Eph 3:14-16 Praying for Others Spiritual Strengthening

Eph 3:14-16 “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,”

As mentioned in the earlier posts, our primary prayers for others should be their spiritual health more than their material needs. Paul prays earnestly here, describing that he is in knelt position, praying yet also praising to God. Too often our attitude towards prayer is haphazard. We see that prayer should be done in attentive attitude, reverence respect, to God.

Paul gives us a lesson on praying for others. We ought to pray for others they are strengthened in the inner man. That is, we pray for their spiritual health, that they possess the faith to trust in God no matter what difficult circumstances they are facing currently, that they do not worry about the needs of this world, that they cast their anxieties upon God, that their spiritual lives grow in maturity.

This ability to be strengthened spiritually comes forth from the Spirit working in us. Throughout the epistles of Galatians and Ephesians, we see Paul repeatedly emphasizes upon the Spirit working in us, bringing forth faith, salvation, bearing godly fruits.

Amongst the Charismatic and Pentecostal movement, there is a strong emphasis that being filled with the Spirit involves speaking in tongues, having dreams and visions, shaking profusely. This is however not biblical. A true person filled with the Spirit is one who submits to the Spirit, bears the fruit of the Spirit, is reminded and rebuked of the Word of God by the Spirit. In short, he is no longer living in habitual sin in the world but is sensitive to the submission of the Spirit.

We have to beware against prosperity gospel teachings. Do these teachings remind us to live, submit to the Spirit or do they invoke further lusts in our old self of greed, covetousness and self-centeredness?

Let us be strengthened spiritually in the inner self. To be better Christians, living, submitting to the Spirit instead of being self-deceived and self-reasoning to be living in the ways of the world of which Paul says in Eph 2:1-2
"And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world...of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience."