Ephesians 1:15-23, “For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know
him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may
know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”
Pray for each other.
This letter to the Christians at Ephesus is a beautiful one full of encouragement. How uplifting it would be to know that your love for others was making an impact and someone was constantly praying and giving thanks for you! Such a great example of a prayer we can pray for our fellow Christians.
“I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers” (v. 16). There
are periods of time where a particular person needs constant prayer. Whether they are
sick, have lost a loved one or have a particular need. But has there been a time when
someone is just on your mind and you don’t know why? Pray. Pray and pray some more
for them. God has put them on your mind for some reason. Just thank God for them. He
will fill in the “why” of the prayer if you don’t know.
“I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.” (v. 17). What a power punch of a prayer! We can remember King Solomon’s prayer. God said he would give Solomon anything he asked for, and what did he want? Solomon asked for wisdom. He could have asked for absolutely anything, but he understood wisdom was most precious.
And aren’t we all wanting to know what’s next? If we’re honest we do. We all hate suspense. This knowing has a particular purpose, though: to know Him better. When
we know Christ better, we understand his will, our purpose, and we desire to have a
stronger relationship with him each day.
All of our spiritual disciplines are circular in nature. One feeds into the next, which in turn
causes us to desire the next. When we pray we want to read our Bible. When we read
our Bible we want to study it. When we study it, we want to share it. When we share
it…you get the idea. It all becomes a big circle of turning back to prayer or wherever you
started. And of course I left some out. Just giving you the general idea.
The next part is rather long but begins, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened…” (v. 18). Then there is a list to what he prays for their hearts to be open to. Let’s just list these: our inheritance as Christians, his power, understanding this power was mighty enough that it raised Christ from the dead and ascended him to heaven, and this power is mightier than any authority or name now or forever. This is our God! He is who we come before asking for wisdom and revelation. He is who we bring our fellow saints to asking to be encouraged and healed. The God with the mightiest power now and forever!
God has …”placed all things under his feet and appointed [Christ] to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way” (vv. 22-23). How honored we should be to be called the children of God, those who have called on his name and accepted his free gift of salvation. And how honored we should be to share it with others so they, too, can become children of God.
Make a list of people God is bringing to your mind today to encourage in prayer and
continue praying for them each day until you have peace in your prayer time. Then make a separate list of people who need to hear the Good News and pray over these
people daily for God to soften their hearts unto salvation. I have even taken the verses in Ephesians 1 and prayed them over others. Just a thought.
Be encouraged with as you memorize Romans 15:5-6, “May God who gives endurance and encouragement help you all agree with each other the way Christ Jesus wants. Then together you will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
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