Get Your Hands on Your Weath
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Appreciation of the Mystery
Appreciation of the Mystery
This pericope is broken into three very specific sections; The Invocation, the petition and the benediction. In these three very specific sections are like a life’s mystery that Paul is revealing to the church in Ephesus.
This passage is second of two prayers recorded in Ephesians, the first one being Ephesians 1:15-23, in the first prayers, the emphasis is on enlightenment, but in this prayer, the emphasis is on enablement. It is not so much a matter of knowing as being laying our hands on what God has for us and by faith making it a vital part of our lives , Paul was saying, “I want you to get your hands on your wealth, realize how vast it is and it start to use it.”
It is worth noting that both of these prayers, as well as other prison prayers deal with the spiritual condition of the inner man, and not the material needs of the body. Certainly it is not wrong to pray for physical and material needs, but emphasis in these petitions is on the spiritual. Paul knew that the inner man is what he out to be, the outer man will be taken care of in due time. Too many of our prayers focus only on physical and material needs and fail to lay hold on the deeper inner needs of the heart. I would do us good to use these prison prayers as our own, and ask God to help us in our inner person. That is where the greatest needs are.
The Invocation (Ephesians 3:14-15)
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
Paul’s posture is the first thing of significance: For this reason “I bow my knees.” We don’t find any place in the Bible that specifies us to use any special posture for prayer.
Abraham stood before the Lord when he prayed for Sodom
David “sat before the Lord” when he prayed about the future of his kingdom (1 Chron 17:16)
When Paul thought about the goodness of God, the greatness of the grace of Christ. The grace of Christ raising to life those who were dead in sin, and by the realization of the unity into which Jew and gentile have been brought in the one family. The magnitude and intensity of the wonderful purpose of God led Paul to bow his knees before the Father.
Among the Jews it was usual to stand to pray. Kneeling for prayer is a expression of deep emotion or earnestness.
Examples:
Solomon knelt at the dedication of the temple. (1 Kgs 8:54)
Stephen at the time of his martyrdom (Act 7:60)
Peter at the death-bed of Dorcas (Acts 9:40)
And Jesus “fell on his face” when He prayed in Gethsemane (Matt 26:39)
The book of Ephesians has a underlying emphasis on spiritual posture. See as lost sinner, we were buried in the graveyard (2:1). But when we trusted Christ, He raised us from the dead and seated us with Christ in the heavenlies (2:4-6). Because we are seated with Christ, we can walk so as to please Him and we can stand against the devil. But the posture that links “sitting” with “walking” and “standing” is “bowing the knee.” It is through prayer that we lay hold of God’s riches that enable us to behave like Christians and battle like Christians. Whether we actually bow our knees is not the important thing; that we bow our hearts and wills to the Lord and ask Him for what we need is the vital matter.
Paul’s prayer was addressed to “the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” In the Bible, prayer is addressed tot he Father, through the Son and in the Spirit. This is the usual pattern though you do find petitions addressed to the Son, and possible to the Spirit. In Ephesians 1:3, Paul's called the Father “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” He was the “God of our Lord Jesus Christ when Jesus was here on earth, as a man, Jesus lived in total dependence on God. This title reminds us of Christ’s humanity. But God is the “Father of our Lord Jesus Christ because Jesus Christ is eternal God; so this title reminds us of his deity.
There is a sense that all men, in particular all Christians share the same father. Paul stated that “the whole family in heaven and earth is named” after the divine Father. Father and family are very similar words. The word family can be translated “fatherhood.” Every fatherhood in heaven and on earth gets its origin and name from the Father. He is the Great Original; every other fatherhood is a mere copy. Adam is called the son of God referring to his creation (Luke 3:38). Believers are the “sons of God” by rebirth (John 1:11-13; 1 John 3:1-2). All men are not children of disobedience and children of wrath (Eph. 2:2-3). As creator, God is the Father of each man but as Savior, He is only the Father of those who believe. John 3:7 says “You must be born again”
The Petition (Ephesians 3:16-19)
that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
There are four requests Paul makes while on bended knees. These four requests are interdependent on one another. One request leads into the next one, and so on. He prays that the inner man might have spiritual strength, which will enable them to grab hold of God’s great love, which will result in their being “ filled unto all the fullness of God.” Paul was praying for strength, depth, apprehension and fullness.
