Ephesians 1:15-23 “Thanksgiving and Prayer” (3/15/26)

First, special thank you to everybody that helped out yesterday, with all of the many things and tasks that were done around the church to both get a little bit of spring cleaning and getting everything cleared out of the garage and looking good and things built. So thank you for that.

So greatly appreciate all of that. We're going to be, covering the end of Ephesians one, but we're also gonna go back a little bit, today as well. So, if you, got your copy of God's word, great. You've got it open to Ephesians one. I want to remind you again as we do this often that this is a, a continual letter.

Letter. There are no actual chapter and verse breaks in the original. It's one letter, that Paul wrote. And just as we said a few weeks ago, verses three through 14 is actually one sentence. This prayer, in the latter part of Ephesians one is also one sentence.

It is actually only one sentence in the Greek. Paul, greatly enjoyed long, unbroken sentences. But as we had, discussed two weeks ago appreciate so much Jeff and Cheryl Chawick being with us last week, and, pray that was a blessing to you. But two weeks ago, as we looked at this passage, we talked about these, first, section here that that Paul kinda lays out the trinity for us, the trinity active in salvation. All three members of the Godhead are active in our salvation.

And we talked about the fact that it is, God himself who sent the son. God sent Jesus who came, to live the very life that you and I could not live, to ultimately die the death that we should have died because of our sin. And it is through the work of his spirit that draws us to himself and that we are saved. And we looked at this first part of an Ephesians here about that, part that that God has loved us from eternity past. And that to pick up a little bit, just to tie into this latter part of the prayer, that Paul lays out here, we see in around verse seven, it says that the, we see the work of Christ.

That in him being Christ, Jesus Christ, we see, we have the redemption. We have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace. That Jesus Christ, death on the cross, was a sufficient payment for our sins. That this is, what God had sent Christ to do. What did redemption ultimately cover?

Well, it covered the eternal penalty that God demanded because of our sin that has separated us from Christ. It paid to release us from this eternal penalty and the earthly power of sin over our lives. It's one of the works we'll see later as we see the work of the Holy Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit works in us that we can have victory over our sin. It doesn't mean that we still won't wrestle and struggle with that old sin nature, but we can gain victory, as we grow in Christ.

We will grow as we, become more and more as we grow in Christ. We will grow as we become more and more like Christ, and that sin nature starts to take less and less hold of us. So as a result, those of us who have placed our faith and trust in Christ alone, we can be assured that the ultimate price has been paid and that this price, this is a gift that God has given us that we know of as grace. And grace has been given to us as Paul is reminding this church abundantly, not so that we can continue to sin. No.

Grace is given to us so that we can not only see, but that we can know with 100% certainty that God loves us. Because God gives us this grace not because of anything we can do or we ever will do fully based upon His love alone, His love for us. That's the the beauty of grace that we can experience and why we as brothers and sisters in Christ should live in this grace, in this fullness of grace. And then you notice he goes straight into, this next verse which he says, which he lavished upon us. That God has not only extended to his grace, but he has lavishly given us grace, that we would, in wisdom and insight, make known the mystery of his will.

This mystery was that the gospel originally went to the Jew. The Jews were the first to hear this gospel message. We know that, Jesus was Jewish. Newsflash. Right?

And the disciples were were Jewish men that Christ had called to follow him. But the mystery was that this gospel would ultimately be proclaimed to the Gentiles, which are simply all those who are not Jewish. But this idea of redemption, it it means to buy out. It, the term was used very specifically in reference to the purchase of a slave's freedom. And the application of this, to Christ's death on the cross is quite telling.

If we are redeemed, then it means that our prior condition was one of slavery. We are are born as slaves to sin. That's part of having this sin nature. We don't have to teach someone how to sin. We are by nature sinners, and so we are therefore a slave to sin and that God has to purchase our freedom so that we are no longer under that bondage of sin.

We see that God, brought forth his children who were under the bondage of slavery in Egypt, that God it it wasn't Moses who delivered them. It was God who delivered them. Moses was just his earthly instrument, that he used to be that that voice, that mouthpiece to, to lead, but it was God who delivered them. Moses had no ability to deliver them from slavery apart from what God was doing and what God did. Just as we have no part in being delivered from our own sin than what Christ has done for us.

