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Pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus and in the power of the Spirit.
Ephesians 3:14-21 14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 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, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
How do you pray? Do you pray with purpose? Do you know what “praying with purpose” means?
Over the last 25 years in ministry, I have heard hundreds of thousands of prayers from people of various nationalities and backgrounds. I have concluded that most people think “praying with purpose” means a list of your personal needs or the needs of others. If that’s what you believe “praying with purpose” means, then you are missing out on experiencing the full power and potential of prayer.
The problem is that most people pray without the purpose for which the gift of prayer exists. They need to know that Satan would do anything to keep them in ignorance so that they may never learn to pray with purpose and fail to experience the full power and potential of prayer.
Paul did not want his readers to miss out on experiencing the full power and potential of prayer. So, like a good mentor, Paul showed in Ephesians 3:14-21 what it means to pray with purpose. He did not list his personal needs or the needs of the reader, but rather prayed that the readers may be filled with the fullness of God as in verse 19, “and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
The big idea is this: if we want to realize the full power and potential of prayer, then we need to learn to pray with purpose so that we may be filled with the fullness of God. A close examination of Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21 reveals understanding the three divine truths about the Triune God: the power of the Holy Spirit, the presence of Christ, and the plan of God. Today, we will look at the power of the Spirit and continue with the following two next time.
The Power of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 3:14-16)
Ephesians 3:14 says, “For this reason, I bow my knees before the Father.”
To Whom Should We Pray?
To whom is Paul praying? He is praying to God the Father. For some of us, it might be obvious but not to new believers. New believers need help. This letter was originally written to relatively new Gentile believers in Ephesus, a city known for its religious devotion to idols, especially Artemis, an ancient idol goddess. The worship of Artemis included rituals, sorcery, divination, astrology, and sexual acts. The Ephesians practiced all of that, including magic. They had books known as Ephesians letters that explained symbols and contained instructions on how to talk with spirits. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul wanted them to know how to talk with God, the creator of everything.
The same verse in other translations, in KJV says, “For this cause, I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Most scholars believe “of our Lord Jesus Christ” was a later addition. Nevertheless, all Bible scholars agree that “of our Lord Jesus Christ” is implied here.
Why does praying to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ matter?
Reason #1. Praying to the Father of our Lord Christ points to a personal relationship with God. Prayer has been practiced as a spiritual discipline throughout history in every culture. However, this doesn’t mean people have been praying to the living God of the Bible. Even in the Old Testament, though people prayed to the God of the Bible, they hardly understood their relationship with God. He was a distant God who needed mediators between Him and His people. So, most of the time, people saw God as judge, jury, executioner, and a consuming fire. In Christ, not only could they approach God directly, but also they could call Him, “Father.”
Reason # 2. Praying to the Father of our Lord Christ points to a progressional revelation of God. Even though the idea of God being the Father existed in the Hebrew scriptures, it was not fully revealed how God could be the Father until the new revelation was given in and through Christ. Therefore, when the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, Jesus taught them to pray to “Our Father in Heaven.” God became our heavenly Father because of His Son, Jesus, and His sacrifice on the cross.
Reason # 3. Praying to the Father of our Lord Christ points to the possessional reach in God. The main point of the first half of Ephesians, chapters 1-3, is God’s grace, how God, before the foundation of the earth, in Christ, chose us to be His family, whether Jews or Gentiles, and made us co-heirs with Jesus and declared us His possession and Him ours. Therefore, verse 15 says, “from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named.” In Christ, we are one family of God. So, Paul, like a good mentor, tells and shows the readers to whom they should pray. Like Paul, we should always pray to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and not some saint or a version of God who has no Son. For example, Muslims say they believe in the same God that we believe in yet they say the Islamic God, Allah has no Son.
A purposeful prayer is powerful when it is offered to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, with an emphasis on our Lord Jesus Christ. If Jesus is not our Lord, God cannot be our Father.
Like Paul we need to mentor others by teaching and modeling a prayer-filled life.
Why Should We Pray?
The answer lies in the context of the phrase “for this reason” in verse 14. Paul’s reason, or purpose, for prayer was neither his needs nor the needs of the readers. It was knowing God’s grace in Christ Jesus through the power of His Spirit. In Ephesians 3:1-13, Paul said that his imprisonment is for Christ and the spread of the gospel. He wanted the readers to know there is a greater purpose in his afflictions and they should not lose their hearts over his suffering.
We read that in verse13. Paul spent three years in Ephesus preaching the gospel and God brought a small group of people to the saving knowledge of His Son, Jesus. This small group of Christians grew into a significant number that became a threat to the city’s idol-making industry, resulting in the persecution of Christians. Paul puts persecution and affliction into perspective for them. So, the purpose of Paul’s prayer is their growth and practice of faith.
How Should We Pray?
