Spirituality is not declining, but church affiliation is.
In this study, we will explore Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. We’re going to see how God’s encouragement to these first-century Christians still instructs our twenty-first century lives today.
During our time together, we'll discuss the following more deeply:
- We are joined together.
- We pray for one another.
- We support one another.
- We encourage one another.
- We strengthen one another.
- We stand together in spiritual battle.
Let’s dive in and see why we need the church – and why the church needs us with lesson 2 in our series.
Some
things are just better when done with a group. It’s one thing to grab a basketball
and shoot hoops, but you can’t play a game of basketball by yourself; it takes
a team.
Almost
60 million people run for exercise, and almost 111 million walk for the same reason.1
This discipline is commendable, yet many more decide to run or walk each year,
only to quit after a few weeks—or days. What causes some people to stick it out
and others to quit?
While
we might suggest many reasons, a great motivator can be the presence of others.
It’s easy to say, “I’ve gone far enough,” when you’re by yourself, but runners are
great at encouraging each other to keep going.
Marathon
runners are known for verbally “high-fiving” each other. They know it’s hard,
and they support one another.
This
truth applies to our prayer lives as well. God hears the prayer of the individual,
but we experience something wonderful when we gather with others to pray.
As a
church, we need one another, and we support one another through our prayers.
WHAT
DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
Ephesians
3:14-17a
14 For
this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on
earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may
strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17a so that
Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
Culture
tends to reduce prayer to only asking God for tangible things in times of
pressing need. Christians, on the other hand, should hold a much wider view of
prayer. Don’t get me wrong; God assuredly cares about our needs. In another
letter, Paul said we are to pray about everything (Phil. 4:6)! We should keep
praying for God’s provision in our lives, but prayer involves much more than
asking for our own concrete needs.
Question
2:
How
does prayer help us experience the power and presence of Christ?
This
passage challenges us to broaden our prayers in at least two ways.
1.
Pray for others, not just ourselves. We should especially pray for fellow
believers. God is the One “from whom every family in heaven and on earth
derives its name” (v. 15). Christ’s church includes members from every nation
on earth. We should pray for believers in our church and around the world.
Throughout
this passage where Paul used “you” or “your,” he was using the plural form. He
was not praying for just an individual; he was praying for a group of people.
Paul was demonstrating a simple truth: God saves us to be a part of a people.
The church is a family. As a family, we share responsibility for each other,
and that responsibility includes praying for one another in addition to praying
for ourselves.
2. Pray for spiritual needs, not just physical. Like Paul, we can pray that God would strengthen our brothers and sisters through the Holy Spirit’s power.
Humanly speaking, obeying God rightly is impossible. If we are to have any hope of regularly following what our heavenly Father has commanded us, then we must depend on His power. The reality is we are desperate apart from His power, so we pray to be strengthened with power from the Holy Spirit—and we are to pray that same prayer for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
All of
these spiritual realities grow through prayer. God uses the prayers of fellow Christians
to empower our obedience, comfort our hearts, and mature our faith. And we can
pray that He will do the same for them.
Ephesians
3:17b-19
17b
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together
with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep
is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you
may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
God’s
love may seem to be a foregone conclusion to you. We constantly say, “God loves
you” and “God is love.” We should say those things because they’re true, but
what does it mean that God loves us?
Question
3:
What
are some ways you’ve experienced the depth and breadth of God’s love?
Love
is most definitely a feeling—and a very powerful one at that—but it is far more
than a feeling. Love is actually an action. We see this play out in our own
lives. For example, a father frequently tells his child he loves him, but he
demonstrates that love by feeding him, clothing him, and sacrificing his time
for him.
Moreover,
as a parent, the father sees the bigger picture of life. Just as a father
installs a fence around the backyard to allow his young child to play freely
while being protected from outside danger, so too God places boundaries around
His beloved children in His Word. Love is something we do—love in action.
- Pray
we would constantly remember that it was God’s love that saved us and it is
God’s love that sustains us. In his prayer, Paul said we are “rooted
and established in love” (v. 17b). This is a statement of fact. Regardless of
how we might feel, God loves us and has always loved us. Pray that we remember
that.
