Study 12

PAUL

Bold Prayer for Ultimate Concerns

Ephesians 3:14-21

 

My father used to comment that the majority of prayers seem to focus on stomachs or fenders!  We pray for the sick and safety in travel—good subjects for prayer, but should these be our priority?

 

Paul’s prayers focused on the spiritual health of those he loved.  He was concerned about the ultimate goal of life, and his prayers reflected that concern.

 

  1. When have you felt strong in your Christian life?  What were the contributing factors to this strength?

 

 

 

 

Paul begins chapter 3 with the intention of recording his prayer for the Ephesians, but then pauses to describe the “mystery of Christ.”  He explains it in verse 6:  “This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.”

 

Read Ephesians 3:14-19.

 

  1. Paul resumes the statement he began in verse 1:  “For this reason…”  Look back to Ephesians 2:19-22 and 3:6.  What is the reason for Paul’s prayer?

 

 

 

 

  1. The ordinary position for prayer among the Jews was to stand with outstretched hands, palms upward.  What might Paul’s kneeling position indicate about his attitude in this prayer?

 

 

 

 

  1. To whom does Paul address his prayer?  What confidence would verse 15 give to the Gentile believers?

 

 

 

 

  1. List Paul’s requests for the Ephesians.  What themes stand out?

 

  1. Note the references to the three persons of the Trinity in these verses.  What do you learn about their roles?

 

 

 

 

  1. How can we know something that surpasses knowledge (verse 19)?  What do you think Paul meant?

 

 

 

 

  1. Paul was aware of the danger of a faith that depended simply on intellectual knowledge.  How does his prayer reflect that concern?

 

 

 

 

  1. In whose company does a person come to understand the love of Christ (verse 18)?  What implications do you see in this?

 

 

 

 

  1. How does Paul emphasize the extent of Christ’s love?

 

 

 

 

Read John 17:20-21.

 

  1. How does Paul’s intercession lead naturally to praise?

 

 

 

 

  1. In what ways is God’s glory to be seen?  For how long?

 

 

 

 

  1. Who are the people in your life for whom you are most concerned?  Use Paul’s prayer to help you focus on the eternal, ultimate needs of those for whom you pray.  Then close your prayer time and these studies with the doxology in verses 20-21.