Strengthened with Power in Your Inner Being
Ephesians 3:14-21
Introduction: Take a moment and think about the content of your prayers. What do you pray about most? When Paul prayed in Romans 10:1, he said, “Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved.” Paul explained prayer as that which originates from the deep desire of the heart.
We all pray about what concerns us, and we are evidently not concerned about matters we do not include in our prayers. Prayer expresses desire. Prayer exposes the desires of our heart.
In my personal studies, I have been searching for foundational themes that are not ordinarily observed in the NT letters. Our tendency is to notice what is immediately obvious but miss messages that are critical our growth and discipleship.
In this lesson, we will look at one of the neglected messages in Ephesians. Ephesians has obvious applications in chapters 4-6, and if we have been good observers, we are super impressed with God’s purposes in chapters 1-3 that all things are to be to the praise of his glory.
However, what is often easily passed over, is Paul’s prayer. His prayer begins in 1:15 and concluded in 3:14-21.
The question for us is, do we care about this prayer? Is this prayer the desire of our hearts and the expression of our words to God?
- Seeing the Main Emphasis
- 1:15-20 Simply put, our eyes need to be opened and enlightened to know God’s purpose that we will be “his glorious inheritance,” and to know “the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us” (illustrated by the resurrection and glorification of Jesus in the heavenly places.
- Paul’s sentences are long, and thus his words can be complicated. But notice especially the last words, “the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us.” God’s power toward us is the key to the rest of chapters 2-3 and is the main message of the conclusion of the prayer in 3:14-21.
- Therefore, notice this emphasis in 3:14-21.
- Vs. 16: “that you may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner being…” Did you notice the power and strength in the inner being. It is not difficult to understand why we need strength in our inner being. Discouragement is not uncommon for all Christians, especially as we think of our failures. Sometimes we think, “Will I ever get this together?”
- Vs. 17-18 “…that you, may be rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth…”
- Vs. 19 “…to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
- Vs. 20 “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly…according to the power at work within us…”
- Vs. 21 “…to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” The verse bookends the first three chapters.
- 4:1 “I therefore…urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…” This verse is the pivotal point of the Ephesian letter. This is the reason for Paul’s prayer. We must walk worthy of our calling, but what is needed is the fulfillment of the prayer!
- Learning the Prayer
- “I bend my knees before the Father, from whom the whole [NASB; NET] family in heaven and on earth derives its name…”
- We read this so easily, but how amazing that Paul is doing what we all can do and directly appealing our Creator and Father, to the one who is Father over the whole family, whether that family is in heaven presently with him or that same family who are still on earth.
- It is this whole family that derives our name from him.
- “…according to the riches of his glory he may grant you…” The appeal is that God will take the inexhaustible riches of his glory and share that with us. God’s purpose has always been to glorify us so that he may be glorified.
- “…to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.”
- Notice that the power comes by the strength of the Spirit, which then brings about the indwelling of Christ in our hearts. To have Christ dwelling in us and the work of the Spirit, or even the Spirit dwelling in us, are deeply connected and are referring to the same principle.
- Some might be confused by this, thinking that since these Ephesians are already Christians, isn’t Christ and the Spirit already dwelling in them? True, but Paul is speaking about something greater, a process that is fulfilled in degrees.
- The above is solved by understanding the two Greek words that are translated by “inhabit” or “dwell.”
- The first word is referenced by Paul in 2:19 when he speaks of strangers and aliens. These temporarily inhabit a place, but it is not their home. They are briefly living away from home.
- The second word, the “dwelling of Christ in our hearts,” refers to a permanent dwelling place, an abiding home. Christ living and abiding in the heart of the Christian.
- Colossians 2:9-10 “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him.” In the same way the fullness of God dwells in Jesus, so the fullness of Jesus is intended to dwell in us.
- The contrast is a place to lodge while on a journey and the Master of a house dwelling in his own home. We have become the Master’s dwelling, and where he dwells is where he rules, and where he rules he conforms the house to reflect who he is and all his fullness.