We cannot, deliver ourselves from sin. We cannot atone for our own sins. It is Christ who does so. So. Martyn Lloyd Jones says that redemption is a greater work even than creation, and especially when we consider the way in which God has achieved it.

Even though the sending of his only begotten son into this world in all the marvel and the wonder and the miracle of the incarnation, but above all, in delivering him up to the death upon the cross, this is the supreme thing that sinful men sinful fallen man can be redeemed and restored, and ultimately, the whole of creation also. All of creation will one day be redeemed. God will make all things new. As it is, as we come to faith in Christ alone, we become a new creature in Christ. But God will one day redeem all of creation that has been under the the curse of sin since the garden, since Adam, rebelled against God the Father and sin entered the world.

All of creation has now been under, the curse of sin, and and we see the effects of that. We see the effects of that when we see, catastrophic events that take place, like hurricanes and tornadoes or or flooding, all those things. Those are results of the fact that creation has been also marred with sin, that creation will one day even be restored to its original perfection as Christ Jesus returns. Thomas Boston was a old Scottish Puritan, wrote that in our redemption by Christ, we have the fullest, clearest, and most delightful manifestation of the glory of God that ever was or shall be in this life. All the declarations and manifestations that we have of his glory in the works of of creation and common providence are but dim and obscure in comparison with what is here.

Indeed, the glory of His wisdom, power, and goodness is clearly manifested eclipse without a redeemer. It's quite remarkable if you, spend, spend any time at all, especially reading so many of the the old Puritans and to go back and to consider, so many of these, faithful men of God who, pastored all across, England and then ultimately, came across the ocean to America. And it is also sad to see how many of those churches sit now as museums or or or simply shells. Some of these most magnificent buildings all across these beautiful churches that, were once vibrant area churches and communities that that the gospel had taken deep root into the hearts and minds today. These communities are are, in many cases, devoid of the gospel.

And that takes place when, when you and I cease to truly follow God in His Word, when we allow all the other things of the world, which are plenty, to take the place of what is, in fact, most important. Paul reminds us this in first Corinthians as he is writing to a church that has in in all, just I mean, if you read through Corinth and under read through Corinthians and second Corinthians, you start to realize, how just, crazy this church had gotten. And it doesn't take a lot for it to happen. But he says, for I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures. This is what, why redemption is so important that of first importance that Christ died for our sins.

If he doesn't die, then then our sins are not forgiven. He must die, and he must be risen. But it says that he was buried and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures. Paul is making it very clear that that nothing he has ever said is contrary to God's word. That what we need more than ever amongst Christians is an is a deep knowledge of God's word.

We must be in God's word to know God's word and therefore to be able to share God's word, to be able to actually have conversations with those that we can share. And then we can say, as Paul says, in accordance with the scriptures. We're not talking about something that we have come up with, but what does God's word say? And then he continues that he appeared speaking of Christ after the resurrection, he appeared to Cephas, who we know is Peter. He says, then to the 12.

So the 12, disciples. Then he appeared to more than 500 brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive. There's some have fallen asleep. Paul is saying that after the resurrection, Christ appeared to more than 500 people and that many of those were still living at the time of Paul writing this letter. And those that have fallen asleep are those that had gone and and passed away, hopefully unto glory.

But that Jesus made all these appearances to further give evidence that he was in fact alive, that he had been raised from the dead. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, which are those who had seen and been ministered in and around Christ. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me, that being Paul. He appeared to Paul on that road to Damascus. He says, for I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church of God.

But by the grace of God, I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than all of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me, whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believe. We see this work of Christ, this grace that is given to us, this abundant grace. And the the thing that we unfortunately, I think as believers, especially in a country like America where we we do have so much freedom, I think we really do take advantage of that grace. We don't we don't understand that the grace that we've been given came with a cost.

It came with the ultimate cost that Jesus died, that God the father sent his son to the cross. I don't think we fathom that weight and, you know, we have, once a year kind of, you know, the, the big to do if you would, and, you you know, and it's important. Right? We have Easter. We have resurrection Sunday.

But but every Sunday, the point of us gathering is to celebrate the resurrection of Christ, that he's died for our sins in our place that we can have a right relationship with God through Christ. Every Sunday, we gather. That's the the crux of what we gather for is to remember what Christ has done and so that will impact us hopefully and and drive us, compel us, lead us to want to tell others about this lavished grace. If we are, in fact, in Christ, then that means he has borne our penalty. If we are in Christ, then he, in fact, being Jesus, is at work in us, enabling us to deal with sin's power our lives, we will not only be saved, from the present sin, but we'll be saved from the very presence of sin.