- Pray
we would grow in understanding the full measure of God’s love and character. Paul
used human terms of measurement — “wide and long and high and deep”—to show our
inability to comprehend the vastness of God’s love. We’ll never fully grasp
everything about God and His love. But though we can’t know God fully, we can
know God deeply through praying, reading His Word, walking with His people, and
experiencing His care through life’s circumstances. Pray that we would grow in
knowing God’s love more deeply each day.
- Pray we would be astounded by the sacrificial love of Jesus on the cross. Paul referred to “this love that surpasses knowledge” (v. 19). Jesus’ suffering on the cross was the primary way God demonstrated His love for us (Rom. 5:8). Therefore, we never have to wonder if God really loves us. His love for us was settled once and for all on the cross. That has never changed—and it never will. Pray that we never stop marveling over that truth.
MY
PRAYER LIST
Some
people keep an ongoing prayer list. Name three people you could add to your
list.
Make a
note of needs each person might have. Next, write a short prayer for each
person.
I’m
praying for . . .
This
person needs . . .
Here’s
my prayer:
I’m
praying for . . .
This person
needs . . .
Here’s
my prayer:
I’m
praying for . . .
This
person needs . . .
Here’s
my prayer:
“I
urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers,
intercession
and thanksgiving be made for all people.”
1 TIMOTHY 2:1
Ephesians
3:20-21
20 Now
to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according
to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in
Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Paul
challenged us with yet another principle of praying together in Christ’s
church. This principle has the possibility of radically changing our lives,
affecting our worship, and altering our prayers. That principle is this: prayer
is not about us. It’s ultimately about God and His glory.
Paul
finished his prayer with climactic words of worship to God. He didn’t just tack
on an “amen.” Instead, he prayed, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably
more than all we ask or imagine” (v. 20).
Those
words demand our attention. Two important principles stand out:
1. God is able to do more than we ask. He created all things. He orders all things. He sustains all things. God saves His people. He empowers His people. He provides for His people. He knows all things, and He can do all things. Nothing is too difficult for Him. The same God who put the stars and planets in their celestial orbits also placed every hair on your head. He knows you by name. This truth should give us enormous confidence as we pray for one another.
Question
4:
When
has God exceeded your expectations?
2. In
contrast to the power and greatness of God, we tend to pray smaller, more limited
prayers. God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.” This
truth doesn’t indict us as much as it humanizes us. In our humanity, we often
bring to God our needs and concerns, asking Him to work in specific ways. We
even craft a perceived solution to the matter. Through prayer, we then ask God
to do it. But what we often fail to realize is that all the best possible
solutions we can concoct pale in comparison to the power and ability of God.
He’s able to go above and beyond what we ask or think.
Paul
closed his prayer with more words of worship. By finishing his prayer this way,
Paul presented the purpose of our praying together, serving together, and
everything else we do in the church and beyond. That purpose is God’s glory.
“The glory of God” is God’s fame or renown. With that definition in mind, that
means we are to make God famous through our collective witness and worship. God’s
glory is a consistent theme throughout the Bible. When we pray like Paul, our
prayers will be more about God and His church and less about ourselves.
Question
5:
What
are some specific ways our group can pray for the church?
LIVE
IT OUT
How
might you adjust your prayers to align more with the spiritual priorities of
God? Choose one of the following applications:
- Confess. In order to realign your prayer life in a more God centered, others-focused direction, confess to God the ways you’ve prayed in self-centered ways.
- Pray. If you’re not in a regular discipline of prayer, begin now. Keep a journal of your prayer requests to ensure you are also praying for the spiritual and physical needs of others.
- Pray together. The best way to grow in praying together in Christ’s church is by praying together in Christ’s church!
Commit
to a regular time to meet and pray with one or two other believers from your
Bible study group. Culture may only see prayer as a means to ask God for help in
times of trouble, but for Christians, it’s our lifeline for both physical
sustenance and spiritual vitality. Let’s pray and live for the glory of God.
Hope to see everyone this Sunday on zoom!
God Bless you this week,
David & Susan
Teacher Notes:
Video:
War Room the Heart of the Movie
Last
week we opened this series on Why Do I Need the Church? With the fact that we
are all joined together under a common bond: When we come to Christ, we are
connected by a grace that saved each one of us and that same grace has made us
all brothers and sisters in the family of God.
