A PRAYER FOR THE STRENGTHENING OF BELIEVERS

PROCLAMATION

“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 surpasses knowledge; that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”  Ephesians 3:16-19 (NIV)

 

EXPLANATION

These words were written by the apostle Paul, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, in a letter to the believers in the church at Ephesus.  Paul began this third chapter by asserting that he is an apostle given by God to preach to the gentiles. (Ephesians 3:1-12)  He asked them not to be discouraged because he was in prison. (Ephesians 3:13)  Then he offered this prayer for them.  He prayed for their strength and power in The Lord, and that they would appreciate the vastness of the love of Christ.

 

APPLICATION

As believers we should pray for each other.  In fact, we should pray for all believers.  This prayer has four petitions on behalf of believers.  First, that all believers would be strengthened in The Spirit.  Second, that Christ would dwell in our hearts by faith.  Third, that we would know the extent of the love of Christ and be grounded in it.  And fourth, that we would be filled up with all the fullness of God.  This is a prayer that we should pray for all believers so that we would all be strengthened and grow in the knowledge of God and the love of Christ.  This is something that we all could use as we continue our Christian journey in this sin-sick world where temptation and evil are all around us.