Strength (v. 16)
The presences of the Holy Spirit in the life is evidence of salvation (Rom. 8:9); but the power of the Spirit is enablement for Christian living, and it is this power that Paul desired for his readers. “You shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you” (Acts 1:8) Jesus performed His ministry on earth in the power of the Spirit and this is the only resource we have for Christian living today. Acts lets us know that importance of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church, for there are some 59 references to the Holy Spirit in the New Testament.
The power of the Spirit is given to us “according to the riches of his Glory” Ephesians 3:16. Christ returned to glory and sent the spirit from heaven to dwell and empower we his people. It is not necessary for us to “work something up.” the power has to be sent down. How marvelous that God does not give the spirits power to us out of his riches, but according to his riches. The latter is far greater. If I am a billionaire and I give you ten dollars, I have given you according to my riches. God doesn’t give us a portion, no he gives us a proportion.
This power is available for the inner man. this means the spiritual part of man were God dwells and works. the inner man of the lost sinner is dead, but it becomes alive when Christ is invited in. The inner man can see, hear, taste and feel and he must be exercised. He also must be cleansed and fed. the outer man is perishing, but the inner man can be renewed spiritually in spite of outward physical decay. it is the inner power that make his succeed.
What does it mean to have the Holy Spirit empower the inner man? it means that our spiritual faculties are controlled by God and we are exercising them and growing in the Word. It is only when we yield to the Spirit and let him control the inner man that we succeed in living to the glory of God. This means feeding the inner man the Word of God, praying and worshiping, keeping clean and exercising the senses by loving obedience.
Depth (v. 17)
Paul used three pictures to convey his idea of spiritual depth, and the three pictures are hidden in three verbs. The action words dwell rooted, and grounded. The verb dwell means “to settle down and feel at home”. Certainly Christ was already a resident in the hearts of the Ephesians because he addresses them as saints. Paul is praying for the Ephesians, his brother’s and sister in faith, to have a deeper experience between Christ and His people. He yearned for Christ to settle down and feel at home in their hearts not just a surface relationship, but an ever deepening fellowship.
Abraham’s life is an illustration of this truth. God was going to bless Abraham with a son, so the Lord himself came down and visited Abraham’s tent, and brought two angels with him. They came to the tent, they talked and ate a meal with him. They felt right at home because the word says that Abraham was a man of faith and obedience. But the three guests had another task they had to investigate the sins of Sodom because God planned to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot, a believer, was living in Sodom, and God wanted to warn him to get out before the judgement could fall. The Lord himself didn’t go to Sodom and Gomorrah, no he sent two angels . The Lord did not feel at home in Lot’s house the way he did in Abraham’s tent.
The verb rooted moves us int the plant world. The trees must get its roots deep into the soil if it is to have both nourishment and stability, and the Christian’s must have his spiritual roots deep into the love of God. Psalm 1:1-3 is a perfect description.
Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.
one of the most important questions a christian can ask him/herself is, “From what do I draw my nourishment and my stability?” If there is to be power in the Christian life, then there must be depth. The roots must go deeper and deeper into the love of Christ.
Grounded is an architectural term; it refers to the foundation on which we build. I had the pleasure of living and working in the St. Paul (Irmo) during the building process of the new worship edifice. Soil samples, had to be taken, men spent hours laying out and pouring footings. This was done because the architects and builders knew that the most important part of any good structure is the foundation. If you don’t go deep you can’t go high.”
The trials of life test the depth of our experience. If two roommates in college have a falling out they may seek new roommates, for after all, living with a roommate is a passing experience, But if a husband and a wife, who love only each other, have a disagreement, the trial only deepens their love as they seek to solve the problems. The storm that blows reveals the strength of the roots. Jesus told the story about the two builders, one of whom did not go deep enough for the foundation. Paul prayed that the believers might have a deeper experience with Christ, because only a deep experience could sustain them during the sever trials of life.
