Ephesians 3:14-21 (King James Version)
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Today I was prompted to read through Ephesians and as I reached chapter 3 :14-21 there were 2 aspects which particularly impressed me:
Firstly in verse 15 the apostle Paul (the writer of this book) refers to the ‘whole family’. In the original Greek the word patria in this verse closely relates to the word for father in verse 14 so we have a picture here of one Father and one family.
Whilst it is true that God is the Creator, so all of mankind are His children, in this verse Paul refers to the “true family of God”- i.e. His children through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross of Calvary that we receive adoption into God’s family so we can truly say ‘Abba, Father’. What a comforting truth this is-one family with God as our Father; a family not limited to time or space.
Paul speaks of ‘the family in heaven-(that is, those children who have already received their inheritance and are now with the Father in heaven) and on earth’; neither is this family confined to international borders-it is worldwide!
Doesn’t that give us a great bond of unity especially during these days of isolation and social distancing but at the same time it gives us an added sense of urgency to work as responsive and responsible members of our Father’s family to obey His commands & to spread the Good News of salvation.
Secondly, I was struck by Paul’s words in verse 14 “I kneel before the Father…” He is expressing a deep reverence and emotion as people in his day generally stood to pray.
In his moving prayer for the Ephesian family, Paul prays they might be strengthened in their faith, that Christ might live in their hearts and that they be grounded and established in love to enable them to grasp the extent of Christ’s love. As a result and using the resources God graciously gives they might bring Him the glory He is due.
Paul’s conclusion in verse 20 that God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine is a timely reminder for us today when it’s easy to become despondent or overwhelmed and frightened by the circumstances of our lives.
Let us remember and thank our Father for our family, both near and far.
And let us pray in deep reverence and emotion for each other that we too may be strengthened in our faith as we work together in His kingdom for His glory.
Ineke