Paul's Powerful Prayer | Ephesians 1:15-23 | Pastor John Miller

I'm gonna read just verse 15 and 16 and I want you to follow along with me Paul says we're for or for this reason I also after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the saints cease not to give thanks for you here it is making mention of you in my prayers now Paul the Apostle has from verse 3 down to verse 14 and we spent three weeks giving us a list of the blessings that are ours in Christ someone packaged it like this he blessed us immensely he chose us unconditionally he adopted us adorning lees he redeemed us graciously he forgave us completely he showed us grace lavishly he revealed his mystery wisely he granted us an inheritance eternally he sealed us permanently and he guaranteed our salvation personally those are all the blessings that top 10 blessings that God has given to us because of our position in Christ but as I said Paul now moves from the praise for the blessings that God has given us to the prayer that the eyes of our understanding or some translations have Hart might be open to know what is the hope of our calling what is the riches of our inheritance in the Saints and what is the power of God available for us to live the Christian life so Paul was in prison but his preaching in his pen and even more powerfully his prayers had great effect now I want to outline where we're gonna go and then we'll go back and cover it but in verse 15 and 16 we're gonna see the purpose Paul prayed the purpose for Paul's prayer then in verse 17 to verse 19 we see the actual petitions of Paul's prayer there's really only one petition then he breaks it down into three aspects and then verse 20 down to verse 23 we see the proof of God's power so we have first of all the purpose then the positions and then the proof of God's power first of all at verse 15 and 16 at the reason or the purpose Paul prayed go back there with me Paul says wherefore are for this reason I also after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love to all of the Saints this is what Paul did in light of that I ceased not to give thanks for you and I make mention of you in my prayers so Paul is thankful to God and he's praying to God I'm thankful for you and I'm praying for you when you think of others in the family of God do you thank God for them and do you pray for them when God brings someone to mind we should give thanks and we should give intercessory prayer so Paul is praying for them notice for the reasons verse 15 because they had faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and they had love to all the saints faith and love because they trusted the Savior and how they treated the Saints and this is kind of a dynamic duo the identifying mark of a true believer what is the true believer true believers a person that has put their faith and their trust in Jesus Christ amen we sing nothing in my hand I bring simply to thy cross I cling and that's what we do we stand alone and faith and trust in Jesus how are we saved by grace through faith Ephesians 2:8 and 9 so that's the initial faith of salvation but once you have been born again by faith then it starts a life of faith a sanctifying life of trusting God and believing in God and hoping and God for your daily needs you must put your faith in your trust and your hope and God the Bible says the just shall live by what by faith one of the greatest verses in the Bible from the book of Habakkuk the just shall live by his or her faith so Paul says look and I'm so glad that you have faith now notice what the object of their faith was the Lord Jesus he says you put your faith in the Lord Jesus again when we get to verse 17 he mentions our Lord Jesus Christ so Jesus who is Lord they put their faith in Christ as Savior and Lord and they're trusting him they're walking in him they're believing him that's the mark of a believer and then if you have genuine authentic faith in Jesus guess what happens you have love to all the saints now I looked at that word at all by the way in the Greek and I discovered it means all I was hoping it meant some or just a few or just the ones you like but it meant all the Saints to live above with the Saints and love that will be glory but to dwell below with the Saints I know brother that's another story we don't always get along in the body of Christ but we are to love one another but let me tell you what is a birthmark of the believer you know what every believer has it's a birthmark love jesus said by this shall all men know that you are my what disciples that you have love one for another love is the identifying mark of a true believer these are the two aspects we have faith in Jesus Christ and we have love to all the saints so we look up to God and faith we look out in love to the body of Christ and we are to love one another even when the Holy Spirit sheds abroad the love of God in our hearts we love all people that's one of the indications that you've been born again because you love like God if God has loved his children should be practicing love as well so for these two reasons they trusted the Savior and they treated the Saints with love and by the way when you get to Revelation chapter 2 and the Lord has a message for the church at Ephesus what sadly had they lost their first love the same church at Ephesus where Paul says I'm thankful for your faith in your love when the Lord spoke to them in Revelation he says you have left your four love so would to God that we stay in his word trusting him and then we continue to love one another so Paul was thankful and he was prayerful now before we look at the petitions of the prayer I