Apprehension (vv. 18-19a)
The apprehend stems from the Latin word prehender which means to grasp. Some monkey’s have “prehensile tails” meaning they can the ability to grasp tree limbs and hold on with their tails. To comprehend carries the idea of mentally grasping something while if we apprehend something that suggests that laying hold of it for yourself. In other words, it is possible to understand something but not really make it your own. Paul’s concern was that we lay hold of the vast expanses of the love of God. He wanted us to live in dimensions. When God gave the land to Abraham, He told him to “walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it (Gen 13:17) Abraham hand to step out by faith and claim his inheritance. We also have four dimensional inheritance; length, depth, and height.
God’s fourth dimension is love!
Paul wants us to know personally the love of Christ “which passeth knowledge.” There are dimensions, but they cannot be measured. “The love of Christ which passeth knowledge” parallels the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Eph 3:8). We are so rich in Christ that our riches cannot be calculated even with the most sophisticated calculator or computer.
When the Hummer’s first came out I remember hearing a salesman say if you have to ask how many miles to the gallon it get more than likely the hummer is too expensive for you!
No Christian ever has to worry about having inadequate spiritual resources to meet the demands of life. If he prays for spiritual strength and spiritual depth, he will be able to apprehend - get his hands on - all the resources of God’s love and grace. “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Phil. 4:13). And what is the result of all this?
Fullness (v. 19b)
It is said that nature abhors a vacuum. This explains why air and water will automatically flow into an empty place. The divine nature abhors a vacuum. God wants us to experience His fullness. The means of our fullness is the Holy Spirit, and the measure of our fullness is God Himself. It is tragic when Christians use the wrong measurements in explaining their own spiritual lives. We like to measure ourselves by the weakest Christians that we know and then boast. Well, I’m better than they are.” Paul tells us that the measure is Christ, and that we cannot boast about anything. When we have reached His fullness, then we have reached the limit.
In one sense, the Christian is already “made full in Christ” (Col. 2:9-10)
For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
Personally we are complete in Him, but practically, we enjoy only the grace that we apprehend by faith. The resources are there. All we need to do is accept and enjoy them.
The Benediction Ephesians 3:20-21
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
After contemplating such a marvelous spiritual experience, it is no wonder Paul bursts for in a doxology, a fitting benediction to such a prayer. Take notice of the trinitarian emphasis in this benediction; Paul prayed to God the Father concerning the indwelling Power of God the Spirit made available through God the Son.
The best way for us to grasp the greatness of this doxology is to look at it in outlined form:
Now unto Him that
able to do all
above all
abundantly above all
exceeding abundantly above all
Paul uses every word possible to convey to us the vastness of God’s power as found in Jesus Christ. He ended each of the two previous chapters with praise to God for his great victory in Christ. He told us that Christ’s power is so great He rose from the dead and ascended far above all. He taught of his power is so great that he reconciled Jews and Gentiles to each other and to God and that he is now building a temple to the eternal glory of God
The power god gave us is a working power. One working in our lives in the inner man. Why would God share His power with us? So that we can build great churches for our own glory? So that we can boast of our own achievements? No! To him be glory in the church. The spirit of God was given to glorify the Son of God. The church on earth is here to glorify the Son of God. If our motive is to glorify God by building His church, then God will share His power with us. The power of the Spirit is not a luxury; it is a necessity.
The amazing thing is that what we do in His power today will glorify Christ “throughout all ages, the scripture says world without end. The best is yet to come. What we do here and now is just preparing us for the eternal ages, when we shall glorify Christ forever.
He is able to do all - above all - abundantly above all - exceeding abundantly above all!
Get your hand on your spiritual wealth by opening your heart to the Holy Spirit, and praying like Paul for strength for the inner man…for a new depth of love…for spiritual apprehension and for spiritual fullness. The word says you have not because you ask not. Today is a good day to ask.