Prayer for Strength

Do you have a favorite superhero? In the Marvel world, I like Hawkeye because he doesn’t have a superpower. He is an ordinary guy who is skilled in archery, martial arts, and tactics. To some this will be a traitorous statement, but in the DC Comic world, I’ve always liked Batman. I don’t know if it is his dark side or that I grew up watching reruns of the Batman TV show starring Adam West along with the 70s cartoon Super Friends.

One thing most superheroes have in common is strength. In the reruns I watched of Batman, Batman and Robin would inevitably get into a fist fight with the bad guys. Words like BAM, POW, ZAP, WHAM, BIFF, SOCK, THWACK, and KAPOW would pop up around them as blows landed. The typical progression of a superhero movie is the bad guys having some initial victories even against the superheroes. In Batman, the episodes were usually continued. The first part of two parts ended with Batman and Robin being captured or in some dire straits. It seemed like the bad guys would win, but, in the end, the heroes always make a comeback and defeat the bad guys.

No matter how strong the heroes are or what superpowers they possess, they still have weaknesses. They still experience defeats. There is only One whose power is limitless; it can never be exhausted. There is only One who can never be defeated. God alone is omnipotent.

Last week, we examined how Paul opened his prayer, remembering to Whom he was praying. This week, we will look at Paul’s first petition, a prayer for strength, that is asked within the framework of who God is.

¹⁴ For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, ¹⁶ that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸ may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, ¹⁹ and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.^[1]

Ephesians 3:14-21 (emphasis added)

Before we work through the details of our verses today, let’s consider a couple overarching truths. First, did you notice that Paul isn’t praying for himself? He is other focused. There are times he asks others to pray for him like at the close of his letter to the Ephesians (vs 6:19-20), but primarily, his recorded prayers are for others. This doesn’t mean that we should never petition God with our own requests. It does mean Paul has established a pattern of praying for others. He even describes his prayers for others as continual and without ceasing (Colossians 1:9-11; Philippians 1:4; 1 Thessalonians 1:2).

Second, Paul also establishes a pattern of praying for the spiritual welfare of believers – their spiritual growth, enabling, and every spiritual blessing. The times that Paul asked for prayer for himself, he didn’t ask for deliverance from prison or the ease of his suffering. He asked them to pray for him in preaching the Gospel. Again, this doesn’t mean that we can’t petition God for temporal things, but we should always be petitioning God for that which is eternal, brings Him glory, and grows believers in the grace and knowledge of Jesus.

Now, let’s dive into our verses for today. Paul bowed his knees before the Father to pray “that according to the riches of his glory…” We discussed “according to” back in Chapter 1. Some people give out of their wealth. An example is a millionaire who gives a small amount in proportion to what he has like fifty or hundred dollars. If one gives according to their wealth, what they give reflects their wealth. The more they have, the more they give.

The strength God grants us is according to the riches of His glory. God is infinite. He is limitless. Each of His attributes is inexhaustible and cannot be measured. Riches belong inherently to God meaning because of who He is, so He can lavishly strengthen us.^[2] He never needs to re-charge or ration the strengthening He grants. We will always be equipped with what we need, and God knows perfectly what we need.

“he may grant you to be strengthened” – The form of the Greek verb for “to be strengthened” expresses God is the One who must do the strengthening not us. The usual Greek word for being strengthened is not used here. In fact, the word that is used here is found only three other times in the New Testament. Twice it is used to describe how John the Baptist became strong in the spirit (Luke 1:80), and Jesus became strong, filled with wisdom (Luke 2:40). The third use is in Paul’s final commands to the Corinthian church: “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love” (1 Corinthians 16:13-14, emphasis added).

In Ephesians 1:19, Paul prayed for the Ephesians to know God’s power. Now, Paul prays for the Ephesian believers to be strengthened for a purpose (vs 17-19) – living according to the spiritual riches they have in Jesus.

Paul asks for the Ephesian believers to be strengthened with power. God’s unlimited, inexhaustible power is the means by which they are strengthened. The power is “through his Spirit”. The Holy Spirit is the minister who accomplishes the strengthening. The Holy Spirit alone is able to strengthen us (Romans 7:22-23; 8:5-13).

The strengthening happens in our “inner being”. Paul asks that God’s strengthening would saturate our inner man where true transformation occurs, the place that only God can reach and produce true and lasting change with eternal impact. Remember Paul is praying for their spiritual welfare, growth, enabling, and every spiritual blessing not for the temporal.

In Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church he wrote: “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you” (2 Corinthians 4:8-12). Paul and his companions experienced very real suffering, but his focus was not on the suffering. He followed each example of suffering with God’s provision in the suffering.

Paul then concluded with this astounding truth: “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18, emphasis added). Paul understood the important difference between the temporal and eternal. In the midst of suffering, he knew that God was renewing, strengthening, growing him in the inner man where it had eternal significance.

As I write, I’m staggered by this first part of Paul’s request. It is an amazing way to intercede for a brother or sister in Christ. I’m not often discouraged by health issues, but the past few days, with a new area of relentless pain, I have been discouraged. After an MRI, the doctors are still not sure what the cause is. The nerve-blocking, steroid injection I received lasted only a few days before pain began returning. I need God’s strengthening in my inner being to be able to fix my mind on things above not on the things of this earth. I need strengthening in my inner being to remain firm in my faith, trusting my good and loving Father.

Just when I needed it today, the song Flowers by Samantha Ebert came on the radio. “So I brought it up in a desperate prayer. Lord, why are you keeping me here? Then He said to me, ‘Child, I’m planting seeds. I’m a good God, and I have a good plan. So trust that I’m holding a watering can, and someday you’ll see that flowers grow in the valley.’” I’m thankful God strengthens me in my inner being to trust that He is good and has a good plan even in suffering. The more we are strengthened in our inner being, the more we can put off sin and put on thoughts, motivations, words, and actions that glorify God.

I’ll pause my grateful tears, so we can continue. “So that” – this begins why God strengthens us.

“Christ may dwell in your hearts” – John MacArthur gives a helpful definition of dwell: “Katoikeō (dwell) is a compound word, formed from kata (down) and oikeō (to inhabit a house), In the context of this passage the connotation is not simply that of being inside the house of our hearts but of being at home there, settled down as a family member…Paul’s teaching here does not relate to the fact of Jesus’ presence in the hearts of believers but to the quality of His presence.”^[3]

If you are thinking that Jesus indwells us by His Spirit the moment we are justified, you are correct. This is why in MacArthur’s definition of dwell he stated it describes the quality of Jesus’ presence. We live under Jesus’ continual presence and influence. We need to first be strengthened in our inner being, so that Jesus can dwell in our hearts and be the center of our affections, choices, and actions.

Now, if you have been a Christian for any length of time, the truth that Jesus indwells you is not new news, but when was the last time that this truth overwhelmed you? Jesus, second Person of the Trinity, Almighty Creator and Sustainer of all that is, God the Son dwells in you. He has chosen to make His home in you. Words fail me in describing how extraordinary, marvelous, and awe-inspiring this truly is. I go back to the opening of Paul’s prayer: “I bow my knees before the Father” (vs 14). Christ’s indwelling should result in our thanksgiving and praise.

Christ dwells in our hearts “through faith” in Jesus’ finished work. Faith that is needed daily as we seek to live in obedience, responding to all that God has done. Our faith is strengthened by the Holy Spirit through God’s Word. Whether it is grieving my Dad or living with chronic pain and fatigue, studying and calling to mind God’s Word is what strengthens me and reorients my heart and mind to God and what is true.

Paul framed his prayer with the truth that God is omnipotent, limitless, inexhaustible in power. He targets our need for and dependence on God to be strengthened through His Spirit in our inner being. He strengthens us so that Jesus can be the center of our affections, choices, and actions.

Reflection

1.    Paul’s prayer is a great way to pray for all other believers, but who in particular could you intercede for that they would be strengthened with power through the Holy Spirit in their inner being? Commit to praying, as Paul prayed, for a different person each day of the week for a week.

2.    To meditate on the riches that inherently belong to God, think through one or two “God is…” truths, how each is infinite, and specific ways that God is rich in that attribute.

3.    Nutrition, exercise, and time are all needed for physical growth and strength. Likewise, spiritual growth and strength takes time and comes by way of feeding on God’s Word and putting it into practice. Because our growth can take time, we don’t always recognize growth. In what ways have you grown spiritually? Take time to thank God for this growth. What in God’s Word has challenged you to grow through conviction of sin or encouragement of what God has done and who you are in Christ? Be specific about the passage of Scripture.

^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Eph 3:14–21.

^[2] Re-read Chapter 1 to refresh your memory on other ways He has lavishly provided for us.

^[3] John F. MacArthur Jr., Ephesians, MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1986), 106.