Friday 2013.06.07
Ephesians 3:14-21, a prayer for the Ephesians.This is a good prayer for all of us to exemplify, especially because, like all prayers in the NT, this is essentially a prayer to our Heavenly Father. If we want to pray like Paul in Ephesians 3:14-21, we should do the following:
(Scripture quoted from Young's Literal Translation)
***Bow to our Heavenly Father, who is also the Father of our Master Jesus the Messiah.
"For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," 3:14
***
Acknowledge that every being in heavens and earth receives its true name from our Father in heaven. He is our creator God.
"of whom the whole family in the heavens and on earth is named"3:15
Ask our Heavenly Father to give us strength in our inner being, through His Spirit according to the wealth of His glory. Yes, this we must ask for such wealthy, glorious strength from our Father.
"that He may give to you, according to the riches of His glory, with might to be strengthened through His Spirit, in regard to the inner man" 3:16
***
Along with the inner strength, ask the Father to make our Messiah (the Anointed One) to dwell in our hearts through our trust in Him.
"that the Christ may dwell through the faith in your hearts" 3:17a
***
Also ask that the Father will make us established in His love:
" in love having been rooted and founded," 3:17b
***
Ask the Father that we may also, together with all other saints, have the power to understand the full dimensions (of His love)
"that ye may be in strength to comprehend, with all the saints, what [is] the breadth, and length, and depth, and height" 3:18
***
Ask our Father that we may also know the love of the Messiah, a love which is beyond our normal knowledge / ability to understand,
"to know also the love of the Christ that is exceeding the knowledge" 3:19a
***
So that we may be full of the nature of God our Father
"that ye may be filled -- to all the fulness of God;" 3:19b
***
Finally, let us sing our doxology to God our Father, who works in us by His power: to HIM (God our Father) be the glory in the assembly (ekklesia) by Jesus our Messiah.
"and to Him who is able above all things to do exceeding abundantly what we ask or think, according to the power that is working in us, to Him [is] the glory in the assembly in Christ Jesus, to all the generations of the age of the ages. Amen" 3:20,21
***
Brothers and Sisters, let us pray to God, He is our Father in Heaven.
