Ephesians 3:14-16

Day 26

“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man” Ephesians 3:14-16

For this Reason
The causal prepositional phrase “for this reason” draws our attention to the verses that came immediately before this prayer.  For what reason does Paul launch his prayer for the church?  “For this reason I bow my knees” follows the revelation of God’s plan to incorporate Gentiles into the church.  This prayer comes after Paul’s revelation that God chose him to be the primary spokesperson for declaring this plan to the Gentiles.  Paul also revealed the honor of suffering for the name of Christ, especially for the sake of proclaiming this plan to the Gentiles.  All of these glorious truths prompted Paul to get on his knees and pray to God the Father on behalf of the church.  Paul added a prepositional phrase to the title “the Father.”  Paul described God the Father as the One “from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.”  Jews and Gentiles have the same Creator and Savior.  Paul just finished his defense of this grand theology that Gentiles are full members of the church without converting to Judaism.  Not surprisingly Paul chose to address his prayer to the God “from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.”  “There is One God and Father of all” as Paul stated later in this letter, in Ephesians 4.  We all share the same Creator and the same Savior.  He is Lord of all and He invites us to come to Him in prayer.

Strengthened with Power through His Spirit
The Ephesian believers were struggling with guilt because of Paul’s plight.  His arrest and trials were due to his preaching to the Gentiles.  Their sense of being responsible for Paul’s imprisonment caused them some serious doubts.  Left to our own power and controlled by our circumstances, fear naturally becomes a prevailing battle for our hearts and minds.  Paul prayed for strength, but not a self-realized strength, not a self-actualized strength.  Paul prayed for the believers to experience a strength beyond their own ability.  The Holy Spirit plays a critical role in our salvation.  The power of the Spirit of God brings dead sinners to life.  However, the Spirit’s power in our lives does not cease at the point of conversion.  As Paul described in chapter 1, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in the life of the Christian.  At the moment we believe, the Spirit of God indwells us then and for all eternity.  Jesus told His disciples, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”  (John 14:16-17)  The Holy Spirit’s power manifests at our initial faith in Jesus Christ.  However, the Spirit gives us ongoing strength.  The Spirit works at the very core of our being, our “inner man.”  This reflects the heart, soul, mind, emotions, and will, our inner being where the Spirit of God dwells.  The indwelling Holy Spirit radically alters our world.  As Paul wrote to the Corinthian church,  Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? (I Corinthians 6:19)  We belong to God.  The Spirit of God dwells in us.  The Spirit of God empowers us to holy living.  “When the Holy Spirit regenerates us, He not only acts upon us and in us in a way that changes the disposition of our souls; He comes and dwells within us.  As He indwells the believer, the Spirit continues to exert His influence upon us to assist us in our pursuit of holiness.”  (The Mystery of the Holy Spirit, Sproul, page 104)  The Spirit of God empowers us to use our spiritual gifts.  The use of gifts builds up and strengthens the church.  The Spirit of God also leads and guides us.  The Spirit empowers us to be able to live free from fear and doubt, to be able to trust God in all circumstances.  

Paul prayed for the church that each one of them would be strengthened at the core of their being through the work of the Holy Spirit.  The world was unstable for the believers at that time.  Rome dominated most of the known world with its military might but also its pagan religious expressions.  Persecution of the church began to increase, putting additional strain on these spiritual exiles.  However, God did not leave them to their own devices.  They did not need to find in their own person the necessary strength to live day to day.  Instead, God poured out His Spirit upon each of them.  The indwelling Spirit gave this first century Christians the power to live worthy of their calling.  (See Ephesians 4:1-3)  The same Spirit of God that empowered them, also empowers us today.  Our strength is always insufficient.  The power of God through the work of His Spirit always provides all that we need at the very core of our being.

Suggested Prayer:  Spirit of God please empower us to live worthily in this fallen world.  Please work on me at the very center of my being, center of my very person.  Grant Your power so that my mind, heart, soul, will, and spirit would be in line with Your priorities.  Use me to advance the Kingdom of Jesus Christ by Your ever-present help.  Amen.

Ephesians