Paul’s Prelude to Prayer

The content of the closing passage of Ephesians 3 (vs. 12-21) is the second of the two prayers recorded in Ephesians. The first is back in 1:15‑23, where Paul prayed for four things. That first prayer can be summed up this way: a prayer for Appreciation; that is, Paul prayed that God’s people will realize and appreciate all the riches they have in Christ.

We can summarized the second prayer as a prayer for Application; that is, Paul prayed that God’s people will put into practice what they now appreciate, that they would be what God desires them to be. It is impossible indeed to apply something to our lives if we do not appreciate it.

To illustrate, as an American, we should appreciate what that means. While it has lost some of its early glory, it is without doubt the most unique nation that has ever existed on Earth. Its principles of liberty and how that liberty came about transcend anything on this planet. Only when we appreciate that, can we, therefore, apply it; only then can we live out the principles of what it means to be an American. Infinitely beyond that should we appreciate and apply our riches in Christ.

One commentator contrasts these two prayers by writing: “[Paul’s] first prayer is for believers to know their power; the second is for them to use it. Two things a pastor should be most concerned about are telling his people who they are in Christ and then urging them to live like it. In other words, the pastor helps members of the flock understand their spiritual power, and then he motivates them to use it. Like the apostle Paul in this letter, the faithful pastor seeks to bring his people to the place of maximum power as full-functioning Christians.”

It’s one thing to tell the people something, but it’s quite another to help them use it. As we saw back in our study of preaching, this is what preaching is all about—the exposition and application of Truth. That is what the pastor is called to do.

We should also note something very significant in the recorded prayers of Paul. The most important prayers of Paul are called “Paul’s prison prayers,” those recorded in the Prison Epistles. Two of them are here in Ephesians, one is found in Philippians 1:9‑11, and one more appears in Colossians 1:9­-12. The point here is that these deal with spiritual realities rather than material needs. While there is nothing wrong with praying for physical needs, we need to recognize that this is often the only thing our prayers involve. Much of the teaching on prayer today is shallow because it fails to point out that prayer should ultimately lead to spiritual results. In fact, when we do see Paul pray for something physical, we find that the final result is actually spiritual.

We turn now to our text: In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him. Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. Verses 12 and 13 are not actually part of Paul’s prayer. Rather, they are more of a “prelude” to the prayer that follows. The reason for the prelude is because after their reading about the sublime purpose of the Church, Paul fears that his readers might be so overcome by awe that they might shrink away from personally applying this truth to their own lives. Perhaps they were thinking, “How can these amazing truths, these sublime realities, these unreachable riches, these grand mysteries apply to us?” Therefore, Paul re­assures his readers with what these truths mean to all believers personally.

Now, while verses 12 and 13 are not part of the prayer itself, they are still part of the context on prayer. For this reason we include them in the fourfold thrust of the passage. In this installment, and the ones following, we will examine this fourfold thrust: The Attitudes of Prayer (vs. 12‑13); The Approach to Prayer (vs. 14‑15); The Appeal of Prayer (vs. 16‑19); The Ascription of Praise (vs. 20‑21).