Sermon Synopsis
This sermon examines Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:15–23, highlighting three essential elements of Christian prayer: praise, thanksgiving, and intercession. Drawing from Paul’s example, believers are challenged to recover a God-centered pattern of prayer that begins with worship, continues in gratitude, and seeks spiritual growth for the church. The message emphasizes the believer’s hope, inheritance, and access to God’s surpassing power through Christ. Ultimately, it calls the church to address the greatest power shortage—not external resources, but a lack of prayerful dependence on God.
Please note: This transcript is provided as close to verbatim record of the sermon.
The Prayer That Glorifies God
Ephesians 1:15–23
Introduction: A Testimony of Prayer
Good morning, brothers and sisters in Christ.
Beloved, I want to thank all of you for your prayers, your concern, and the love you expressed during these two weeks following my shoulder surgery. I had a torn tendon that was totally separated, but the wonderful surgeon managed to restore it. We praise and thank the Lord for this.
If anyone says there is not much love shown among the believers here in Amk, ask him to come and see me—I will tell him otherwise.
Truly, I have experienced the reality and the power of prayer in these last ten days. I look forward to seeing even more of that power as we continue to remember the Lord’s people and His servants in this assembly. Even now, I praise the Lord for those of you who have prayed for this morning’s ministry.
As the Lord has led us this morning, we continue to remember that He is ever-present with us—guiding us, speaking to us, and showing each one of us what He desires us to do.
The Importance of Prayer
Prayer is indeed important, and we know how important it is. Even the Lord Himself has shown us its necessity.
Every follower and disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ is a man or woman of prayer. And may I add this: even now, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is praying for us at this very moment.
If He, the Son of God, found it absolutely necessary to pray, what more us?
In Luke chapter 6, we see the Lord Jesus Christ going up to the mountain to pray. He spent the whole night in prayer so that the next morning He might choose the twelve disciples, who would be named apostles.
In Acts 1:14, we see how prayer—both individual and corporate—paved the way for the establishment of the early church. Luke, who emphasized the humanity of Christ and His dependence upon God, recorded how the disciples devoted themselves to prayer from the very beginning.
For the early church, prayer was primary.
But what about today?
For the early church, prayer was essential.
For today’s church, prayer is often optional.
“You like to come, you come. You don’t like to, you don’t.”
Is prayer truly optional?
Some churches do not even have scheduled prayer meetings. I praise the Lord for our prayer meeting every Tuesday—rain or shine, Chinese New Year or not, Christmas or not. We continue as the Lord leads. Specific prayer items are prepared for each prayer warrior to pray for the body of Christ.
I thank the Lord for the visible increase in attendance since the beginning of this year—young and old coming faithfully to pray. I pray the Lord will raise up even more brethren to pray for the church.
Yet this is common in many churches: very few are engaged in prayer. Even in prayer meetings, there are long pauses and silence. Even in the breaking of bread, we hear more hymns, more singing, more sharing—but less praise and prayer.
I believe this is largely due to a lack of dependence on God.
When life is comfortable, prayer takes a back seat. When life breaks down and hurdles arise, then we turn to the Lord.
Beloved, this is not the life the Lord Jesus called His disciples to live.
“If anyone will come after Me, let him take up his cross and follow Me.”
Those who take up their cross and follow Christ cannot endure without prayer. They must depend on it.
Are we living according to His teaching?
Or are we living independently—business as usual—until trials drive us to prayer?
The Structure of Paul’s Prayer (Ephesians 1:15–23)
This morning, I would like to share three lessons from the Apostle Paul’s prayer for the church in Ephesians 1:15–23:
Let us consider them in that order.
Paul begins with the words, “For this reason.”
This links us back to verses 3–14—a doxology of praise:
One cannot read that passage without being moved to worship.
In those verses is the summary of every believer’s blessing in Christ.
It was this attitude of praise that prompted Paul to:
How often do we come to prayer with an attitude of praise?
When was the last time we truly meant it when we said, “Praise the Lord”?
Too often it becomes a Christian cliché—something we say to sound spiritual.
Paul teaches us the proper pattern of prayer:
Yet often we reverse the order.
In reality, we have so much to praise God for. The Bible is filled with praise. The angels declared at Christ’s birth, “Glory to God in the highest.” The shepherds returned praising God.
What about us?
Daily struggles and constant demands can crowd out our praise. We may attend worship and think we are “good for the week,” yet our souls may remain distant and cold.
Is this truly the sacrifice of praise—the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name (Hebrews 13:15)?
Perhaps some do not feel like praising. Perhaps there has been disappointment, pain, or loss. But Paul reminds us: there is no lack of reason to praise.
When we fix our eyes on Christ—even in difficulty—we find that God begins loosening the grip of our struggles over us.
Paul says he does not cease giving thanks for them.
Do we pray regularly for the church?
Have we heard of the faith of brethren in this assembly? Of their love for all the saints? Do we give thanks for them?
Two thoughts about thanksgiving:
Ephesians 6:18 — pray at all times.
1 Thessalonians 5:17–18 — pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks.
There is no good prayer without thanksgiving.
We thank God:
And we thank Him in anticipation of what He will yet do.
How thankful are we? It is revealed in our praise and thanksgiving.
III. Intercession (Ephesians 1:17–23)
Paul now makes specific intercession.
Prayer is access into the presence of God.
Romans 8:34 — Christ intercedes for us.
Hebrews 7:25 — He always lives to make intercession.
What a privilege—to enter boldly into God’s presence.
What Did Paul Pray For?
He prayed for:
This speaks of:
Paul had heard of their faith and love—but he prayed for growth.
Because:
Are we concerned for the growth of this assembly?
Have some of us plateaued spiritually?
Have some receded, even backslidden?
Paul gives the remedy:
What Paul Wanted Them to Know
Paul desired them to know three facts:
Our salvation rests on God’s call.
To know Him personally is salvation (John 17:3).
To know Him increasingly is sanctification.
To know Him perfectly is glorification.
Do we live in this hope daily?
Not only do we have an inheritance in Christ—
We are God’s inheritance.
He paid dearly for us.
We are His treasured possession.
When Christ returns, we will be to the praise of His glory.
This is the power that:
This power is available to us.
Brothers and sisters, do we believe in this power?
Have we failed to praise?
Failed to give thanks?
Failed to pray?
The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Conclusion: The Greatest Power Shortage
While in Cebu last year during our MDC trip, there were concerns about power shortages. We thought, “Don’t worry—we have a standby generator.” But even that failed.
The greatest power shortage today is not in our generators or gas tanks.
It is in our personal lives.
It is in our prayer life.
Will we begin to know by experience:
To do so, we must pray.
Let us pray.