The letter of Paul to the
Ephesians is written in the prison (3:1). Paul is obviously suffering. Yet, he has words of hope for the
Our paragraph starts with
this phrase: “for this reason…” (vs. 14)
What is the reason? What is the condition that caused Paul to go
on his knees in prayer? If you read the
whole letter, you will find that the world to which Paul refers has many divisions. Divisions everywhere, between men, between
nations and specially within the inner being (3:16)
These days one can see
how bad divisions are within nations and people.
Israeli-Lebanon war is continuing
without mercy on both sides. I am
receiving many emails form
The fighting is intense in the south of the country so it’s been relatively
quiet where we live. We suspect though that there may be some kind of
agreement until the evacuation of thousands has been completed. The death
count in
And yet, God is sovereign and in control. On Monday 15 people from
our church gathered in our home to pray, for the leaders, for
Divisions
within humanity and nations. Divisions between
cousins: Isaac and Ishmael. Yet the letter was full of hope unlike the
headline of the “Daily Star” which had a question mark at the end of the
sentence. We as Christians learn that we
live with hope.
Paul is in prison when he
says:
“For this reason I kneel
before the Father …” (3:14) A theologian used the word prostates. I checked it in the dictionary and found out
the following:
Prostates: to lie face
downward: reflexive verb to lie flat on
the face or bow very low, for worship.
In the Old Testament,
Jewish people prayed usually in standing position: hands stretched out
and the palms upwards.
Coming on his knees, Paul demonstrated the intensity
of his plea to God, his urgent call for help. There is a division, and walls of
separation. He is urging us to abide
rooted in Jesus Christ. Therefore:
1. He prays to the Father of Jesus Christ. For Paul, God the Father has an intimate
relationship with humanity. For Paul,
God the father has all the qualities of fatherhood. That means God is reachable. We have access to God. Muslims, for example, say God is great and
transcendent. Although we too believe
that God is great and transcendent, yet he is immanent and accessible. We can reach God.
How? Through His Son Jesus
Christ.
In this passage Paul is
on his knees (14), and praying so that our inner being will have strength by
the power of God, (16), praying so we all are rooted and established in Love of
God through Jesus Christ (18).
We will continue in
English.