- If Christ has made his home in you, you are going to look like he lives there!
- “…rooted and grounded in love…” You will notice that “love” is used again in verse 19 in reference to the “love of Christ.”
- “Rooted and grounded” are metaphors of a well-rooted tree and a house built on a solid foundation. The message is that our lives are lived by a strong, solid, deep love we have for God, knowing his love for us. Our relationship with him is rooted and grounded in love. Therefore, we are not just obeying commands.
- This is the key to our stability in living in Christ and pursuing Christ about all. If it is not grounded in love, it is not grounded!
- “…strength to comprehend…and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge.”
- God wants us to comprehend the love of Christ in its breadth, length, height, and depth. We might say that Christ’s love is large enough to reach the worst sinner and high enough to exalt us to the greatest heights of heaven. His love is beyond our own ability to truly grasp, just as his riches are unsearchable. One person said, “Doubtless we shall spend eternity exploring his inexhaustible riches of grace and love.” (Stott)
- “…with all the saints…” The strength to comprehend the love of Christ can only be attained with all the saints. Just as John said, we cannot say we love God whom we cannot see if we do not love our brother whom we can see (1 Jn. 4:20-21). We need all the people of God living and abiding together to understand the love of Christ. What a statement! It is so true!
- “…that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
- The Greek word translated “with” in most versions does not properly impact us with the message. The word is eis (“for the purpose of, unto” – ASV, NET). In other words, the idea is to bring us to the fullness of God — becoming in every way like him in the depth of “our innermost being.”
- It is truly a radical thought, an intimidating goal and ultimate purpose of God as he uses “the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us.”
- We have finished the prayer, and you see Paul’s lofty request, but that is not what is most important. Is this your heart’s desire? Is this your prayer? But why should that be our heart’s desire? Why should that be our prayer? Is it just because it would be really cool to come to the very fullness of who God is? “Well sure,” we might say, “but just to be saved is good enough for me!” Oh! That chapter division has again caused us to stumble.
- “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…” Did you chose to follow Christ? Well, this is it! This is what you chose! No, no, you didn’t choose to simply be baptized to escape your sins. God did not free you from something; he freed you for something. This is about what God wants and God’s purpose for himself. This is not about what we want or what we would prefer. This is his plan, his story, and Ephesians 3:14-21 is the “rest of the story!”
- “I bend my knees before the Father, from whom the whole [NASB; NET] family in heaven and on earth derives its name…”
- How Do We Get There?
- First and foremost, it is done by the “immeasurable greatness of his power” that was demonstrated in the resurrection of Christ, with the same resurrection power used to bring us into the fullness of God.
- It is done by the strength and power of God through his Spirit. People like to define every detail of how God uses his power, but it is not necessary. If we had read simply that we are “strengthened with the power of God in our inner being,” we might not be so interested in knowing how. God does it, and the Spirit is God’s representative to accomplish our change.
- When Paul told the Corinthians that he was revealing to them the mind of Christ through the Holy Spirit, we certainly know that access to learning about the mind of Christ in the revealed word is necessary to reach the goal. But if that were all there is to it, why did Paul pray? Look at the life of Joseph, or any of God’s faithful. How did God bring them to his fullness? Yes, he revealed his will to them, but he also was a continual part of their lives, whether in the trials of Job or circumstances beyond our control, God is transforming us.
- Vs. 20-21 summarizes all we need to know:
- “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” Look at the words: exceedingly — abundantly — above — all.
- Exceedingly, abundantly, above, all that we ask or think. We can’t even imagine it, but he can do far more.
- “To him be glory in the church…” This was the beginning of Ephesians, and this is the conclusion. There is no way God gets the glory until he brings us to the fullness of himself.
Conclusion: Is this what you live for? Is this your prayer and your daily desire? This is what it means to be a disciple of Christ. What joy! What glory! What an amazing God!
Berry Kercheville
Podcast: Download (14.0MB)