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Skip Heitzig: "Of this salvation," Peter writes, "the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand of the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into."

The church, this new society, this salvation offered to anybody by faith in Jesus Christ is a graduate course in salvation for angelic beings. Angels don't know about the grace of God. There was a whole group of angels who sinned and they were cast out of heaven and will never be given a second chance.

They were there for that. They saw that. But the idea that God would grant salvation, would grant fellowship, would grant intimacy, would grant relationship with human beings, and God continually pours out His grace to us, the angels sit back and go, "Wow." One of the things they go "wow" about is they probably look at some of you and go, "I don't get these people. Here God has given so much to them, done so much for them, made so much available on their behalf, and they don't use it."

God says pray and I'll answer you; they don't even pray. They worry and they kvetch and they call their friends and they look up on social media what to do, but they never talk to God. And yet God loves them still and forgives them still and is patient with them still. It's a graduate course on salvation by grace to the angelic beings. He's showing it in the classroom of the universe. God is the teacher, the angels are the audience, the illustration is the church, and the subject is salvation by grace.

He mentions that in Ephesians: "to the principalities and powers in heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness with confidence through faith in Him." Do you remember what the writer of Hebrews says about how we should come before God?

"Seeing then that we have a great High Priest," Hebrews chapter four, "who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may be able to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Then also in Hebrews chapter 10: "Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus." Why do we come so timidly into His presence? Why don't we come boldly? Well, what right do we have to come boldly? Because He said come. He said ask, and we're told how, by the blood of Jesus Christ.

If Jesus on the cross said, "It's finished," and God said, "That's enough," why do we think it's not enough? We should be able to come boldly. I don't deserve it. That's irrelevant. He made you worthy. He justified you. So we should come boldly. "In whom," verse 12, "we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory."

Remember I said that it would seem that some of these Ephesians were a little bit embarrassed, if not let down, if not just feeling sorry for Paul, that he had to go through imprisonment. Paul says, "Don't feel bad for me, man." He tells the Philippians, "This is by the will of God. This is for the furtherance of the gospel. Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory."

Something else before we finish out this letter, and by God's grace we will finish chapter three tonight. Notice something in verse 11: "according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord." Do you realize that God's purpose will never be thwarted? It'll never be thwarted. It will never be pushed aside. God will do what He said He would do.

The question is, like Paul, will you allow yourself to be an instrument through which God moves? God's going to fulfill His purpose with you or without you because He can do it and He will do it. But the glorious assignment we have is to say, "Here am I, send me."

Remember your Old Testament. Remember the story when there was in the Persian court of Ahasuerus an evil man by the name of Haman, who signed a decree that all of the Jews in the empire should be killed on one day. The reason he gave that order—and the king said it was okay to give that order—is because there was a man by the name of Mordecai who worked in the temple complex of Ahasuerus, who refused to pay homage and bow to Haman when he would go into work in the morning.

Mordecai just stood there. "I'm not going to bow down to you." So Haman didn't like that, and he realized Mordecai was a Jew, and he said, "Let's kill all the Jews in the empire." Mordecai talks to Esther, his relative, and says, "You've got to do something. You've got to go in to the king and approach the king and put an end to this." Esther said, "Man, uncle, you don't understand protocol here. I can't just go into the king's chambers anytime. I have to be invited. If I'm not invited, my head will come off or could come off. You don't understand how things work here in Washington. I can't just go in."

So Mordecai writes back to her and says, "Listen, who knows that you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this? But if you don't step up and say something, deliverance will come from another quarter." God is going to deliver His people because He's made promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It's going to happen. The Jews aren't going to be slaughtered. God will bring deliverance from another quarter, but you have the opportunity, Esther, to be used. Will you do it? Will you say, "Here am I, Lord, send me?" So she finally wrote back and said, "Okay, pray for me. I'm going in." And God used her to do it.

According to His eternal purpose, He's going to accomplish it. You and I have the great honor of being instruments through which He works. When Saul of Tarsus was on the Damascus Road, the first question he said is, "Lord, who are You?" Jesus said, "I'm Jesus, whom you are persecuting." Second question: "What do You want me to do?"

Every Christian asks and gets answered the first question. "Who are You, Lord?" They understand who Jesus is, they give their lives to Him, but not every Christian gets around to asking, "Lord, what do You want from my life?" When you do, that's when the fun begins. That's when the adventure begins. That's when you ride the wave, and it's an awesome wave to ride. So get into the flow. Ask Him.