Now, when
you are part of a family, you do certain things:
1. We
pray for one another.
2. We
support one another.
3. We
encourage one another.
4. We
strengthen one another.
5. We
stand together in spiritual battle.
So,
our first action in this new family is to pray for one another and Paul
explains this morning in his prayer to the Ephesian church, how we should pray
for one another and the power that is available to us when we pray.
WE PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER
I don’t know of anything that more needed right now as a nation, in the United States than prayer.
Someone
read:
Ephesians
3:14-21
For
this reason, I kneel before
the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I
pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen
you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may
dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray
that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with
all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the
love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be
filled to the measure of all the fullness of
God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church
and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Billy Graham
once said, “To get Nations back on their feet, we must first get down on our
knees.” And this is how Paul begins his prayer…
Ephesians
3:14-17a
For
this reason, I kneel before
the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I
pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen
you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may
dwell in your hearts through faith.
Paul prays
for the power and presence
of Christ to be manifested through His church.
Tony
Evans said, “We will see an explosion of the presence
of God as a result of the prayers of His people.”
1. We
Ought to Pray for One Another’s Fortitude and Faith. (v. 14-17)
What
do I mean by fortitude? Fortitude: courage and strength in pain or adversity
Paul’s
not praying here for property, prestige, promotion, or prosperity. He’s not going
to God for things we can taste, touch, see, smell, and hear. Paul is praying
for something totally different. He’s praying that the believers (the church) would
be strengthened and given courage by God, with power
through His Spirit in their inner being.
The
family of God includes all who have believed in Him in the past, all who
believe in the present, and all who will believe in the future. We are all a
family because we have the same Father. He is the source of all creation, the
rightful owner of everything. God promises His love and power to His family,
the church. If we want to receive God’s blessings, it is important that we stay
in contact with other believers in the body of Christ. Those who isolate
themselves from God’s family and try to go it alone cut themselves off from
God’s power.
Which
comes more easily to you: praying for yourself or praying for others? Why?
- Culture
tends to reduce prayer to only asking God for tangible things in times of need.
Paul says to:
1.
Pray for others, not just ourselves.
2.
Pray for spiritual needs (faith), not just physical.
Ephesians
3:17b-19
And I
pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together
with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep
is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you
may be filled to the measure of all the fullness
of God.
2. We
Ought to Pray for One Another’s Fullness.
John
10:10 says, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
Paul
is saying that we should pray for a deeper sense of God’s love.
- We
should always be in the process of growing and deepening in Christ’s love.
- God’s
love grows out of experiential knowledge but it is still beyond our complete
understanding and our human expression.
- As we
mature and grow in faith, God increases our capacity to experience His
fullness.
Have you ever wondered what the most important
thing in life is to God?
“If you are a follower of Christ Jesus … all
that matters is your faith that makes you love others.”
Galatians 5:6 (CEV)
Accomplishments … Achievements … Fame … Wealth
What matters in life is one thing – the faith that makes you love other people.
Ephesians
3:20-21
Now to
him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according
to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in
Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
3. We
Ought to Pray for One Another’s Focus. (v. 20-21)
Paul
concludes his prayer by showing us that God is bigger than any problem,
challenge, dream, or vision we may have. God is able to do above all that we
ask or think. He encourages us to shift our focus
from the size of our problem to the ability of our God.
- God’s
power and ability is unmatched, unparalleled, and incomparable.
- Whatever
we ask for or think about is only a beginning point for what God is capable of
doing by His sovereign power.
- God is
glorified through His Son, Christ Jesus.
- The
true church of the Lord Jesus Christ functions to bring glory to God.
- Glory
is due to God both now and forever.
When
we pray for one another, let’s pray that God will help us to ask great things
of God (He is able to do above all that we ask or think), to attempt great
things for God (according to the power that works in us), and to anticipate
great things from God (to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus).
Close with …
“You need to plead with God to do what only He can do and then you need to get out of the way and let Him do it.”
Close
with: Video ending of War Room
…………………………………………………………………..
Click Play to Watch
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