“I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,”Ephesians 1:16-17 ESV
Reflection: If someone asks you to pray for them, what do you do?
“My thoughts and prayers are with you”, “I’m praying for you”, or something similar are very common expressions to among Christians. Even many non-believers use similar language, especially using the words “thoughts and prayers”. But when people say that to you, are you ever curious about what exactly they are praying about? Because prayer, is asking God for something, right?. Prayer is intercession to our Almighty God for some favor, for grace and mercy. Now, we know that God in the end will fulfill His purposes, and we know that He is only good. But, we also believe in the power of prayer, coming before His throne as His children, asking Him for things. But again, with what request? What are we asking God for? So, we can conclude that prayer should be 1) aligned with the will of God, 2) be somewhat specific, as a request, as it is an intercession, and 3) share the prayer with whom we are praying for, so they can receive it.
In today’s focus verses, we see Paul’s prayer for the saints in Ephesus, as he writes “I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,” Ephesians 1:16 ESV. Do you see anything unusual here? Paul starts with thanksgiving for those he is praying for, before he proceeds with intercessory prayers. Before asking God for anything. And, if we think about it, giving God thanks for others, changes the way we think about them. If we have to pray, to plead on their behalf, doesn’t it make sense that we first have the right frame of mind about them? Now, what is Paul’s thanksgiving based on? We read from the beginning of the paragraph “For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,” Ephesians 1:15-16 ESV. He is basing his thanksgiving of them from their faith, how they demonstrate it by their love for each other. And, we also see that his thanksgiving for them is continuous, without ceasing.
Then, with the right frame of mind, he shares the intercessory prayer for them, what he longs for aligned with the will of God, which is “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” Ephesians 1:17-21 ESV What an amazing prayer and request of our God for fellow believers!
It is absolutely worth reading this prayer multiple times, perhaps even memorizing it. Because, most apply to all believers, to all followers of Christ, and is centered around a deeper understanding and relationship with God. We will see more specific prayers of Paul for the Ephesian church in chapter 3, which seems to be in the middle of his teaching. But, perhaps Paul is sort of drifting in and out of thanksgiving, teaching, instruction, correction, to prayer and intercession for the young believers in Ephesus. And, thanksgiving and prayer becomes part of his language, part of his daily life. Most people seem to have more of a set time or place to pray. But what we have seen from our Lord Jesus, and also here from Paul is a behavior to “pray without ceasing,” 1 Thessalonians 5:17 ESV.
So, let me ask you – when, how, and what do you pray for your fellow believers, those that God has our on your heart? I think we can all learn a lot here from Paul, in the “how” and the “what” we pray about, and even when. My prayer for you today receiving this, is that “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,” Ephesians 1:17 ESV.