In Ephesians 3:14, Paul writes, “I bow my knees before the Father.” Among the Jews, praying was a common practice. However, they prayed while standing. Whenever we see kneeling in the Old Testament, we see it as a physical expression of deep emotional distress, humility, or earnestness. Kneeling in prayer is more of a Christian practice in which posture communicates our attitude and the state of the heart, mind, and being.
Since the readers cannot see Paul’s intense labor in prayer, through his writing, he shows the state of his mind, heart, and very being on their behalf. His posture in prayer provides us insight into what makes a prayer a purposeful prayer.
With Involvement. A purposeful prayer goes beyond casual mention of “praying for you.” Today, we are so busy in our lives that when we receive a text from someone in dire need of prayer, often all we write back is, “praying” or we just send a prayer emoji. That does not involve our being, our mind, and our heart.
With Intention. A prayer with purpose has a clear focus or goals in mind.
With Investment. Praying with purpose requires an investment of time and emotions. Consequently, it fosters a new attitude within us that helps us recognize God’s sovereignty over both the physical and spiritual realms. The more investment we make, the more gain we withdraw. A prayer with purpose taps into the promise and power of God that is reserved for the saints for the glory of God. This done through the power of the Holy Spirit. Verse 16 says, “that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being.”
Notice the first goal, or target, of Paul’s prayer is that God may grant them to be strengthened with power through the Holy Spirit in their inner being. He starts with praying to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and ends with the Holy Spirit.
Do you see how the Triune God shows up in his prayers?
Why is Paul praying for the strength of the inner being by the power of the Spirit? Because that is the place and point where Sanctification originates. Sanctification is the job of the Holy Spirit and that should be the purpose of our prayer always.
What is sanctification? It is a lifelong process that begins as soon as we are saved. The moment we confess our sins and accept Jesus, our Lord, and Savior, the Holy Spirit comes into our lives and begins the lifelong process of making us more like Christ. Paul’s prayer that they may be filled with the fullness of God is a prayer for sanctification.
We are filled with the Spirit of God the moment we become Christians. Without the filling of the Spirit of God, we would not be Christian. The filling of the fullness of God in Ephesians 3:19 refers to the experiential knowledge of the filling of the fullness of God. That is what the Holy Spirit essentially does through sanctification. All of this starts with praying with purpose by knowing what prayer is, who we should pray to, and how we should pray.
When I was 22, God allowed me to lead a man from a Sikh background to Jesus. He knew how to pray in Sikhism, but he asked me how to pray as a Christian. I said, now, in Jesus, God is your Father, so just talk to Him the way you would talk to your dad.
I will never forget his first prayer; he said, “God, this brother tells me that You are my Father now, so I am praying to you, my Father.”
A new Muslim convert asked me the same question. Her problem was that she was not sure who to pray to, God the Father, God the Son, or God the Holy Spirit. I didn’t give her some theological answer. Rather, I said, “You will learn as you grow in Christ,” but for now, “Pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus and in the power of the Spirit.”
Application
Like Paul, let’s pray with purpose— not a list of needs, but rather a desire to be filled with the fullness of God. Let’s involve ourselves emotionally, mentally, and spiritually in praying with purpose. Let’s be intentional about investing time, emotions, and our very being in praying with purpose.
Imagine you had a magic pill that would heal any disease, fix any broken relationship, and even raise the dead to life. Prayer is that divine gift. It can move the heart of God.
Action Step
Take a bold step in faith and commit to praying with the purpose that the Holy Spirit may fill us with the fullness of God.
Appeal
Commit five days next week and pray every day for about five minutes for the people on the prayer cards that you took (if you don’t have one of the prayer cards, pray for someone in the congregation who the Holy Spirit brings to mind). All our prayers should have a clear goal that they may be filled with the fullness of God, that is, that they may know God experientially.
Study Questions
1. The phrase “for this reason” in Ephesians 3:14 appears for the second time in this chapter. Read the context and outline possible reasons that might have caused Paul to get on his knees and pray for his readers.
2. In Ephesians 3:14-16, Paul exemplified the discipline of prayer. Discuss the nature of prayer. What is the purpose of the gift of prayer? How are we to pray? Explore the importance of physical posture in prayer.
3. In Ephesians 3:14-21, Paul’s prayer focuses on the sanctification of believers. Discuss the doctrine of sanctification and the purpose behind Paul’s prayer for the readers’ sanctification. Consider the concept of strengthening the “inner being” through the power of the Holy Spirit in verse 16. What is the inner being? And what role does the Holy Spirit play in this process?
Deeper Study Questions
1. How do you pray? Do you follow recitations or pray from the heart? How much of your prayers do you spend bargaining with God, asking for personal needs or those of others, demanding that God act swiftly? And how much time do you spend in prayer to know God, be led by Him, and live for Him?
2. How important is prayer to you and what role does it play in your personal and family life? Share examples.
3. If you took a prayer commitment card on Sunday, please take a few minutes and pray for the people on your prayer card as a group as you pray for each family.
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