EPHESIANS 3 v14-21

The power of the day of grace               (14-21)

These closing verses of the doctrinal section of the letter are so important in every generation if God's people are to reflect the purpose of God in their lives.   To live in the high standards of the grace of God will require extraordinary power which is freely available to us.   Knowledge of Divine things is never given for intellectual ends only, but is intended to produce dynamic Christians for the grand purposes already stated, that of world evangelism and angelic education.   This is the second prayer of Paul in the letter, the first being in chapter 1v 15-23.   In the first prayer Paul requests the enlightenment of the saints, in this, the second, he requests their empowerment.   It is noteworthy that both the enlightenment and the empowerment are from the Holy Spirit who sealed us in salvation grace.... chapter 1v 17 "...the Father of glory may give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him...." and chapter3 v16 "...to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man...".   The significance of the present day is the constant partnership of the Spirit with every believer, something that did not exist before;  His work does not cease at conversion.   Note the construction of the two prayers, which present the process and the power of grace.

The first prayer....   1v18 "..that ye may know what is the hope of His calling"

                                1v18 "..and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints"

                                1v19 "..and what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us ward that believe."

The second prayer...3v16 "..that He would grant you..to be strengthened with might by His Spirit.."

                                 3v17 "..that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith.."

                                 3v17 "..that ye being rooted and grounded in love may be able..."

                                 3v19 "..that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God."

Three times what, followed by four times that.   The what we know should issue in the that we do, this is firm bible teaching.   We cannot have one without the other, we must know first then we must do.   There must be revelation then sanctification.   Notice also there is a process in the "that's"; the ultimate is the full knowledge of God, but I will only reach there through the carefully charted steps indicated here.

We consider these challenging  verses in four parts as they unfold for our learning.

• The posture of the prayer     "For this cause I bow my knees...."   Is there really a posture we should adopt when in prayer to God?   The bible indicates a variety of ways in which people prayed.   Abraham fell on his face prostrate (Genesis 17v3&17); Moses stood then sat holding up his hands (Exodus 17v10-12).; Solomon knelt before the altar, then stood before the people (1 Kings 8v54-55); Jesus knelt in the garden of Gethsemane, but stood looking up to heaven on a number of occasions.   There are a number of postures indicated, but, essentially, the primary consideration is that of humility as we approach the majesty on high, it is not the body language, more the state of heart, as we plead before Him.   A number of scriptures speak of kneeling such as Psalm 95v6, Daniel 6v10, Luke 22v41.   We will all bow the knee before Him in time and reverential demeanour is in order.
• The person to whom we are praying      "...the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom every family in heaven and on earth is named.."   We do well to remember the awesome glory of the one to whom we make our requests.   He is "the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (chapter 1v3& 3v14);   He is the Father of glory" (chapter 1v17); He is the sovereign holy and gracious God, who from His throne has allowed us access to His throne room (chapter 2v18);  He is the origin of all families in existence (chapter 3v15);   He is the God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all (chapter 4v6);   He is the source of all peace and love and faith to those who love Him (chapter 6v23).   Here He is the very source of all families in heaven and upon earth.   Verse 15 is difficult to interpret, as there is an apparent play on Greek words, but a selection of transliterations are as follows;   Philipps "from whom all fatherhood, whether earthly or heavenly derives it's name";   Amplified " that Father from whom all fatherhood takes it's title and derives it's name";   Translators New Testament "the whole idea of family and fatherhood owes it's origin to God the Father of all".   What is being conveyed is that the whole of what we now understand as "family" owes it's existence to God the Father.   Family is the bedrock of all societies and the facets of care and control and compassion and conformity, all things within the scope of fatherhood and family, are enveloped in this wonderful description of Him.   Appreciation of this added impetus to Paul's prayers for the saints.
• The process of spiritual maturity       We tend to pray for our material needs whether medical or financial, Paul's prayers were more for the spiritual needs of the saints.   His recorded prayers reveal this in Ephesians 1v15-23, 3v14-21, Philippians 1v3-11, and Colossians 1v9-11.   This is because material needs are more easily met, spiritual needs require supernatural power, the power of the Holy Spirit.   This is the first step in our spiritual maturity, we need to be "strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man".   The term "inner man" could well be a study on it's own, suffice to say for now that there is a serious Divine work going on within every believer.   The Holy Spirit within opposes the flesh, the world and the devil, all controllers of our past, and seeks to form the character of Christ in us,   This involves the in-working of spiritual power and we must exercise ourselves toward it;   not only do we need strength, we need to be ""strengthened with might", the might of God Himself.   The outcome of this will be the real practical experience of Christ residing in our hearts.   It is one thing to have the positional status of being "in Christ", it is another for Christ to be in us, and it only happens by the power of the Spirit displacing the old man in us.   The Lord spoke of this to His disciples ("abide in me and I in you").   We do not get this by our own efforts, we get it by faith, a faith that brings Christ into every area of our lives, such that He lives within us and moves through us.   By faith in the word of God, and in the power of the Spirit, we mortify the deeds of the body, we resist the devil, we turn away from the world that rejects the Saviour.   This results in a powerful change in our character, that establishes us in the faith ("rooted and grounded"- he uses the metaphors of horticulture and construction to convey a permanent change).   Permanently changed, however, not merely in the tenets of faith but in real love, reflecting the character of Christ.   When we arrive at this point, we have only just begun, for we are introduced to dimensions of  spiritual fellowship with God that is outside of this world altogether...he mentions four dimensions, breadth, and length, and depth and height.   We live naturally in three dimensions, and so we are elevated beyond nature.   He uses the same idea next, when he speaks of "knowing the love of Christ which passes (all known) knowledge.   What is beyond  natural comprehension, becomes intelligible in our spirit of the infinite nature of the love of Christ, as every one of His attributes are infinite.   This we learn with all the saints, a subject he will develop in chapter 4.   We explore the infinite glories of Christ best, when we do it corporately.   The grand outcome of this is that we will become empty vessels, emptied of sin and self, to be filled with (the word is "towards") all the fullness of God.   Essentially we experience the fullness of God in the same measure as we comprehend the magnificence of His love to us.   It is the same thought as Romans 5v5 "..the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit...."   As we are strengthened within to displace the old nature, so we grow in the nature of God, particularly in His love.   Surely this is the high calling of God, this is dynamic Christianity, this is God reproduced in us!
• The purpose of changed lives      This, of course, is the glory of God;   "unto Him be glory in the church in Christ Jesus, throughout all ages world without end.   Amen."   This letter presents the church as;   the fullness of Christ(chapter1v22);   the instrument of God's wisdom to angels (chapter3v10);   the glorious bride of Christ (chapter 5v27);   and here the eternal residence of God's glory (chapter 3v21).   Lives, that once lived in shame, now live for His glory, and there is an inexhaustible supply of power to this end.   Again Paul brings us into the realm of the supernatural, as he has done all through this prayer.   Note the progression of thought... how much can God really do within us to make us the kind of people that will glorify Him?....all that we ask....all that we ask or think....above all that we ask or think....abundantly above all that we ask or think......exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think!!!   By what measure can he do this?   "according to the power that is working in us"......but we have to ask, and to ask we have to want it!   This is Paul's prayer for the spiritual riches of the saints.