Title: Paul of Prayer (Ephesians 03:14-21)
Contents Paul's prayer that appears in today's text does not mention blessings about worldly power, wealth, and wealth, which we are generally interested in, and shows great interest only in the content of spiritual growth.
This is a prayer that follows Jesus' teaching in Matthew 6:33, "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."
Through today's text, let's look at what we need to pray more actively and with more interest.
1. We must pray for spiritual strength (verses 14-18).
1) We must pray to be like a tree deeply rooted spiritually (verse 17).
As in the second half of verse 17 of the main text, it says .. take root, the root of faith must be strong. For a tree to be a good tree, its roots must be firmly and deeply rooted. If the root is weak, it will fall over even if the wind blows a little. When a drought comes, the root is shallow and the tree withers and dies.
Likewise, when our inner man is deeply rooted in the Word and properly ingests the food and nutrients of the Word, the saints will bear fruit according to their seasons like a tree whose roots have taken root in the good soil, but will bear fruit thirty, sixty, and one hundred fold. is.
Therefore, believers should not take root in other worldly trends or the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, but have strong faith by having deep roots in the Word of God.
2) We must pray for the foundation to be like a solid building (verse 17).
Also, in the second half of verse 17, it is said that the foundation is hardened. Building a good house requires a good builder and good materials, but first you need a solid foundation.
In Matthew 7, the wise man builds his house on the rock, and the wind blows, and the floods come and the rains come, but it stands firm and unshaken; but the foolish man builds his house on sand, so that the wind blows, and when the floods come, and when it rains, his house falls. It is said that everything will fall apart (Matthew 7:24-27).
All the saints are builders of the inner man's house, the house of faith. When building a house of faith, it is said that those who hear the word of the Lord and put it into practice are wise and are like those who build a house on the rock.
We, believers, must change our character and personality through the words of Jesus Christ. We must receive instructions from the Word, and we must faithfully obey them. When we are armed with the Word in this way, we can resist any tribulation and temptation.
3) We must pray to be like a river overflowing with water (verse 18).
Verse 18 tells us to be able to know with all the saints the love of Christ, which surpasses knowledge.
You can expect amazing growth and work when you do not realize that you lack the knowledge of Christ, but when you become knowledge that overflows like a river.
The name of the Jordan River comes from the word 'going down'. The Jordan River, a stream that begins at the foot of Mount Hermon, continues to descend to form the Jordan River, which is rich in water and continues on a slope, flowing downward toward the Dead Sea. So around the Jordan River is abundant.
However, the Dead Sea no longer pumps out the water, evaporating it in the sun on the spot and not letting it flow. So naturally, the water dies and becomes the Dead Sea, where living things cannot survive. When the water flows like this, it does not rot.
Likewise, the saints should not only receive God's grace, but also receive abundant grace as a grace to serve and give to others. Acts 20:35 says that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Giving like this is impossible without love. Therefore, in the second half of verse 18 of today's text, we are emphasizing that we will know the overflowing love of Christ.
2. We must pray to realize the unfathomable love of Christ (verses 18-19).
1) The love of the saints begins with realizing the love of Christ.
Love is the 'completely tying belt' (Colossians 3:14) in the life of the new year. Where does this love come from? It comes from fully realizing the love of Christ.
When we realize this love in Romans 5:8 that God demonstrates his love for us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, we are truly thankful to God, As a person, the strength to love brothers and neighbors comes out (Matthew 18:23-35).
Thus, the love of Christ is unconditional love. The love of the saints should be like this. Matthew 5:46 says, "If you love those who love you, what reward do you have? So do tax collectors."
Therefore, if you love only those who are kind and close to you, that love is not worth it. Rather, it is rewarding to love those who shun us and criticize us. Therefore, we must realize the love of Jesus Christ and practice that love even in one tenth of our lives.
2) The love of the saints can be practiced by counting the love of Christ (verse 19).
In verse 19, I pray that you may be filled with the fullness of God, realizing what is the breadth and length and depth of it, so that you may be filled with the fullness of God. How much can it be? The love of Christ, who came to this earth as a practicer of God's love, is a great love that even this universe cannot bear.
However, today, how much do our believers only conceptually think of this great love? There are not many people who know the breadth, depth, and length of that love. So our faith is powerless.
Therefore, we need to yearn for and pray for the full realization and knowledge of this love of Christ.
3. We must offer a prayer of praise (praise) (verses 20-21).
1) We must praise the God of power (verse 20).
According to verse 21, God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think.
God is able to make all grace abound (2 Corinthians 9:8) and is able to completely save those who come to God through Him (Hebrews 7:25). Also, He is able to make all things subject to Him (Philippians 3:21) and to make His people stand blameless (Jude 1:24).
By praising God's mighty power, we will be blessed with such grace overflowing upon us. Because God dwells in the praises of Israel. God delights in receiving our praise.
2) The realm where God is glorified.
God is glorified through his body, the church (verse 21). The church is the majestic throne of God's glory. God said the church would reveal His glory (Isaiah 60:21), and He called the church His glory (Isaiah 46:13). As such, no one can truly glorify God or fulfill His will apart from the church.
The glory that God receives is the praise offered by the saints who have been redeemed through Jesus Christ. And this praise will go on forever and ever.
In verse 21, he said, ?쏮ay the glory be in the church and in Christ Jesus from generation to generation and forever and ever.
The praise you receive here refers to the praise of victory that comes from our life and our whole life.
2) The blessing that praise gives to the saints.
First, praise gives us courage. The God who works among us is said to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. As we praise God for His greatness and power, our hearts are filled with powerful thoughts of faith. Today's text says that this kind of thinking makes the power manifest. Therefore, we must not cease to praise the praise that inspires strength, power, and courage.
Second, praise calls for spiritual awakening. If our heart and the content of the praise are far apart, our heart will notice it in the praise and be challenged. And then you will depend on the great power of God.
That is why Satan is afraid of the saints singing praises. Such praise is beneficial to us in all things.
<Conclusion>
Am I not limiting the infinite power of God with my narrow thinking or stubbornness? Now, let us humbly pray for the strength of your infinite grace and power.
And let that prayer be for the glory of God, not for your own glory.
Is it not the person who lies and lies for the glory of the Lord while praying and striving for success in business, for his children to enter a first-class university, and for a position in the church? This is because the depth of the water that a person can open can be measured, but the inside of a person is not known. However, our God is looking down at our heart, which is difficult to understand, like the palm of the hand.
I pray that you will receive full spiritual blessings by longing for the spiritual world.