want to remind you that you can use Paul's prayer to pray for yourself and to pray for one another I've ever got down to pray and you don't really know what to say Lord bless my wife bless my children bless my grandchildren and bless my pastor you can pray that every day if you want throw that in there he needs all the help he can get and we don't really know how to pray specifically I'm gonna give you a pattern for prayer in verse 17 down to verse 19 where Paul describes the petitions of which he is praying so we move from the purpose of prayer to the petitions of prayer let's read verse 17 to verse 19 Paul says that the god of our Lord Jesus Christ the father of glory no problem there either the refer to the father as the god of our Lord Jesus Christ remember when Jesus hung on the cross what did he say my God my God why hast thou forsaken me in his humanity sometimes the father was referred to as my God after his resurrection he says I'm gonna go back to my god and to your God so Jesus referred to the father as his God so the person that Paul is praying to and this is who we addressed prayer to is God the Father that the god of our Lord Jesus Christ the father of glory and I love that title he's the father of glory that he may give unto you and here's the petition it appears at the end of verse 17 and at the beginning of verse 18 and I really believe that he takes two ways to describe his one petition the first is he says that the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him may be given to and then secondly in verse 18 that the eyes of your understanding being enlightened that you may know now I want you to understand this passage I'm convinced after studying at many years that Paul basically has one petition and as one petition is described at the end of verse 17 that this is you have the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him and then he uses different phrases to say the same thing I want the eyes of your understanding to be enlightened basically Paul is praying there that they would experience what they already have that they would come to a fuller richer more intimate powerful personal relationship with God now notice quickly that Paul doesn't pray for their material needs he doesn't pray for their marital problems he doesn't pray for their physical ailments now it's not wrong to do that and when we have needs we'd pray but many times here's the problem that's all we do as Lord I need more money lord I need a new car Lord I need a new house Lord I need this Lord I need that it's kind of like a shopping list and Jesus name Amen I mean by Friday 3:00 o'clock lord I need help in my marriage and I need this I and I understand that God wants us to pray for those things but they should not be the priority of our prayers they should not be the passion of our hearts when Jesus taught us how to pray and what we called the Lord's Prayer that's really the disciples prayer how does it start our Father who art in heaven hallowed be thy name starts with praise praise your holy name praise should be the priority of Prayer and then it moves to petition but notice the first petition thy kingdom come Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven before we even ask God for daily bread we should ask God for his will to be done trial of God should never be afraid of the will of God it is good and acceptable and perfect and we should want God's will in every area of our lives so we start with praise and we make the priority God's kingdom and that's where Paul started now I think there's a truth here we need to catch that when we get right with God when the eyes of our understanding are open when our heart is open we understand who we are in Christ God's blessings and we are right with God we experience his power our marriage will be what it should be our health will be not an issue our finances our jobs our careers those are concerns but they pale in perspective - my relationship to God many times we're trying to treat symptoms and we want answers to our problems our crop problem is we need to be right with God we need to know him and the power of his resurrection we need to be in fellowship with him we need to be in relationship with it so important to get that perspective that my vertical relationship to God is the priority and my horizontal relationships will come into play and the balance when I'm right with God if you're working on a problem in your marriage right now get on your knees pray and spend time in his word yielding to the Holy Spirit that's my marriage counsel to you today ask God to soften your heart open your heart change your heart be willing to repent of any sin and turn to God and God will work in your marriage God will heal and work in your situation but you need to get focused right so what does Paul pray for he prays that they would know by experience what they already have Paul prays that they might know God personally intimately and powerfully go back to verse 17 the word knowledge is an interesting Greek word it's not just the word gun osis it's the word epignosis the word epignosis but that prefix means an overflowing experiential personal knowledge so you don't just come to know God in salvation but it's a whole life long of sanctification of knowing him better this is why Paul said in Philippians 3:10 that I may know him 30 years after his conversion on the road to Damascus he's writing to the church at Philippi I want to know him you think in Paul you've known him for 30 years I want to know him better I want to know him experientially I want to know him powerfully I want to know him intimately is that the passion of your heart