Praying with Paul

This week was the second installment of our 3 week series “learning to pray”. Last week we looked at how Jesus’ prayed and what he taught about prayer. We heard that prayer has to be learnt; we are motivated by the privilege of praying to our Abba Father; we pray because we are utterly dependent on God; and that prayer requires us to persist and wrestle with God.

This week we turn to the Apostle Paul’s prayer in the letter to the Ephesians (3:14-21) and look at what it can teach us about prayer. We ask 3 questions of this passage:

• Why does Paul pray?
• What does Paul pray?
• How does Paul pray?

1) Why does Paul Pray?

Paul begins his prayer by writing “For this reason I kneel before the Father…” To find out what “this reason” is we need to look at what Paul has written previously. The preceding passage (2:11-3:13) describes God’s plan to bring the gentiles, who were separate and excluded from God’s promises, into God’s family through the work of Christ! Paul has clearly been overwhelmed by this awesome plan and not only wants to give his life to be part of it by going to the gentiles but also by falling to his knees in prayer! Why does Paul pray? Because God is his Father and a Father on a mission.

Paul prays a bit like a sportsman warming up before a game. Though it can often be hard work (particularly if we are tired and it’s cold and dark outside!) it is essential if we are to be physically and mentally prepared for the task ahead. So too with prayer! We ready ourselves for prayer by:
• Reminding ourselves of who God is - Read verses about God’s character and let them stir you up and lift your sights to for whom nothing is impossible!
• Remember what your Father God has done for you - Think about how God has saved you and transformed you by his grace.
• Remember prayers that your Father God has answered in the past - Let God’s faithfulness give you faith to ask for more, knowing he hears you and responds in love and faithfulness.

Let truth about God and his character catapult you into fervent prayer! Be motivated to pray as Paul was by the fact that you have a heavenly Father who is on a glorious mission and he wants to partner with you to achieve his purposes!

2) What does Paul pray?

So we Paul is motivated to pray because he knows he has a Heavenly Father on a mission, what does he actually pray?

Paul prays that “out of his glorious riches [God] may strengthen you with power through his spirit, in your inner being.” Importantly it is God’s power and through his spirit that strengthens us. We do not strengthen ourselves. God starts and finishes the work in us, and completes it entirely by his power. And even more than that, this power comes from his glorious riches! It’s not just a little power that God offers but a never-ending supply in abundance!

Where does Paul pray that we are strengthened? “...in your inner being.” 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 tells us that though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly (our inner man) we are being renewed! Though the world focuses on the outward appearance, this will fade and eventually perish. However God looks at the heart, the inner man that will endure for eternity. Paul is praying for that which his Father values most highly. Though God loves it when we pray about our physical health and our current situations, these fade into insignificance next to the eternal glory prepared for us! Paul teaches us to pray about that which God considers highest value, our inner being.

Paul continues. Why does he pray that the Ephesians might be strengthened in their inner being? “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” Or put in another way, that Jesus might take up residence and make his home in your heart. When you make somewhere your home you gradually remove what you don’t like about it, and make it a place where you feel comfortable. You leave your mark in every room by what colours you put on the walls, what pictures you hang and even what food you have in the fridge. So Paul is praying that Christ may take up residence in the hearts of the Ephesian believers and might remove that which is not of him and leave his mark everywhere! And he does this as we continue to put our trust and our faith in him.

Paul goes on to pray that they “being rooted and established in love, might have power together with all the Lord’s people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” Paul is not simply referring to knowing in the mind, but to experiencing and taking hold of God’s love tangibly. How does God tangibly demonstrate his love to us? Romans 5:8 tells us “That God demonstrates his own love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us!” God, in love, has paid the debt of sin that we owed! Paul is praying that the Ephesians might be able to grasp tangibly the truth that Christ has paid for their sin out of the depths of his grace and love.

3) And finally how does Paul pray?

• Paul prays on his knees (3:14)
• Paul prays confidently (3:20-21)

By saying he prays on his knees Paul is telling us that prayer is a discipline. He understands what is at stake, and knows that he comes before God empty handed and undeserving. Prayer is often difficult but requires our full attention! “Prayer is a discipline before it is a joy, and remains a discipline long after it is a joy” (Ben Patterson).

But finally Paul prays with utter confidence knowing that he prays to “him who is able to immeasurably more than all we ask or imaging, according to his power that is at work within us”. When we rise from our knees we can shut the door behind us knowing with full assurance that God is able to ddo everything that we have asked him for, AND IMMEASURABLY MORE!

Questions

(1) What motivates you to pray? How different is that from Paul’s motivation and how might your prayer life be different if you were motivated by the same reason as Paul?

(2) What are some of your favourite verses about God’s character? What are some of the prayers God has answered in the past? Do you start here when you pray? How might this spur you on to pray with faith?

(3) Do you most often focus your prayers on external or internal things? Do you focus your prayers on yourself and others? How might your prayer life look different if you respond to what we learn from Paul?

(4) How does your physical stance in prayer reflect your internal attitude when you pray? Do you take prayer seriously?

(5) Do you rise from your prayers confident that God is able to do even more than you have asked? If not, why not? If you believed verses 20 and 21 how would your prayer life be changed?

Through the week…

(a) Why don’t you use the words of Paul’s prayer to pray for others in our church family. Then why don’t you also pray this for your friends and family who are yet to know Christ!

(b) Have a look at some of Paul’s other great prayers and see what you can learn from these too (Ephesians 1:15-23; Colossians 1:9-14). Try praying these for people you know and also for yourself.

(c) Try using the psalms to pray too. Pray through Psalm 62, which is will be looking at in next weeks preach.