earlier sermon – “And have not love”2
so that we may have that uniquely shared power that belongs to the saints together
to know what would otherwise remain beyond our knowledge “His love … filled to the
measure of all the fulness of God.”

And where are we most likely to find that? When we are together. In worship – at
His table – in a common desire to pray down the blessing of God upon us – no
2
Sermon 16 Feb 2003 AM 1 Cor 13.

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longer separated by distance or age or differing backgrounds – but brought together

in both WORSHIP and CORPORATE PRAYER.

Paul – who was uniquely placed to see the Lord at work in His church – in His
churches – whether at Corinth or Rome or Colossae or Philippi or Ephesus – prays
these great supplications for the believers he knows – because he recognises that
that is what the Father desires for His family.

And so the requests mounting up to God and finding an echo in the great Heart of
the Almighty provoke from the apostle:

The Climax of Paul’s Praying verses 20-21

20
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and
in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

A great doxology – a paean of praise.

He does not conclude:

All this is highly unlikely

All this is unreasonable to expect
All this is beyond the grasp of these people

No!

He concludes this is what God Himself desires

the IMMEASURABLY MORE.

The work not of a few enthusiasts,

or a few active believers,
or a handful of dedicated workers,

but the work of

HIS POWER THAT IS AT WORK WITHIN US!

To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus – Amen!

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COLOSSIANS
CHAP 1 : 3 We always thank God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
when we pray for you, 4 because we
have heard of your faith in Christ
Jesus and of the love you have for all
the saints— 5 the faith and love that
spring from the hope that is stored up
for you in heaven and that you have
already heard about in the word of
truth, the gospel 6 that has come to
you. All over the world this gospel is
bearing fruit and growing, just as it
has been doing among you since the
day you heard it and understood
God’s grace in all its truth. 7 You
learned it from Epaphras, our dear
fellow-servant, who is a faithful
minister of Christ on our behalf, 8 and
who also told us of your love in the
Spirit.
9 For this reason, since the day
we heard about you, we have not
stopped praying for you and asking
God to fill you with the knowledge of
his will through all spiritual wisdom
and understanding. 10 And we pray
this in order that you may live a life
worthy of the Lord and may please
him in every way: bearing fruit in
every good work, growing in the
knowledge of God, 11 being
strengthened with all power
according to his glorious might so
that you may have great endurance
and patience, and joyfully 12 giving
thanks to the Father, who has
qualified you to share in the
inheritance of the saints in the
kingdom of light. 13 For he has
rescued us from the dominion of
darkness and brought us into the
kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in
whom we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins.
Ephesians
Life in the Body of Christ
EPHESIANS PHILIPPIANS
CHAP1 : 15 For this reason, ever since I CHAP 1 : 3 I thank my God every
heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus time I remember you. 4 In all my
and your love for all the saints, 16 I have prayers for all of you, I always pray
not stopped giving thanks for you, with joy 5 because of your partnership
remembering you in my prayers. 17 I in the gospel from the first day until
keep asking that the God of our Lord
now, 6 being confident of this, that he
Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may
give you the Spirita of wisdom and
who began a good work in you will
revelation, so that you may know him carry it on to completion until the day
better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your of Christ Jesus.
7 It is right for me to feel this way
heart may be enlightened in order that
you may know the hope to which he has about all of you, since I have you in
called you, the riches of his glorious my heart; for whether I am in chains
inheritance in the saints, 19 and his or defending and confirming the
incomparably great power for us who gospel, all of you share in God’s
believe. That power is like the working of grace with me. 8 God can testify how
his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted I long for all of you with the affection
in Christ when he raised him from the
of Christ Jesus.
dead and seated him at his right hand in 9 And this is my prayer: that your
the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule
and authority, power and dominion, and love may abound more and more in
every title that can be given, not only in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so
the present age but also in the one to that you may be able to discern what
come. 22 And God placed all things is best and may be pure and
under his feet and appointed him to be blameless until the day of Christ, 11
head over everything for the church, 23 filled with the fruit of righteousness
which is his body, the fulness of him who that comes through Jesus Christ—to
fills everything in every way. the glory and praise of God.
-----
CHAP 3 14
For this reason I kneel
before the Father, 15 from whom his
whole family in heaven and on earth
derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his
glorious riches he may strengthen you
with power through his Spirit in your
inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in Key:
your hearts through faith. And I pray that Thanksgiving
you, being rooted and established in Intercession
love, 18 may have power, together with Doxology
all the saints, to grasp how wide and
long and high and deep is the love of
Christ, 19 and to know this love that
surpasses knowledge—that you may be
filled to the measure of all the fullness of
God.
20 Now to him who is able to do
immeasurably more than all we ask or
imagine, according to his power that is
at work within us, 21 to him be glory in
the church and in Christ Jesus
throughout all generations, for ever and
ever! Amen.
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