“That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love” (KJV, Eph. 3:16-17).
“That he would grant you”
Father, I thank You for being such a generous God. You have given me so much, yet I have given You so little. You never cease to amaze me with Your grace toward me. I have sinned greatly against You, but You stand ready to forgive. I have served You little, but You sent Your Son not to be served by me but to serve me. I have not lifted high the name of Jesus as I ought, but You raised me out of the pit nonetheless.
Please forgive me for my lack of devotion and zeal for Your name. Please forgive me for how I live for myself rather than for You and your glory. Grant me a strong desire to honor You with my life and do what is pleasing in Your sight.
“according to the riches of his glory”
You are rich beyond measure. Your wealth knows no bounds. Your Word tells me that You own the cattle on a thousand hills. Elsewhere, I read of how the world is Yours and the fullness thereof. You created the heavens and the earth, and it is at Your disposal. Nevertheless, I read of the riches of Your glory. Herein I see a limitless and infinite amount of resources rooted in Who You are.
All the world and everything in the heavens cannot amount to the wealth that is found in You. You have abundant resources rooted in Your character and nature that You freely offer me. I pray that You will help me to receive them this day.
“to be strengthened with might”
Father, I need Your strength. I can grow weak throughout my day and find that I am tempted to sin. Please help me to be strong in the faith and give glory to You. In the Psalms, I read of You as a shield, rock, strong tower, place of refuge, hiding place, deliverer, and high place. You alone are my strength, for I can do nothing apart from You.
However, Your Word tells me that I can do all things through Your Son, Jesus Christ, Who gives me strength. Elsewhere I read another of Paul’s prayers. He says, “That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness” (Col. 1:10-11). I pray that You would help me to walk worthy. I desire to live for You, bear much fruit, and prove to be Your disciple. Nevertheless, I pray that You would strengthen me with all might according to Your glorious power, which You exercised when You raised Your Son from the dead.
“by his Spirit”
Here I see that power and strength come from your Spirit. Let me never believe that just because I am saved, I do not need to continue to seek strength from Your Spirit. Paul has shown me that I must seek You in prayer for a greater manifestation of Your Spirit in my life. Please manifest Your Spirit within me. May I become less, and may Your Spirit increase?
You alone can supply me with Your Spirit. When Stephen was called upon to be a deacon in the early church, he was chosen because he was filled with faith, grace, power, and the Holy Spirit. As a result, I must conclude that I can be filled with the Spirit in greater measure as I can also increase in faith, power, and grace. Fill me with Your Spirit and draw me to the resurrected Christ. May the life of Christ be manifested in my life through the working of Your Spirit.
Your Word tells me that there is freedom where the Spirit of the Lord is. You instruct me that with an unveiled face, I can behold the glory of the Lord and be changed into His image from one degree of glory to another. Then You tell me that my transformation comes from the Holy Spirit, Who draws my attention to Christ with transforming power. Thank You for Your Spirit.
“in the inner man”
So often, I am misguided in my pursuit of godliness. I recognize times when I am more concerned about outward manifestations of holiness. I can be hypocritical, much like the Pharisees who sought the praise of man rather than God. Turn my heart to You this day and help me to recognize that You are after my heart, not outward displays of piety.
When Jesus saw the Pharisees, He said they worshiped Him with their mouths, but their hearts were far from Him. May these words of Christ never again find application in my life. Sanctify me in my inner man. Cleanse me from within that I would not be a whitewashed tomb.
“That Christ may dwell in your hearts”
Jesus, I thank You for the union that I share with You. I read of the baptism that has taken place in my life. The Spirit has baptized me into You, and we are forever untied. You are my head, and I am a member of Your body. You are in me, and I am in You. You have told me that You are the True Vine and Your Father is the Vinedresser. I have been grafted into the Vine through the working of the Holy Spirit.
It is truly a blessing to be close to You and to have You with me wherever I go. I often read that the people of God need not fear because You are with them. However, in the New Testament, Your intimate presence takes on a new form. You are with me and dwell within.
Your Word also gives me explicit instruction that my heart needs to change. But how will my heart change? You tell me that a change of heart marks the New Covenant. The Father has taken out my heart of stone and given me a heart of flesh. Nevertheless, I find that there is also an ongoing work that must be performed. Sanctification is a process whereby my heart will change as I work out my own salvation with fear and trembling while You also work in me to will and work for Your good pleasure.
But what is my primary work above all the rest?
“by faith”
Here I see that I must believe. I must have faith. Faith is my primary work. Paul prayed that Christ would dwell in the people’s hearts by faith. However, in his greeting, he called them saints and said they were faithful in Christ Jesus. Thus, they were believers who were already in Christ. As a result, I am forced to believe that believers can have a greater manifestation of the presence of Christ in their hearts by faith. May You increase my faith this day by the power of Your Spirit so that Christ would dwell in my heart richly. Sanctify me with the presence of Christ, and may the King of kings and Lord of lords rule over my heart this day.
“that ye, being rooted and grounded in love”
I see that I must learn to be rooted and grounded in the love of Christ. The love of Christ is foundational for me and will cause me to stand and endure this challenging life. Paul has said elsewhere that the love of Christ compelled him. He had concluded that Christ had died for all and, therefore, all had died. Paul died with Christ and learned to live for His Savior. The love of Christ changed Paul and propelled him in his role as God’s ambassador. Help me to look upon the love of Christ with similar eyes. Teach me to find my place of rest in Him, Who is gentle and lowly in heart. In Jesus’ name, Amen.