Pastor Rockwell / MAKING MUCH WITH PRAYER

Pastor Jerry Rockwell

 

 

Ephesians 1:15-23

Introduction: Paul prays two prayers for the church in Ephesians. One is in Ephesians 1:15-23, and the other is in Ephesians 3:14-21. He prays for each of the churches he writes to except for Galatians. He also prayed for Timothy (2 Tim. 1:3) and Philemon (Philemon 4). Prayer was an important part of Paul’s spiritual activity. The first prayer for the church at Ephesus is nine verses in length. The second prayer in Ephesians is eight verses in length. These are encouraging to the believers at Ephesus and can be for us today as well. Yet they can serve as a suggestion that we should pray as well. E. M. Bounds said,

“Prayer projects faith on God, and God on the world. Only God can move mountains, but faith and prayer move God. In His cursing of the fig-tree our Lord demonstrated His power. Following that, He proceeded to declare, that large powers were committed to faith and prayer, not in order to kill but to make alive, not to blast but to bless.”[1]

Paul was a man of prayer. It must not be overlooked that Paul was in prison when writing this epistle (Eph. 6:20). He wrote two other epistles while in prison (Phil. 1:7, 13, 14, 16; Col. 4:3, 18) and he wrote two letters to men, Timothy (2 Tim. 2:9),Titus (Titus 1:4), and Philemon (Phm. 1:10, 13). He used his time of incarceration to write letters and pray. He addressed the church at Colosse and requested, “Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am in bonds” (Col. 4:3). Not only did Paul pray, he implored the church to pray for him. This passage we are going to study is an important part of the Bible. Here Paul deals with the application of scripture and not solely the theological understanding of the scripture although all scripture is “profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, instruction in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16) and he did teach doctrine in this prayer.

         What is the condition of your prayer life? I am not talking about “Now I lay me down to sleep. . .” or “God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food.” We should teach our children to pray but as mature, adult believers we should develop a prayer life. We are able to do so by looking at a model prayer demonstrated in Ephesians 1:15-23. These are some things we can incorporate into our prayer life.

 

