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 Ephesians 1:15-23 - Pray for the Church

We hear in Ephesians that prayer is effective.  Paul prays constantly for the Church.  Paul couldn't be more excited about the beautiful bride of Christ who has faith in Jesus Christ and loves God’s people everywhere.  Let's have that kind of enthusiasm for genuine Christianity.

        We read later in chapter four that God gives special abilities to the Christians - each of us has special abilities given only by the Holy Spirit.  But don’t miss the point here that the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ can and will give you spiritual wisdom and insight.  Pray for that now.  And pray that the church in your community is given wisdom and insight from our Father.

We hear that God wants us to grow.  Like chubby babies, some Christians think someone else will always change their diaper and fill their bottle.  Real Christians know that we have to work.  We know that faith without hard work is dead.

        It takes serious effort to keep yourself united with the Holy Spirit (4:3).  Don’t fool yourself and think that you are too good to pray or that your gifting will produce fruit with no effort.  Let’s motivate each other to work hard.  Time is short.

Oh, may Jesus be real and practical for us today.  May He be right alongside us as a brother and friend, our encourager, and our Redeemer.  May He help us not become self-righteous prigs, but instead may we, as we spend more time with Him, grow more like Christ.  May we be sensible people, wise and assertive.

        Let's be eager to hear, to get instructions.  Be loyal.  Fear God.  Trust Jesus.  May we have the strength of a plow horse.  Yet may we be as humble and gentle as Jesus instructing a child.

How long will God wait patiently?  Is there a consequence for the nations that refuse to acknowledge God - for the people who do not trust the name of Jesus?  Pray for them.  Pray that more will come to know God and call upon Him for help, forgiveness, and salvation.   

God’s church is worldwide.  Across the globe, He identifies people as his own (seals them with the Holy Spirit) when they believe in Jesus.

This amazing book reminds us that we must increase our love for Jesus Christ and our love for God’s people everywhere.  Why do we love Jesus?  Because He saved us and protects us and loves us.  And we love God’s people because they are God’s prized possession.  If we genuinely love the Father, then we will love what He loves.

It is easy to be negative about the church because of all the false teachers and hypocrites and men who love power and money and abuse their positions in disloyalty to Jesus.  It is good to stand against such evil men.  Yet be careful to continue loving those who love Jesus.  Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.

        False teachers create an us versus them mentality.  They can’t accept any criticism or correction.  If you dare speak out against their non-Christian behavior they want you silenced.  They hate correction and anything that points out their errors.  Thank God for Paul and his Holy Spirit-led correction and exhortation in this book.  

Lord Jesus, please fill our hearts with wisdom, understanding, and insight as Paul prays for the Ephesians.  Amen.


Providence, Rhode Island, State Capital Building


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