PRAYING EPHESIANS 1:17-19

What do you think it was like to hear Paul pray? This man had such tenacity for the church that he endured being whipped, stoned and shipwrecked at sea for the Gospel. (2 Cor. 11:23-28)

Well, we don’t have to guess how he prayed because the Bible documents Paul’s prayers in his epistles. These prayers are called the apostolic prayers. One of these prayers is found in Ephesians 1:17-19. 

“that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your [a]understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power.” (Ephesians. 1:17-19)

We can never pray amiss when we join in with the inspired word of God to pray how the Apostles prayed. 

The first thing we need to realize is that this prayer was prayed for the church. It was not primarily focused on a breakthrough of God in the secular world. Actually, every apostolic prayer contends primarily for the church. Ephesians 1 also prays that the church would understand the great grace and power that has already been given to them. We are not orphans wishing for breakthrough. We live in thankfulness that God has already given us His breakthrough and then we pray for revelation for the Church to awaken to her identity. 

This apostolic prayer is also incredibly eschatological (focused on the end-times). When Jesus comes back, Jesus will have His full inheritance from us, His body (Eph. 1:18). Therefore we pray for the Church to prepare to be His inheritance on the day of our Lord’s return. 

In the midst of all the these key dynamics of this prayer, we have to lastly remember that Ephesians 1:17-19 is a positive prayer that declares the victory of Christ through His church. As a matter of fact none of the apostolic prayers are negative, condemning, or judgmental. When we pray for the body of Christ from this passage, it should never be condemning or judgmental, but it should declare the joyful inheritance of God over His people.