By Robert L. Olsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
Remembered
Ephesians 1:15–23
Knowledge of God (15–17)
In Matthew 6, Jesus teaches us how to pray in the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is not the only example of prayer in the Bible for us to emulate when we talk to God, however.
In today’s passage in Ephesians Paul gives us an example as he prays for the saints in the city of Ephesus. We can use this prayer to help guide us as we pray for other believers in our communities and around the world.
To begin Paul expresses thankfulness for these saints, which shows an attitude of gratitude, something all believers should have. Second he prays for the Ephesians to possess a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of the Lord God.
Christians will never be perfect until glorification so there is always room to grow in wisdom. Even the most mature Christian still has a lot to learn. The more we walk with Christ the more we realize we are far from perfect.
Instead of this being a curse it is a blessing because it draws us closer to God. In fact the more we realize our imperfections the greater God becomes to us. As we realize we cannot become more like Christ on our own we become dependent on God.
As we pray this prayer for ourselves and our brothers and sisters in Christ it will unite our local church bodies and make us a more effective witness for the good news of the gospel of Christ.
Hope of God (18–19)
In modern American culture many people focus on their identity — who they are and their desire to be known and legitimized. This becomes evident as we observe people demanding others accept them for who they see themselves to be. It is a rampant issue in our culture today but it is not new. For centuries people have struggled with identity issues but as Christians we have hope. We have eternal assurance of who we are.
The Christian does not have this need to focus and obsess over identity because our identity is found in Christ, and we are who He says we are. It is a great comfort knowing it is our Creator — the God of the universe — who gives us value and not the society around us. Trying to live up to society’s standards is just a recipe for anxiety, depression and insecurity as we can never live a perfect life.
Therefore it is important for us as Christians to take stock of who we are in Christ Jesus and what benefits come with this calling. Paul emphasizes that our calling as Christians brings us great hope because knowing what God has done for us means our focus is solely on God and not our earthly circumstances.
Power of God (20–23)
Without a doubt the most important aspect of Christianity is the resurrection of Christ. Not only does it show the power of God in defeating death but it proves that the God who is able to conquer the grave and raise His Son from the dead can surely fulfill all of the other promises He made to His people.
This should be great encouragement to the believer because in every trial we face we know God is greater. This does not mean we will overcome each and every trial here on earth, but we can live with hope and confidence knowing who’s in control. And when death comes we can trust that the God who raised Christ from the dead also will raise us from the dead.
The resurrection is so important that Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15 if the resurrection is not true, then Christians are to be pitied above everyone else because we worship a dead Savior who can do nothing to help us.
We, however, should live in the knowledge and confidence of the glory of the resurrection in such a way that others are drawn to our lives and as a result drawn toward Christ.
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