pursuing God and knowing God that's what Paul is praying for notice in verse 18 he says I want the eyes of your understanding to be enlightened so the spirit of wisdom and I believe that should be the Holy Spirit that gives us wisdom and God's Word and reveals Christ to us changes us into his image gives us a knowledge of him through his word and then our eyes are open in verse 18 and our understanding is enlightened now that phrase the eyes are enlightened or your understanding some translations actually have the eyes of your heart and I love that many times before I preach I'll pray God open our heart open our eyes open our ears I'm not talking about physically I'm talking about spiritually a lot of people don't hear the Word of God they don't receive the word they don't see the truths of God they don't receive it because their eyes and their hearts and their ears are not open so even as believers we need to have a receptivity that we might have a knowledge of him and overflowing experiential knowledge so we ask for the spirit of wisdom and revelation now I believe that the mind or the heart opened is referring to our mind our emotion and our will and how does that happen we know God personally in salvation we know God increasingly in sanctification and we know God perfectly when we are glorified in glorification so we're first saved then we grow in sanctification then one day we see him face to face and we know him perfectly now I believe as far as the text is concerned that's the petition that's the petition I want you to have the spirit of wisdom and revelation knowledge of him want your eyes to be open that you might be enlightened now he breaks it down for us and he amplifies on that it's kind of a Greek pattern of staking the preposition and then going deeper and explaining it and there are three key words all of them the same he says what is the hope of his calling what is the riches of his inheritance in the Saints and verse 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us who believe so three times in verse 18 twice what what and verse 19 what I've taken that word what in verse 18 and verse 19 and I've highlighted it in my Bible those are the keys those are the three things that he amplifies on that he wants us to understand if you're taking notes you can write them down first of all in verse 18 he wants us to know what is the hope of our calling what is the hope of our calling now the calling reaches back into eternity past and the hope goes off into eternity future so we look back God called us by His grace right remember chapter 1 where it says that the father chose us in him before the foundations of the world just to think that God chose me and that he called me by His grace what does he called me to he's called me unto heaven all through the Bible the scriptures used this concept of being called by God second Timothy chapter 1 verse 9 Galatians 1 verse 15 Paul says God called me by His grace in 1st Peter chapter 2 verse 9 Peter says he called out of darkness into his marvelous light you know the church is called the the ekklesia the called out assembly the Church is the Greek word ekklesia means called out assembly so we as a people are called by God out of darkness into light called into fellowship called to worship called to evangelism called to reach out to the world around us and one day we're gonna be called up to heaven I love that I could dig that today to hear the trumpet sound the dead in Christ rise first and we are alive and remain are going to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air we're gonna be called up to meet him in the air what a glorious truth that is we as the Church of the called of Jesus Christ that's why we have a first Peter 1:3 Living Hope that's why we have a blessed hope Titus 3 a to verse 13 and that's why we have a sure hope so we're called to a Living Hope a blessed hope and a sure hope Titus 2:13 says we're looking for the Blessed hope of the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works you know that blessed hope that call of God to that blessed hope of heaven should motivate us to live pure lives and to work zealously for the Lord now if I were to summarize this first petition the hope of his calling basically is that you as a believer could have assurance I believe the Bible wants us to have assurance that we should know that we're saved we should know where God's children we can know who we are in Christ you can't live the Christian life if you don't know you're a Christian so you need to have that blessed assurance Jesus is mine oh what a foretaste of glory divine heir of salvation purchase of God washed in his blood filled with the spear looking for that blessed hope of the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ so basically saying I want you to understand that you're saved that you're on your way to heaven notice the second breakdown of this petition is in verse 18 he wants us to know what there's the key word is the riches of God's inheritance in the Saints now again there's two different ways that this could be interpreted statement could mean that we are his inheritance and that's taught in the first chapter and true or it could mean in the context more likely it's referring to our inheritance that we have inheritance laid up for us incorruptible undefiled that fades not away it's reserved in heaven for us remember he told us that one of the blessings were that we've been given the earnest of the Holy Spirit and that earnest is a down payment it's an engagement ring it's a taste of heaven right now on earth it's a foretaste of heaven and so he's actually saying two things