  1. PAUL’S PRACTICE OF PRAYER, Ephesians 1:15-16. Paul was a man of prayer.
  2. Ephesians 1:15. A. W. Pink makes the following observation about this apostle and his prayer life. He said, “ . . .the great majority of the recorded prayers of the apostles issued from the heart of Paul; and this, as we have said, was really to be expected.”[2] He points out that there are no recorded prayers by the apostles in Acts although there are places where it says they “prayed.”[3] Paul makes a statement that we should pay attention to in 15 when he says, “Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints.” The word “wherefore” should not be overlooked. Paul is calling attention to what has been said in the first fourteen verses. The doctrinal application of these first verses should motivate us to understand the relationship every believer has with God. Being in prison could be a lonely experience, yet Paul received news about the Ephesian people. He had visitors to his prison confines, who encouraged him, yet he always had the welfare of the church on his mind. Paul told the church in Rome, Romans 1:8 (KJV), “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.” The church that you are a part of, Eastland Baptist Church (EBC), could be stated the same way. Our missionaries who are in some of the far reaches of the world know of the faith of the Christians at Orlando, Florida every time they receive support sent to them by EBC. The churches in the United States that have been helped by the offerings given by the people of this congregation remind them of your commitment to God. We dare not overlook this church’s impact on the U.S.A. and the world. God knows our hearts and our relationship with other believers. Paul is commending them for their love for “all the saints” (vs. 15). We should all have a time of self-examination about our love for “all the saints.” The Apostle John made an interesting statement concerning this matter in 1 John 3:14 (KJV), “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” His use of “death” in the last phrase does not suggest physical death, but death to the things and words of God. We can become cold about the importance of the Bible and what God has said about a believer’s behavior. John Phillips calls this the “one of the acid tests of genuine conversion.”[4]
  3. Ephesians 1:16. This verse reveals the motivation Paul had to thank God for the believers in Ephesus and to make “mention of you in my prayers” ( 16). We could ask the question, what motivates you to pray? Do you have a genuine concern for those you know about? Paul is not talking here about praying just for the sick and infirm. Sometimes the prayer list we publish in Wednesday evening service might suggest these are the only people we should pray for. No, we should pray for them certainly, yet what about other believers who may not be in the hospital or fighting cancer? We should lift others before God in love? Note here that Paul says that he does not cease “to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers” (vs. 16). To Paul prayer was as important as taking in physical nourishment. Who do you lift up in prayer? When do you pray for them? Most consider their prayer time to be at the mealtime and that is important, but it should not be “God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food.” That is something children are taught, but why not use the mealtime to pray for people? Ephesus is not the only believers he prayed for. In Romans 1:9 he prayed for those in Rome. He gives a similar statement to the church at Philippi in Philippians 1:3-4, as well he wrote the churches in Colosse and Thessalonica the same statement about praying for them (see: Colossians 1:3-4; 1 Thess. 1:2-3).
  4. PAUL’S PURPOSE OF PRAYER, Ephesians 1:17-23. In vs. 17 the word “that” is encountered. While English grammarians will give you the parts of speech that the word “that” represents, yet it also has a function. The word can mean “purpose” or “result” depending on how it is used in context. Here it is my conclusion the word “that” has the function of “purpose.” Paul has given his motivation; he now gives you the reason (purpose) of his prayers for the believers in Ephesus. There are three things Paul prays for the people in Ephesians 1:17-23. These verses demonstrate the benefits God has given to all who have trusted Jesus Christ as Saviour and are part of the family of God. They are:
  5. Your Knowledge of God Should Provide You Wisdom and Revelation Knowledge of God, Ephesians 1:17. One of the shortcomings of believers today is the deficiency of the knowledge of what God has done for them in Christ Jesus. He begins with the statement, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give unto you. . .” ( 17a). This phrase has been misused and mistranslated by people like the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons. They are modern manifestations of the people called “Arians.”[5] They do not believe that Jesus was God in the flesh (1 Tim. 3:16; 1 John 4:2, 3; 2 John 1:7). They overlook some important verses in Ephesians. Note the first part of vs. 17, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. . .” Now compare Ephesians 1:3 (KJV), “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. . .” This is similar to Romans 15:6 (KJV), “That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” These all feed off the “virgin birth” prophesied in Isaish 7:14 announced by the angel to Joseph in Matthew 1:20-24 and announced to Mary, the virgin in Luke 1:26-35. There is ample evidence that Jesus was God in the flesh and the manifestation of God among the people. It is important that we know the things God has revealed in Jesus Christ and the inerrant testimony of this is in our Bible called the “Authorized Version” or King James Bible. Paul was praying that God would give the believers in Ephesus the “spirit of wisdom” and “revelation of the knowledge of him” (Eph. 1:17b). Heresy can deceive even the best of Christians. The Arians of today, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons do not lead people to Christ, they proselyte weak believers who do not know the teachings of the Bible and are unlearned in the things of God. Your knowledge of God is important and will keep you from false doctrine.
  6. Wisdom. This word has been used in early stages of language to describe someone with an “unusual ability in a practical skill.”[6] Hoehner continues, “. . .later it was restricted to theoretical and intellectual knowledge, and, in the final development, a wise person was one who united the theoretical knowledge with practice.”[7] Note Exodus 35:31 (KJV), “And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship.” Consider Proverbs 2:10-11 (KJV), “10 When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; 11 Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee” (cf. 4:11; 10:13). It is important to recognize that in Proverbs 9:10 (KJV), “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” This principle is also stated in Job 28:28 (KJV), “And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” Job does not say the “fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” but “. . .the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom.” Either way, the fear of the Lord is an important part of wisdom and our relationship with God. Go with me to 1 Corinthians 1:17. We need to understand and know what God wants us to know about “wisdom.” The word “wisdom” occurs fifteen times in 1 Corinthians 1:17 – 2:13. The “spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him” (Eph. 1:17) is found only in the “word of God!”
  7. The Knowledge of Him. If you look at 1 Corinthians 2:7-14 (KJV, we learn some things about the knowledge of Him. This passage in Ephesians 1:17b is clearly a parallel passage to 1 Corinthians 2:7-16. We should understand what Paul is saying about the work of the Holy Spirit in having understanding and knowledge of the things of God. Hoehner makes an important statement about this passage in Ephesians 1:17. He says, “Thus, one acquires this knowledge of God not only by facts from the Bible but by the Holy Spirit’s giving insight and disclosure in the knowledge of God himself. In the end, philosophy says ‘Know yourself’ whereas Christianity says ‘Know your God, through the Holy Spirit.’”[8]

 

NEXT WEEK

  1. Your Eyes of Understanding Being Enlightened, Ephesians 1:18.
  2. You Would Know the Exceeding Greatness of God’s Power to Usward, Ephesians 1:19.
  3. You Would Know What God Was Doing in Christ, Ephesians 1:20-23.
  4. When He Raised from the Dead, vs. 20.
  5. When He Gave Him Authority Over All Things, vs. 21.
  6. When He Made Him Head of the Church, vs. 22-23.

 

[1] E. M. Bounds, Bounds on Prayer.

[2] A. W. Pink, Gleanings From Paul (Kindle Edition) location 59.

[3] Ibid, location 50-51.

[4] John Phillips, Exploring Ephesians & Philippians: An Expository Commentary, The John Phillips Commentary Series (Kregel Publications; WORDsearch Corp., 2009), Eph 1:15b.

[5] Arians were the followers of the “presbyter of Alexandria” (Egypt) Arius. Arianism held that the incarnation was total, so that Christ the “Logos” was no longer fully God. Arianism held that the incarnation was total, so that Christ the ‘Logos’ was no longer fully God. They denied the virgin birth, Jesus’ deity and at His baptism Jesus was “adopted” as Son of God adapted from Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, Walter A. Elwell, Editor. (Grand Rapids, Baker Books, 1988) pages 1027 ff. The Arians were the forerunners of what we know today as the

[6] Harold W. Hoehner, Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, Baker Academic, 2002) page 210.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid, page 259.