The Book of Ephesians is my favorite epistle. It was written to a church established in a hotbed of demonic activity and witchcraft. The theology of Ephesians is so wide-ranging that notable Christian scholars like F.F. Bruce and John Stott have drawn parallels between Ephesians and the Pentateuch. Ephesians provides us with some of the most detailed information on spiritual warfare and the unseen realm. In addition to the profound theology,
Ephesians records some incredible prayers that, like the Psalms, are worth repeating and making our own. This includes Ephesians 1:17-19 and Ephesians 3:16-20. This blog will take a close look at just one verse:
Ephesians 3:16 - "I pray that according to the wealth of his glory, he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person."
First, some context is in order. This prayer, starting in verse 14 and going through verse 21, is sandwiched between two profound slices of the choicest theological bread. On the top (3:1-13) is the incredible revelation of the divine secret and how it was kept from the principalities and powers of the unseen realm until just the right time. It explains how the Gentiles would be included in the kingdom of God, taken from those rulers, and adopted as children of God. Jesus pulled off an incredible coup, and Paul is going to elaborate on it throughout the whole book. The bottom slice (4:1-16) is about the importance of unity in the Church. It explains that God gave certain spiritual gifts to assist in bringing about unity and teaching up the body of Christ until that unity is achieved. It also provides more details about the triumphal demonstrations that occurred in the unseen realm during Jesus' coup.
So why does this sandwich matter? Paul is limited by words here, but he is trying to convey the absolutely incredible thing that we are a part of! The principalities of the unseen realms just had their citizens offered new citizenship in the kingdom of God, and they can’t stop it. We are part of an incredible coup in the heavenly realms and here on earth. We are going to need strength to be involved in this coup because the enemy, though defeated, is not going to disappear.
Now, let's look at this one verse of the prayer:
Paul prays according to the wealth of God’s glory. Why do this? There is no limit to God’s glory. Glory is used to describe His magnificence, splendor, radiance, and excellence. Paul has just discussed this in the upper slice of theological bread. It is profound, unending, and without limit. My dear brothers and sisters reading this, I pray that God allows you a glimpse of this. Words fall short of describing it.
So, with that glory in mind, Paul prays that we would be strengthened with power. We are going to need a lot of it. We are engaged in battle with an unseen enemy for as long as we are alive on earth and beyond until the enemy is destroyed in the final judgment. Paul will elaborate on what that looks like in Chapter 6:12 and beyond. Like it or not, we have joined the biggest and longest ongoing war in the history of creation, and we are expected to be active participants in it. There is no room for cowards in the kingdom of God (Rev 21:8). Here’s the deal, though: We want the power of God, not the power of flesh. Our flesh is limited. However, if we are born again, we have a divine aspect within us that is joined with God’s Spirit, our born-again spirit. Our old spirit was dead and passed, but we have a new spirit born of the Spirit!
So, Paul continues... with power through His Spirit in the inner person. This is how the unlimited power of God is shared with each of His children. It is through the Spirit that we are born and that indwells us. This Spirit gives us superpowers. It enables us to do battle in the unseen realm, to understand things about God that the natural mind cannot comprehend, and to see things that natural eyes cannot perceive. It enlightens the eyes of our hearts and provides us with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
It's an amazing prayer even in just this one verse. The verse alone is worth lifting to God as a prayer for us and others. Even better, though, is to take the whole prayer in 3:14-21 and make it your own. I pray this prayer for each person who reads this:
Ephesians 3:14-21 NET:
"For this reason, I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on the earth is named. I pray that, according to the wealth of His glory, He may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who, by the power that is working within us, is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."
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