"For this reason," now he's back to the reason that he began chapter three with, "for this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named." Now you'll notice that Paul begins a prayer here, which is interesting because he's already prayed. Like he does in a lot of his letters, he prays at the beginning. He lets them know what he's prayed for about them. He does it again.

He says, "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Now, if he really meant this literally, it would have been a fun sight to see Paul chained to a Roman guard saying, "Excuse me just a minute," and he has to stand up and then get down on his knees and start his prayer.

But we do know that many of those soldiers chained to Paul did receive Christ according to the book of Philippians in chapter one and chapter four. He mentions that. So maybe Paul meant this figuratively, maybe Paul meant this literally, to get down on my knees and pray. Which brings up a question: what is the proper posture for prayer?

It's a fair question. In Genesis chapter 18, Abraham stood before the Lord as he prayed. In 2 Chronicles chapter 20, King Jehoshaphat bowed before the Lord. In the book of Samuel, chapter seven, David sat before the Lord. Daniel, in chapter six of Daniel, three times knelt and bowed before the Lord, or knelt down before the Lord. So all of those are proper positions. You can kneel, you can stand, you can sit, you can bow. The position of the body doesn't matter; the position of the heart matters.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Connect with Skip Heitzig. Every day, the generosity of friends like you helps make clear verse-by-verse Bible teaching available to people searching for truth, purpose, and hope. This month, we want to thank you with a pair of powerful resources to help you understand your identity in Christ and God's design for your life and relationships. When you give, you'll receive the Expound Ephesians nine-CD series with digital download, along with Pastor Skip's book, Beyond the Summer of Love. Together, these resources explore the richness of the gospel, reveal your place in God's family, and show how biblical truth brings strength, restoration, and lasting hope to your relationships. We'll send both resources as our thanks when you give $50 or more to support Connect with Skip Heitzig. Call 800-922-1888 or visit connectwithskip.com/offer. Now, let's return to today's teaching.

Skip Heitzig: I like to walk and pray. I like to take my mornings and walk, and while I walk, pray. Go through the little prayer app that's on my phone for the Calvary requests that come through. Pray for the individuals that ask for prayer, pray for my family. I like to do it when I walk. I like to do it when I drive. Sometimes the way people drive, I really do need to pray. Sometimes the way I drive, I need to pray, and I probably prompt the prayer of others as I drive. You could lie down and pray. I wouldn't recommend it, because you'll probably fall asleep if you do that.

"I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named." I wish I had time to get into that. I don't think I really have much time except, remember it says in Philippians that God has given Him a name, the name which is above every name, the name of Jesus Christ every knee will bow, every tongue will confess.

So all of creation will be subsumed eventually under the lordship, rulership, and the name of Christ. Until then, we are part of the family that go by that name. That name first crops up in the book of Acts chapter 11, when Barnabas took Paul, brought him to Antioch, where they taught the people for a whole year. And it says the believers were first called Christians at Antioch—followers of Christ, little Christs.

But one day all of creation, because in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God, all things were created by Him, that is by Christ. Then we get to Colossians chapter one and it says that in Him all things that were made were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. So one day all of creation will be subsumed under that name. Until then, we bear that name.

So here's his request, number one: "that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory," which are endless, "to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man." He prays that God will give them a strong spiritual life. The inner man is the inner you. It's the real you. It's the heart of you.

You and I have two natures: old nature, new nature. Before Christ, you were controlled and dominated by the flesh. Now that's your old nature. You've come to Christ; you are, we are, we should be dominated by the Spirit. There's a war against the flesh and the Spirit. He's praying that you would be strengthened, dominated by spiritual impulses and the Spirit of God.

The analogy is often used, and I've used it, that your new nature is like a garden with fine plantings, fine flowers, all the things you like. The old nature are all the weeds that grow in the garden. I don't know if your experience is like mine, but this rain that we've had, there are more weeds in my garden this year. Every day I have off that I can, I'm pulling up these crazy weeds. I didn't plant those weeds. I didn't ask for them to be there. But I planted some other plantings and I find that those only grow by me nourishing them, nurturing them, and caring for them.

I don't have to do anything to the weeds. They just grow up naturally. I have to actually pull them out and deprive them of life. That's how my old nature is. I have to weed out certain activities, certain impulses, deprive it of oxygen, deprive it of life, and nurture the inner man.

Paul's prayer: "that you would be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height."