There will be no more sin in our life one day because we will stand before the Lord. Charles Spurgeon says, listen, the riches of God's grace are beyond calculation. And then I think in an extemporaneous way, he says, for example, the riches of his grace are above all limits. All limits, height, depth, breadth, and so on, above all limits, above all observation. He says, you stand at the River Thames, and you think you see it, but you only see a tiny part of it.

It goes on and on and so on. He says, such is the grace of God. It is beyond, he says, all of our ways of action. All of our ways of action, we may forgive, but we can't forget. God both forgives and forgets.

It is beyond all of our understanding. It is beyond all of our sins. In fact, he says to his congregation, you cannot sin as much as God can forgive. Now grace, unfortunately, can sometimes be viewed that, well, if God has saved me, I can live any way I like. And that's far from it.

God saves us. He his grace on us so that we will live a holy life which is to be set apart. That there is a difference in us. That when those around us see us, that they would see Christ in us. Shane Pruitt, who is a a a sin generation god now, is a great, preacher of the gospel, says, Jesus didn't die publicly and courageously for us to follow him secretly and cowardly.

We should be willing to share the hope that we have. We should share the truth of the gospel. So we see God's work in salvation. Now we see, Christ Jesus as he has redeemed us by dying on the cross, shedding His blood. And then we're gonna see the work of His Spirit.

As He, continues through this, He, then talks about that in Him, we have obtained an inheritance is twofold. It means first that we are now a child of God. We are his children, and this gives us the right to expect an inheritance. Maybe you have thought about that. I mean, if you've got kids, if you've got grandkids, you've thought about what are you going to leave your family one day?

Well, let me just say that the greatest inheritance you can leave is a spiritual legacy. You can leave all the material possessions in the world, but if you fail to leave a godly spiritual legacy, you will not leave them what God has blessed you with ultimately. We are to invest and we are to encourage. Second secondly, we gain an eternity with the Lord dwelling in His righteousness for all time. Sometimes I I wonder, we we seem to have such little regard for Christ.

And as as brothers and sisters in Christ, it's just it seems like sometimes people are like, heaven's gonna be a big disappointment. The reality is probably a lot of people who sit in church every week are not gonna experience heaven because you've never truly been changed. We've never truly come to a saving faith in Christ alone. We've certainly gone through the motions. We we have the look.

We have the appearance. We we've done the, the boxes, but but have we truly been changed? I love this, kinda testimony, if you would. It was written by, Donald Barnhouse, who pastored a third church in Philadelphia literally the mid to late twenties all the way up to, like, 1960. By the way, if you've ever noticed, I don't always do good at this, but I like quoting dead guys that hopefully they won't reveal something.

Occasionally, somebody living, but, but I love this. He says, I was a sinner less perfect than God. By conviction of the Holy Spirit, I learned that my condition would incur the eternal condemnation of God if I did not submit to his grace. He understood the depths of his sin. I think that's where so often we we we just don't think we're that bad.

And because we we try to compare ourselves. Right? We try to look at someone else, and the reality is, any sin separates from god. The smallest little sin still renders us a sinner, and we need a savior. He says, I acknowledged myself a sinner and threw myself on His mercy and grace, recognizing that He had brought salvation to earth through His Son, Jesus Christ.

After God the Father put God the Son to death on the cross, he could proclaim grace and pardon to all who would submit to him. I came to the cross, believed his promise about his son, and God declared me righteous even while I was ungodly and gave me authority to become his child. I ceased to be a child of wrath and became a child of God, justified from all things. Simultaneously, I was declared to be an heir of God, joint heir with Jesus Christ. I received eternal life and shall never perish.

I was accepted in the beloved. My body became the temple of the Holy Spirit. I was born of the Spirit into the family of God, baptized by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ, which is the church, and sealed by the Holy Spirit unto the day of redemption. I have an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fades not away reserved in heaven for me. Although I know myself to be a sinner, I am not concerned about the penalty for sin since the Lord Jesus Christ bore the penalty and declared me righteous.

