Paul's Prayers, #11

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Eph. 3:14-21)

Paul's prayers in Ephesians are some of the most eloquent and theologically rich passages in all of Scripture. Each one is a gold mine just waiting to be discovered, and I encourage you to explore the depths and find many jewels!

This passage gets to the heart of our walk. In Ephesians, Paul addresses three basic topics: Sit (our position in Christ); Walk (live out our faith); Stand (stay firm in our faith). This prayer is in the "walk" section of the book - so Paul is asking God for things that will help with their walk.

Paul asks that God will give them strength with power through His Spirit - but for some very specific reasons:
* So Christ will dwell in their hearts through faith
* So they would have strength to comprehend the love of Christ so they will be filled with the fullness of God

Paul then reminds them that God is able to do more than we think because of His power at work within us - the power, as he outlined in ch. 1, that raised Jesus from the grave. Again, resurrection power at work in our walk!

What Paul is getting at is not knowledge for knowledge' sake ... it is knowledge for the sake of effective ministry. Knowledge for their walk. Knowledge for the glory of God. They have to know His love, His fullness, His amazing power, in order to walk the way he is going to outline that they should walk, and in order to minister the way he charged them to minister.

How does this relate to becoming world Christians? We need to pray for our missionaries, our churches, and ourselves to be strengthened and know more of His love, His fullness, His power. We need constant reminders of His greatness, because our human default is always to self-absorption and self-promotion. Without the focus this prayer gives, we are prone to either despair (when things go poorly) or pride (when they go well). Additionally, we need to be filled with His power - and so we need the strength to handle that. We need to be overwhelmed with His love - and that, too, takes strength.

Prayer: Father, please give us the strength to bear as much of Your love as You want to reveal. Give us Your power through Your Spirit, and help us comprehend more of You. Then use us, our churches, and our missionaries, in ways beyond we can ask or think.