Paul’s Remarkable Prayer (Ephesians 3:14-21)

It is always important to take verses in their context, especially when the writer refers to what he has just written. Paul says that he has a reason for making this prayer (v. 14). It may not have been the only reason, but it was a definite reason. The immediate context is that Paul does not want them to lose heart because of his sufferings which he was undergoing in Rome. Rather he wants their hearts to experience something else, an ongoing encounter with the love of Christ. Some may imagine that Paul’s words here describe a rare experience, which it may be, but which it should not be. Here is a description of Christian reality, to what they are called.

The posture (v. 14)

Paul here is speaking about his personal prayer life. His posture was to kneel as he prayed, probably in the presence of a Roman guard. Posture is part of what we now call body language. Our posture says something to those who see it. Since that is the case, it is important for us to consider our body language. For example, if I go to a funeral and spend most of the time laughing and joking, it does not matter if I am wearing black clothes. My body language says that I am not mourning. 

 

What does bowing one’s knees say, especially in private? It tells us that Paul was acknowledging the greatness of God. He could have said that he did so in his heart, which would have been true. But he obviously thought it was important to have the right posture as he prayed. Perhaps the words of Robert Rollock in his exposition of Ephesians sums up the meaning: ‘all reverence in the soul should not only be included but should also appear in the posture of the body and in a most humble voice.’ 

 

The description of the Father (v. 15)

Paul recognised that usually believers pray to the Father. But he thinks it is important to say something about the Father. So he says that every family in heaven and earth is named after the Father. Paul may mean that the idea of fatherhood comes from God. Or he may be saying that the heavenly Father will grant more than all earthly fathers will. He could suggest that there is an angelic family and a human family among God’s servants. But his description is intended to express his confidence that God the Father will hear the petition.

 

The petition that he makes (vv. 16-17)

His petition contains several recognitions. First, he wants the Father to give something incredible because it will be according to his glorious riches. He does not say that he wants the Father to give out of his riches. As has often been said, a millionaire may give a pound to a beggar. That millionaire is giving out of his riches, but he is not giving according to his riches. God only has riches, of course. But Paul here desires the Father to give something that is worth an incredible amount. He is almost saying, ‘Father, please give me an answer that is beyond human calculation.’

 

Second, he recognised that whatever the Father gave, it would be a display of divine grace. We see this in his use of the word ‘grant’. A grant is usually free, no matter how much it is worth. Christians only ever ask for grants when they come to God in prayer.

 

Third, he recognised that the Father would use the Holy Spirit to bring about the fulfilment of the request. The Holy Spirit is a divine person, possessing all divine attributes. Here, Paul focuses on divine power, as he did in his previous prayer in chapter 1. This is a reminder that divine blessings cannot be conveyed by an inferior power. No human or angel can answer the prayer that Paul makes.

 

Fourth, he recognised that having the Spirit in our inner being is the same as having Christ indwell our heart. It is important to recognise that the Trinity act together. One or two of them are never absent. We cannot come into the presence of the Father and not also be in the presence of Christ and of the Spirit. But we may experience them in specific ways. The Spirit works as the Spirit of Jesus, the comforter that Jesus said would come to represent him and do what he would do. It is not that he would do them instead of Jesus doing them, but that his action would be the same as Jesus doing them. Because the Spirit is in our inner being, Jesus who is in heaven is also in our heart.

 

Fifth, Paul also recognised the amazing contribution of faith. We talk about the simplicity of faith, but we should not imply that faith is small in what it brings to us. Faith is a supernatural action of the heart, enabled by the Spirit, which makes Jesus real in our experience. The Jesus that we have contact with by faith is not a shadow of the real thing; instead he is present through faith.  

 

The outcome of the petition (vv. 17-19)

First, the initial effect of the work of the Spirit is that believers will be rooted and grounded in love. Paul is likening each of them to a strong tree, which is not surprising given that he has asked God for strength. The love here is not the Christian’s love for the Lord, but the Lord’s love for the Christian. We should remember that the context of the prayer is suffering. Elsewhere Paul asks, ‘Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?’ The answer he gives is a list of possible situations of suffering: ‘Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?’ (Rom. 8:35). Paul knows that experiencing the love of Christ is the remedy for opposition.