The love of Christ becomes the constraining constraining factor in my life, and I seek to of I know him as Lord and find the peace that passes all understanding. That is just beautifully written. One and and I love, too when, when people testify about these men. One of his, church members for many years was c Everett Koop. If you, are old enough to remember, he was a US surgeon general for many years and a very devout Christian.

We really could use a lot more men like that, in roles such as the surgeon general, men that know when life begins and that defends those. But this is what, c Everett Coop said about Donald Barnhouse. He said his authoritative voice held my attention. His physical appearance was arresting. I know you think the same of me.

And his preaching I just lost everybody on that one, didn't I? But I love this. And his preaching was teaching of the highest intellectual order. I always marveled at the simplicity of the faith of this very intelligent and learned man. What a great testimony.

He had been a a revolutionary in in in Redia, as far as, starting these, Bible studies on the Redia. He and men like, J Vernon McGee that, back in the nineteen forties and fifties were, really pioneers in in teaching God's word. You know, it's funny because, what what what's what's out there today that we all we we listen to all the time is what we call what? Like, talk radio. Right?

It's just talk. Right? There's there's there's not that there's not great I mean, podcasts are huge and, you know, I get people that send me these, podcasts, often, and and they're so good. And, but, like, where are those men that just simply teach through the Bible now that are that are simply teaching the word of God. I mean, I remember just every time I went in my my every time I went into my grandmother's, kitchen, I'd stop by.

You'd have to enter through the kitchen. Every time. I don't know if she just had a recording. I don't know. But every time was Jay know if she just had a recording.

I don't know. But every time was J. Vernon McGee. I mean, I honestly cannot I mean, that voice, and you know that voice. If you've ever, listened to J.

Vernon McGee through the Bible. Right? You know that voice. But every time I walked in that house, his, radio program was on. Now maybe she changed it to every station so that it just literally played twenty four hours, but just listening to, to these men teach the Bible.

And so, I'd love to share about that. But so we see though the Spirit's work in our salvation and that we, in fact, can be secure. We can know this truth. Vodie Baucham says, As followers of Christ, our greatest delight will always be found in our obedience to His Word. Right?

I'm amazed at even, often, I'll hear and and if you take this personally, then that's between you and the Lord right now because no one in here has said this to me, and I have not heard this from anybody. K? Just put it out there. Right? But I love people, and I'm being so facetious in there, who will, boycott companies that they don't think, you know, they should support, but yet they also don't give in to the Lord.

Seems to me a little hypocritical. You're okay stealing from God, but you don't wanna support a company that I'm just saying. That's just me. That's my opinion. I just find that ironic a little bit that the very people who want to be so seemingly righteous are also the ones who literally steal from the Lord.

I'm just saying it's a little hypocritical. Okay. I'm lying. It's greatly hypocritical. Okay.

You can't walk this line and and then not say, hey. I'm gonna really serve the Lord faithfully. Same one. You know? We're we're we're to serve the Lord.

We're to, financially bless the Lord. That's why you have your blessings is because of the Lord. So just encourage you there. That's a freebie. You know, hey, that's all there.

But we are we hear the gospel. We believe the gospel. We're sealed as as this passage talks about. Verse 13. In him, you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.

A seal was literally a mark indicating a letter or scroll, was closed or completed. When a king or dignitary wanted to show an identifying mark with a letter, he would seal it with a, a a risen imprint of his ring. And the Holy Spirit likewise shows that believers belong to the Lord. In first, excuse me, second Corinthians one says, and it is God who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us and who has also put his seal on us and given us His Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. And then Ephesians four, do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

This is the the work of the Spirit of God. Christ does the work. The Holy Spirit draws us and we are sealed so that when we come to genuine saving faith in Christ, he seals us unto the day of redemption. We cannot lose, therefore, something that we never were responsible for obtaining in the first place. Amen?

Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. Y'all alive today? I don't know. I mean, time changes last week.

So this week, you got no excuse for losing an hour. But that's just that's just amazing. That is amazing that God does this for us and that he and he and he not only saves us, but he keeps us. He draws JC Rolf kinda, lays out this work of the spirit and says, one, the spirit awakens a person's heart because we are, as we will see next week in Ephesians two, we are spiritually dead. We're not looking for God.

We're spiritually dead. Spirit awakens a person's heart. The spirit teaches a person's mind. The spirit is at work in our hearts and mind. The spirit leads us to the word, the word of God.