You'll notice we're nearing the end of the chapter and we're almost out of time, so I think we're going to make it. But let me ask you this question. He prays for believers in Ephesus in verse 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts. Why would he pray that? Does not Christ already dwell in their hearts by faith? If they're believers, is He in their hearts, yes or no? Yes.

Yet Paul prays that He would dwell in their hearts by faith. Why? The word that he uses for dwell is a compound word that means to dwell down. It would be translated in English "settle down and make Himself at home." So he's praying for those who have received Christ, they're formally baptized into the body of Christ, they're believers, Jesus lives in them, but he says, "I pray that Jesus wouldn't just live in you, but He'd feel at home in your heart. He'd settle down and make Himself at home."

That's a question for you. Yes, He's in your heart, but do you make Him feel at home? Do you think with some of the things you see or do or say that He might, if He were with you—and He is—say, "You know, you're not making me feel the love here. I don't really feel at home with what you're doing."

There's a great little booklet. I'll recommend it to you and then I'll move on and finish this chapter. It's a little booklet every Christian should have and read. It's an old one called My Heart Christ's Home. You can get it online, you can download it on Kindle or your iPad or your iPhone. My Heart Christ's Home. The author is Munger, I think it's Robert Munger, M-U-N-G-E-R.

Read that little booklet. It's all about this concept: how Jesus comes into a person's life. It's like inviting Him into your house. He goes through the living room, the kitchen, the bedrooms, the dining room, sees what you're eating, what you're watching, and it's a fascinating little short booklet like a tract, almost. Worth the read.

"My Heart Christ's Home." "That He would settle down and make Himself at home, that you being rooted and grounded, your roots would go down in love, that you may be able to comprehend with all the saints the width, length, depth, and height, and to know the love of God which passes knowledge."

Well, how is that possible? Why would Paul say, "I pray that you would know what is unknowable?" The love of God passes knowledge. I pray that you'd know that. I pray that you would fathom the unfathomable, discern the undiscernible, comprehend the incomprehensible. To know the love of Christ which passes knowledge.

Here's how: you may not know it intellectually. You and I cannot grasp, I cannot fathom, I blow a fuse when I start realizing that eternal God thinks about me and loves me and I'm part of His great plan. It just does not compute. But the word "know" used here means not to know intellectually, but to know by experience.

When will you fully know by experience the fullness of the love of God? You're starting to get a little hint of it now, but you'll eventually realize it in glory. It'll be your ultimate experience. You're getting a taste, a foretaste; you'll have the ultimate experience. 1 John chapter three: "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the children of God. Therefore the world does not know us. It does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is."

There's coming a day when our limited knowledge and understanding will be filled in. In fact, speaking of that, "that you would know the love of Christ which passes knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." Now he closes with a benediction.

"Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be the glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen."

That ends the first part of the book. Second part is coming up: the walk of the believer. He's told us who we are and what we have; we're sitting in heavenly places. Now he's going to tell us: get up and walk. That'll be chapter four.

But he closes this chapter with a doxology. It's just like Paul starts thinking about it, going, "Man, God's love is awesome. It's staggering." And so he ends with this not-a-hymn, and I'm going to put it up in a triangle form. We're going to close with this. Kind of look at it this way. I did it in stages.

"To Him who is able to do." He is able to do all we ask or think. He is able to do above all we ask or think. He is able to do abundantly above all we ask or think. He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. Anything too hard for God? No. God can do it. God can do more than that. God can do more than that. God can do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think. Not just accordingly, but above it.

God's power is unlimited, and all of this is based on that. The God who created everything, the God who created new life in you is going to walk you through this life all the way into glory. And you'll know what you don't fully grasp right now. You're getting a taste of it, so am I, but we're all growing, we're all moving, and one day we'll get the fullness.

Guest (Male): Thanks for joining us today on Connect with Skip Heitzig. Before we go, remember: your generosity helps share God's word with people around the world, offering truth, hope, and encouragement where it's needed most. And this month, we'd love to thank you for your gift of $50 or more by sending you the Expound Ephesians nine-CD series with digital download, along with Pastor Skip's book, Beyond the Summer of Love. These resources will help you understand your identity in Christ and see how God's design brings strength and restoration to your relationships. Give today at connectwithskip.com/offer or call 800-922-1888. See you next time on Connect with Skip Heitzig.

Connect with Skip Heitzig is a presentation of Connection Communications, connecting you to God's never-changing truth in ever-changing times.