Ephesians 3:14, 15 Introduction to Paul's Prayer

Introduction to Paul's Prayer

Ephesians 3:14, 15

What strikes me is that Paul prays with bent knee. Imagine Paul in a Roman Prison as he waits his trial, writing this letter to the believers at Ephesus. It is probable that Paul is chained to a guard or even two. He goes down on his knees on the hard stone or dirt floor to pray for the Ephesian church and many others. What do you think the two guards would feel like? Why would Paul include such a detail, that he is praying on his knees? What is he trying to tell his readers?

One of the ways we communicate to others is by our body language. The way we stand, the way we hold our hands, the expressions on our faces all communicate. Let me show you some statements with my body and see if you can guess what they are. Defiant, uninterested, joyful.

There are a number of ways which people prayed in the Bible. There is no definite command for a particular posture for prayer. Abraham stood before the Lord when he prayed for Sodom and Gemorah ( Gen 18:22). We read that Solomon stood when he prayed to dedicated the temple ( 1 Kings 8:22). In the New Testament we see that in the temple some people stood and prayed. (Mark 11:5, Lk 18:11)

David "sat before the Lord" (1 Chron 17:16) when he prayed about the future of his kingdom. In the account of Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane, we see that Jesus fell on his face when He prayed.( Mt. 26:39) In Luke's account we see that Jesus knelt when he prayed. (Lk 22:41- 44) Jesus had asked his disciples to pray with Him but what happened when Jesus came to check to see how they were doing in their praying? Jesus had a sense of urgency but the disciples did not have that same sense of what was going to happen in the next 24 hours. Jesus was on the way to the cross, the disciples did not pray and they all abandoned Jesus because they lacked the spiritual power they should have gotten through prayer to the Father that night. How many of us fall asleep when we should be praying? May be you do not even sense the need for prayer but when we think we need it the least we probably fall into trouble within 24 hours after we should have been praying but failed to. We have not heeded ( listened to) the prompts of the Holy Spirit urging us to pray. We have quenched the Spirit and many times we have hardened our hearts and do not listen to God's Spirit as He seeks to guide us but we do not care.

When Paul prayed for the Ephesians, his body position tells us something. Praying on one's knees was a position of utmost humility. In Isaiah 45:23 we see that kneeling in prayer is showing worship and servitude before God the Almighty King. It shows deep reverence and humble submission to a great God who can and will give us the desires of our heart if they are within His will. Daniel, the counsellor to the greatest rulers of his time, knelt before the Lord 3 times a day (Dan 6:10), not only for daily wisdom but for supernatural insights to understand the revelation of God to him. When is the last time you knelt before the Lord and sought God for something significant not for yourself but a totally unselfish prayer for others.

This was no casual praying that Paul was engaged in but fervent prayer of a righteous humble man who God would honour by blessing the Ephesians by granting Paul's requests. Who is Paul praying to? You might think that this is kind of a no brainer question but I think it is important who we address our prayers to. When Jesus' disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, how did he start out this model prayer? Jesus told his disciples to pray to the Father ( Mt 7:9) " Our Father in heaven..."

Paul directs his prayer to the Father, who is presented as the "planner" among the members of the Trinity; prayer is usually directed to the Father, through the Son, by the empowering and direction of the Holy Spirit. We see that normally we are to pray to the Father. No where in scripture are we told to address Jesus or the Holy Spirit although it is not a sin to do so. There are some churches that teach that we can pray to Mary the mother of Jesus, saints or even angels. No where in scripture is this taught and I would say that this is wrong because it moves our spiritual focus from Almighty God to a dead human being who is not able to help us at all. Why do they teach this falsehood? I believe that Satan has deceived them into praying to anyone else but God the Father so that they will not get true spiritual victory nor give God the highest honour in their prayer life. I believe if we want to see answers to our prayers we are to pray directly to God the Father. I am aware that Jesus and the Spirit are interceeding on our behalf but our devotion and prays should be directed to the Father.

As a Father of all mankind what picture do we get of Him. As a Father He is the creator of the world and everything in it. The Father gives abundant life to His children. The Father is the protector, and is to watch over his children. With God as Father we do not need to fear from the enemy. If we cry out to him when we face struggles, God will give us hope, power and victory. We will see that is exactly what we can expect from a supportive, loving Father.

As Dads, we need to model our own lives after God the Father. Sometimes it is difficult for people to become Christians because they have had dysfunctional families where the Father is either absent or abusive. These people see God as the one who will punish them or harm them if they but do one little thing wrong. It becomes impossible for these people to become believers because they have the wrong image of our loving, caring Father in heaven. God is not willing that anyone should perish but that everyone should come to repentance. If we confess our sins He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. He wants to free us from the destructive lifestyles that we are engaging in. He wants to protect us and liberate us from the negative thought patterns, bad habits and sinful actions which are destroying us instead of giving us a successful and joyful life with God.

If you are a person without a loving and caring Father today, God wants to become your Father, your protector, your provider and saviour. Come in repentance to God and he will make you a part of his special family. Become a child of God and enjoy the benefits of God's wonderful care. John 1:12 says, "Yet to all who received him ( Jesus as saviour), to those who believed in his name, He gave the right to become children of God." Have you believed that Jesus is the only way to receive forgiveness from God and have a special intimate relationship God the Father? Jesus, God's Son, died on the cross to forgive us from our sins as our substitute.

In remembering that all God's family is called after His name, Paul shows that his mind is rather taken with this idea of the essential unity of the Body of Christ; He is Father of Jew and Gentile alike. There are special privileges and blessings if we become a part of the family of God. The whole family is made up of those already in heaven and those who are still on the way to heaven. All are named after the Father. Those who are still on the earth need prayer to live the life worthy of the Father. To love the family of God will mean living as the family of God, further, having the Father's heart towards one another. This will be expressed in intercession for one another

A family is to give support to its members not fight or tear down each other. We are to love one another, encourage one another, forgive each other, help one another, be kind to one another so that each person can reach their full potential in the family of God. If you are having difficulties in your family to achieve these high ideals I would encourage you to give us a call and we want to give you biblical answers to difficult family problems. There is nothing worse than people who are silently suffering when help is all around them and they do not reach out to get some of that help. As fellow spiritual family members our responsibility is to try to help whenever there is a problem. As a church we are to be the representation of the family of God where there is love and harmony. What is our score? Are we really demonstrating God's love, peace and harmony to the members of the church or even the world?

If God is the Father of all peoples on the earth and all the heavenly beings then we have quite a tremendous God who takes care of his children well. God has unlimited resources which He wants us to tap into so that we can become a blessing to others. We will see next time the great resources which God wants us to tap into and use for his kingdom sake. If you have not yet become a part of the family of God through faith in Christ Jesus, ask God to become your father. He will become your guide, provider and protector. What a great God we have. I trust that your experience as a loving Father will help you to grow spiritually in the coming week. May God bless you richly.

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May 2002