The spirit then convinces us of sin and then convicts us, and so that the spirit draws us to Christ. The spirit then sanctifies us. It's the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in our life that, that we are conformed in this image. The spirit makes a person spiritually minded. The spirit produces inward conflict.

The spirit makes a person love the brethren. The spirit teaches a person to pray. These are the great marks of the Holy Spirit's presence. Put the question to your conscious and ask, has the spirit done anything of this kind for your soul? By the way, really great assurance of salvation.

If the spirit of God is in you, you're saved. But if you do not have that assurance, then then it's quite probable that you've not come to a saving faith in Christ. Christ. Because, again, the last, couple verses here before he gives us his prayer, he says, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, speaking of the Holy Spirit, to the praise of his glory. To God be the glory.

Amen? Sing with me. Would you? To God be the glory. Great things he has done for you got it.

I'm not even I got the words up here. God is his son. Who yielded his life and atonement for sin and opened the life gate that we may go in. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.

Let the earth hear his voice. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. Let the people rejoice. Oh, come to the father through Jesus the and give him the glory.

Great things he hath done. I print these old versions, so sometimes the words might get a little off. But, anyway, but this is the original actually original copy of Fannie Crosby's no. But, you know, Fannie Crosby lived almost her whole life blind. And she was asked if she had one thing, would she ever desire to have her sight back?

And she says no. Because therefore, the very first things my eyes will ever see is Jesus. What a beautiful picture that is. Amen. Come on, sister.

We need to get a little more excited once in a while. It's okay. You can still be Baptist and be excited about the Lord. John MacArthur, actually, we'll read second Corinthians three real quick. It says, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and when the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.

And we all with unveiled face behold in the glory of the Lord are being transformed in the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is this. And then McArthur says that God is the only being in all of existence who can be said to possess inherent glory. We don't give it to him. It is his by virtue of who he is.

If no one ever gave God any praise, he would still be the glorious God that he is because he was glorious before any beings were created to worship him. His glory is his being, simply the sum of what he is regardless of what we do or do not do in recognition of it. But sola dea Gloria, to God be the glory. This was the the motto that grew out of the Protestant Reformation. It's interesting.

I don't know. Some of you may know this, but, Johann Sebastian Bach used Johann Sebastian Bach used to affix the initials SDG for solo deo glory at the bottom of every manuscript he ever published to communicate the idea that it was God and God alone who is to receive the glory for the wonders of his work of creation and redemption. It's really fascinating. This is what this is what, Bach said. He says, I can take no credit for the response that I made for Christ.

God didn't God not only initiated my salvation, He not only sowed the seed, but He made sure that that seed germinated in my heart by regenerating me by the power of the Holy Ghost. That regeneration is a necessary condition for the seed to take root and to flourish. It's quite it's quite interesting when you go back and you read so many of these, artists, poetry, musicians, I mean, during the renaissance and beyond. They were they were faithful followers of Christ. And so to god be the glory is what, Paul is saying that that's what we need to understand when we think of salvation.

And then he is from that. Then that's why I wanted to give you that was just the introduction. You okay? It was the introduction this morning. No one said a word.

Sound good. Alright. But then he goes into this prayer. So when he starts verse 15, he says, for this reason. Alright.

He's labeled this this great work that God does, that God the father, God the son, God the holy spirit does. And he says, for this reason, because I have heard of your faith. He's heard of their faith. But, again, it's not just that we have faith. It is in the object of our faith, which is Jesus Christ.

Because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and the love toward all the saints. And then he he he lays out this beautiful prayer. Again, this is, again, a a a continual sentence, in the original Greek. And so, this prayer is just is one long thought, this one long, cry out to God that he is, so encouraged. Remember, he has spent almost three years with, these folks, in and around Ephesus, and he has a a deep dear love for him.

And he has seen this this small group of, early believers in this pagan society, really see them and giving thanks for for all that God has done. And he will, talk about the fact that, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation. He's, he's, again, talking about, the Trinity there, all represented here, again, is at work in them. It is through the Holy Spirit, that is working in their hearts and mind and that he, talks about, in in verse 20, that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly place. We see this repeated through scripture.