I want you to know that you're saved and you're going to heaven and I want you to realize how glorious and wonderful heaven is going to be you know that we used to sing heaven is a wonderful place filled with glory filled with grace I'm gonna see my saviors face what a blessed song and when we get to heaven the first thing we're going to do is look upon the face of Jesus Christ who called us by His grace and saved us washed is in his blood faith becomes sight and you're going to be able to actually reach out and touch the face of Jesus Christ glorious glorious glorious day you ever had a near-death experience I I had one real bona fide near-death experience I was kidnapped at gunpoint for a couple hours had a gun held to my head thought for sure they pulled the trigger and I would be dead but I can't tell you the piece that got filled my heart a sense of any moment now I will see the face of Jesus what a blessed hope that is so we know we're gonna go to heaven and when we get to heaven we're gonna see Jesus and that's gonna be glorious and then we're gonna be like him our bodies are going to be transformed they'll be no more sickness no more sin no more sorrow no more sadness heavens been called the land of no more for all the former things are passed away so here the key is the scope of your hope so we have the hope of heaven the scope of heaven I will see Jesus I will be like him no more sin no more sickness no more sadness no more sorrow you say well John doesn't that mean that you're kind of heavenly minded and you won't be any earthly good no just the opposite the problem with the church today is that we're so earthly minded we're of no heavenly good Paul's prayer is a prayer that our hearts where minds will be open to the reality of our eternal home and the blessings that are ours right now in Christ and that we live in light of them I believe that that motivates us as I said to purity and to good work but there's a third breakdown of this prayer the first is what is the hope of his calling the second is what is the riches of his glory of his inheritance and the Saints and here's the third verse 19 what is the exceeding greatness of his power is Dunamis is dynamic power to us word or you and I who believe God provides power for us as believers according to the working notice that statement of his mighty power and in verse 22 23 he goes on to give the proof or a pattern in the person of Jesus Christ of God's power so he wants us to know the greatness of his power this is the way it would break down God's calling looks back at salvation God's inheritance looks forward that's glorification and God's power looks around that's our present sanctification this is Paul's main focus in the petition Paul wants us to know God's power the child of God has the power of God to help them face the problems of life God provides you power you're struggling with temptation you're struggling with Samba setting sin God has provided to you the power the Bible says there's no temptation taken you but what is common to man and God is faithful will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able but will with the temptation do what make the way for you to escape so don't tell me you couldn't help yourself I know you can't help yourself I can't either but God can help us amen our problem is we don't look to God we don't hoping God we don't trust in God we don't rely upon God we need to be filled with this spirit surrendering to him as Lord and we can walk in victory and conquer those temptations God will give you power again if you're struggling in your marriage and God opens the eyes of your understanding and you understand your position Christ in the hope that you have and you rely upon God's power he brings healing to your home brings healing to your heart brings healing to your situation but it all starts with your relationship to God and the power is available for us in Christ Christians have power in the Ephesians chapter 5 verse 18 Paul says be filled with the spirit I believe that that's where the power lies you have the presence of the Spirit you weren't dwelled by the spirit but you need to surrender to him and have him control your life now notice how he breaks it down and this is our third and last section verse 22 23 this is proof of God's power and he does three things he talks about the resurrection of Christ the exaltation of Christ and the headship of Christ notice verse 22 23 he says which he wrought in Christ now he mentions at the end of verse 9 his mighty power now he's going to give us a picture or pattern or proof of that mighty power which he wrought in Christ verse 20 when he what raised him from the dead set him at his own right hand in the heavenlies and he was above all principality and power and might and Dominion and every name that is named not only in this world but also in that which to come and he's put all things under his feet and given him to be the head over all things to the church which is his body the fullness of him that filleth all in all now I want you to note the proof of God's power as seen in the person of Jesus Christ number one in his resurrection noticed it in verse 20 he raised him from the dead stop right there that's the resurrection of Jesus Christ you talk about power Jesus Christ went to a cross died physically suffered in agony felt your pain took your shame took your sin suffered and died on the cross Jesus died on the cross then he was buried in a tomb three days later he rose again from the dead he meant he conquered sin death in the grave and when Jesus came out of the grave he came out of the grave in a glorified eternal immortal