Ephesians 3:16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.

Ephesians 3:14-21 is a prayer of the apostle Paul for the church. What was his prayer?

1. That he would grant you. Paul prays for God’s blessings upon the believers.

2. According to the riches of his glory. The word “riches,” denotes “abundance,” and the idea here is that God’s grace is inexhaustible and He will abound in His giving.

One reason why you have not received is you never asked. Christ says: “Ask, and it shall be given you” (Matthew 7:7). And Paul adds on to the Lord’s bidding: “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” (Ephesians 3:20). God will give more abundantly than you could ever ask for.

3. To be strengthened with might. Paul prays for spiritual strength for all the believers.

We pray for many things but do we pray for strength? We need strength to overcome temptations, to serve God, and to remain faithful. Let us pray for strength in the Lord: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).

4. By His Spirit. It is done by His Spirit. And one of the pieces of the armour of God is the Spirit’s sword, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17). The word is the medium God chose to do the strengthening on Christians. The Spirit operates through the word (Romans 10:17).

A Christian is strong when He has the word of God abiding in Him. John concurs: “I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one” (1 John 2:14). They were strong spiritually because of the word abiding in them.

In like manner, we will be strong when we have the word abiding in us. Our Lord says: “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life” (John 6:63, ESV). The word of God is spiritual and results in eternal life.

5. In the inner man. The “inner man” refers to the heart, mind, and soul. This is spiritual strengthening. Yet, how often we neglect this part of our growth but focus only on the physical and mental growth. We feed our bodies but few feed their souls. It is precisely this spiritual neglect that many are weak in their faith. Yet they refuse to see that the fault is with them and not with the sermons. We need to feed and nourish the inner man: “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2).

The results of spiritual strengthening are:

1. Christ will dwell in the hearts by faith (v.17a).

2. Will be rooted and grounded in love (v.17b).

3. Able to comprehend the immense love of God (v.18).

4. Will be filled with all the fullness of God (v.19).

Piety needs to be constantly invigorated, or it withers and decays. He who does not grow spiritually will shrink spiritually. Unless we exercise towards godliness and feed our souls daily with the word of God, we cannot grow strong spiritually. 

Let us be strong in the Lord: “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” (1 Corinthians 16:13).

Jimmy Lau

Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.