 

Second, Paul says in verse 18 that the outcome is common to all saints. He also indicates that it is suitable for all saints. And we can deduce from his description that it is desirable for all saints. In a sense, we can say that Paul is praying for something very profound here, but we can also say that he is praying for something that is basic to the Christian life.

 

Third, Paul says that divine strength will achieve this blessing even if every Christian asked for it at the same time. It is likely that we would approach this set of verses and say that we could never gain this blessing through our own strength. That is true, but it is not right to stop there. Instead, we need to pray that God will give the strength by the Holy Spirit. And when we pray, we should expect him to do so because he can do so for all saints.

 

Fourth, the outcome we can say is a combination of the mind and the heart.  The effect on the mind is seen in the word ‘comprehend’ and the effect on the heart is seen in the word ‘know’, which here means experience. This means that the experience is not irrational, and it means that the understanding is not merely clinical and dry. If the experience is irrational, then anyone can claim anything and say it is spiritual, and there are plenty examples of that kind of thing today. We don’t want that, but neither do we want a dry Christianity.

 

Fifth, the outcome is connected to the love of Christ and Paul describes it in two ways. First, he says it extends in various directions, which could indicate that it can be known in every situation. He has referred to all saints, and they would be found in the length, depth, breadth and height of spiritual experience, but wherever they were they could know the love of Christ. His description is also a reminder that no matter our previous experience, we have not reached the limits of the love of Christ. Paul was absorbed with the love of Christ as he was imprisoned in Rome, and he prayed that his readers in Ephesus would be as well.

 

At the same time, the contents of the love of Christ cannot be fully explained – the fullness not only passes knowledge, it surpasses it. We need not imagine that somehow we will drain the fountain of love dry. There is more than enough love in Jesus for all his church to enjoy for eternity. How much love is there in Christ? The astonishing answer is the same amount as there is in God. Paul tells the Christians in Ephesus that they ‘may be filled with all the fullness of God’.

 

The doxology (vv. 20-21)

Paul has explained in the first three chapters of this letter some of the amazing things that God has done for his people. He focuses on what we can call practical or personal Christianity. In our hearts, the mighty Holy Spirit is at work through the power of love. We can pray, therefore, great things. But even when we do, God through the Spirit can yet do very much more.

 

But where is he going to do it? Where is God going to reveal his glory? The answer is surprising in one way but not in another. He says he will reveal in the church and in Christ Jesus. We are not surprised that he will reveal it in his Son, but we are surprised that he will reveal it in the church. But what if Jesus acts in and through the church? After all, is that not the story of the Book of Acts? Jesus working from heaven through his people.

 

But there is another question: when is God going to do this? Again there are two answers. First, he will work throughout all generations, which means that he is at work today as Jesus works in and for and through his church. How should we describe our generation? It is a generation in which Jesus will be at work in the church for the glory of his Father. Remember it is glory that he produces.

 

Second, Jesus will at work in his church for the glory of the Father throughout eternity. This is a reminder that the state of glory for Christians in eternity will not be static, but that the Saviour will enable them to see more of the glory of God.

 

Some applications

Paul’s words highlight the priority of the inner life as far as Christians are concerned. He is ambivalent about outward circumstances. When he wrote the letter, he was under house arrest in Rome, with his future uncertain. He does not concern himself too much about whether or not he will be freed. Those matters lie within the providence of God. External freedom would be of little value if his soul did not experience awareness of and consolation from the Holy Spirit regarding the love of the Saviour. Our inner life matters because that is where genuine Christianity shows itself.

 

His prayer also stresses the necessity of spiritual power. How will we know that the Spirit is at work within us? By what we experience of the love of Jesus. After all, the role of the Spirit is to take the things of Christ and reveal them to us. The question becomes, how well do I know the presence of Christ in my heart?

 

A third lesson to observe is Paul’s focus on the Trinity. He was praying to the Father, but he was also conscious of the activities of the Son and the Spirit. It is difficult to imagine Paul highlighting a form of Christian living that could not accommodate a focus on the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity is the God we worship, and we should be aware of how they are described in the Bible. Each of the divine persons is involved in the Christian life of believers.

 

A fourth application is to consider the richness of the love of Jesus. It is revealed in its length – it is eternal; it is revealed in its breadth – it embraces all nations; it is revealed in its depth – he went down very far at the cross on behalf of those he loved; and it is revealed in its height – although he is highly exalted, he reveals his love for his people by his actions.