body didn't come back in the same body was the same body excuse me the same body but now metamorphosize transform into a glorified body never to die again now Jesus is the first and so far the only one who has ever been resurrected from the dead in a glorified body never to die again but he's the first in a long train it's called the firstfruits of those who sleep our bodies will be resurrected like his so you talk about power here he is like you know there's there's no medical science there's no medical assistance that could revive him dead for three days and not only a lie but alive in the eternal glorified immortal body never to die again that means he's alive right now so Jesus Christ rose from the dead and that leads to the next statement that he is exalted not at the end of verse 20 that he set him in his own right hand that's the place of exaltation in the heavenly places far above verse 21 all principality and power might and Dominion every name that is named not only in this world but also in that which is to come so whether you have good angels or bad angels where they have kings or those who were in authority Jesus Christ has been set up as superior as the sovereign over them and then notice in verse 22 he hath put all things under his feet David prophesied of this in Psalms Psalm 110 verse 1 the Lord said to my lord sit on my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool in Philippians chapter 2 says God has given him a name above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee would bow every tongue would confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father father Jesus Christ is the exalted Savior right now sitting at the right hand of God the Father the place of authority and exaltation so we have this crucifixion we have this resurrection we have his ascension and there's exaltation that's the power that's available to you that same christ that rose from the dead is living in you it's interesting the power of God could raised Jesus from the dead but we can't get out of bed in the morning to pray call it blanket victory I thought about that this morning when the alarm on the Lord give me strength Lord get me out of bed lord help me how much power does it take to get you out of bed same power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you amen to give you the strength to be a loving husband a submissive wife and obedient child to live a life of godliness and purity and obedience to God I remember as a young Christian so discouraged I thought I can't live the Christian life I can't live this way it's too difficult and as I fell to my knees and cried out to God I felt this new strength and the news power come into me you know where God's power and God's strength is most manifest and evident in your weakness not in your strength when I see a self-confident Christian I can do it I'm a good person I'm gonna live for the Lord I think oh no I don't want to watch and after the crash and the cry oh how the Lord comes to our rescue amen Paul sit for when I am weak then am I what strong power of Christ may rest upon me my weaknesses if you're experienced weakness right now that's the secret to strength rely upon God look to God let him strengthen you in your hour of need so we have the power of his resurrection we have the glory of his exaltation and thirdly and lastly verse 22 and 23 we have his headship of the church Christ is the living head of the body with a church notice it in verse 22 gave him to be the head over all things to the church which is his body were united to him the living head he supplies everything we need which is the fullness of him that dwells all in all no human being is the head of the church Jesus Christ is the head of the church amen he's both the foundation and the head of the church by the way Jesus is the pastor of the church any man that calls himself a pastor is just an under shepherd and we are under the shepherd the good shepherd Jesus Christ you are his sheep you're not my sheep and I'm kind of glad you're not because she / messy and smelly so I can just kind of commit him to God God these are your sheep take care of them and he does how wonderfully he takes care of his people he guides us as the good shepherd He gave His life as the Good Shepherd of the Sheep so he's the living head so he rose from the dead that's power he's exalted at the right hand of God the Father that's power he's the living head that were united to and we can draw for and you know what the head speaks his peaks of care and guidance and protection and provision God provides he protects and he cares and he guides the church and we're all united together and United to him so to summarize what we've studied the last several weeks in light of this morning's prayer Paul wants us to know God experientially he wants us to appropriate our riches fully and he wants us to experience his power victoriously how do we do that through the Scriptures through prayer through suffering and through the surrender of our lives to the power of the Holy Spirit you know what we read this morning we read a pastor's prayer for his people this is my prayer for you God's people and you can take this prayer as a pattern any day you want you can pray it for me that God would open up the eyes of my heart the eyes of my understanding that it might know what is the hope of my calling what is the riches of my inheritance and what is the power that's available to me in Christ let's pray

Channel: Revival Christian Fellowship

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Length: 35min 13sec (2113 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 01 2019