Romans eight. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died. More than that, He more than that, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who is and who indeed is interceding for us. Colossians three one, if then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Hebrews one three, he is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. We just see over and over the fact that Christ is seated means the work is done. After After Christ completed the work that God sent him to do, he now can sit at the right hand of the father, which is a position of authority and power. He has all authority.

He has all power, but he is seated because he has completed the work. You know, in the temple, there was no place for the priest to sit. There there was no seating in the temple because the priest was always doing. They were always at work in the temple. Christ has done the work.

He is the better high priest. Priest. That's the one of the great points of of Hebrews. Right? That he is our High Priest and that there is no work for us to do.

We don't return to a sacrificial system. He's done the work. He's now seated at the right hand while where he what? Intercedes on our behalf. We have direct access to the Father through the Son by the Spirit.

The Trinity is at work even when we pray. JC Ryle again says, the day may come when after a long fight with disease, we shall feel that medicine can do no more, and that nothing remains but to die. Friends will be standing by and able to help us, hearing, eyesight, and even the power of praying will be fast failing us. The world and its shadows will be melting beneath our feet. Eternity with its realities will be looming large before our minds.

What shall support us in that trying hour? What shall enable us to feel I fear no evil? Nothing. Nothing can do it but close communion with Christ. Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith.

Christ putting his right arm under our heads. Christ Christ felt to be seated seating by our side. Christ can alone give us the complete victory in the last struggle. We see this as Paul is encouraging this, this group of Christians who have faced all kinds of of difficulties. And then he's gonna, kind of conclude conclude this prayer by saying, Far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and above every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.

And he put all things under his feet and gave him his head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all and all. John Newton says that when I was young, I was sure of many things. Now there are only two things of which I'm sure. One is that I am a miserable sinner and the other that Christ is an all sufficient savior. He is well taught who learns these two lessons.

And we're gonna read this last passage, and then we're gonna and then we're gonna, read, something together here. He says in, Paul says in Philippians, have this mind among yourself, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name so that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Again, you see it is all for God's good and God's glory. So I'm gonna, ask you.

I want to read reread this prayer because it is a prayer. And this is going to, kind of, close this this section. But I want us to read it together instead of just me reading it to you. I want to reread the prayer that Paul writes here in verses 15 through 23. So, if you would read along with me, we're going to read this and understand this is this is a prayer that Paul is praying that that you and I can pray.

These prayers in scripture are for us to pray as well. So starting verse 15 says, for this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of His great might, that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come. And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of whom fills all in all.

Be encouraged, brothers and sisters, that Christ has done the work and that we can live victorious lives if we will simply continue to trust in the work that Christ has done, abide in Christ, grow in Christ, spend time in Christian fellowship. The enemy wants to isolate us. It wants to separate us, but that's what Christ has given us in the church, which is his body. For people who don't understand that, they're missing such a I mean, the church is the body of Christ. It is so vital that we're part of the body of Christ.

None of the other stuff we do is talked about in scripture, but the church is. The church is His body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. So I wanna encourage us as we walk out of here today that we are the church. The church is not just this building. You and I are the body of Christ.

When we go out here, we are representing Christ. When we have conversations with those around us, we are representing Christ. We are what people will see as the church. Good or bad, we will be what people will use to determine so often if the church really is what she's supposed to be. The church is so vital and so important.

We need this time together. So I pray you will read this prayer maybe over and over this week, read through, the entire letter that Paul writes to Ephesians. Read through this in its entirety. Read through it in one setting. Read it over and over.

Let the words that Paul has written, richly bless you. And that may the grace of God come over you in new ways. Father, we are so thankful for Your precious Word and that, God, You have blessed us beyond anything we could ever imagine. That, Father, You have called us to Yourself. You have given us new life in Christ Jesus, and may we live that life to the fullest by being ambassadors.

You have called us a a sweet fragrance, Father. May those we come in contact with see Christ in us, not our righteousness, but Christ's righteousness, and may they be drawn to You. May Your Spirit work in us and through us, and by the power of Your Spirit, draw those to Yourself. Father, we are so thankful for your body that we are privileged to be a part of and that we need to be involved and engaged in a local body, Father, that you have given us as Paul has written these letters to to local churches, to to bodies changing communities and cultures by the power of Christ through the work and of Your Spirit and through Your precious Word. Father, may we be those men and women that are truly living, to the fullness that You have called us to be.

And we pray all this in Christ's name. Amen.