02 Jul 7/26/26 Ephesians 3:14-21 “Common God Courtesy”
7/26/26 Ephesians 3:14-21 “Common God Courtesy”
I think that I could safely say that we all like children. Parents love it when their kids are growing up. They should know that this is a special time for them. Things change when we become grandparents. Then we can spoil the little ones more because we are no longer responsible for their day to day care. I used love to have the little ones up on Sunday morning because you never know what they will say and anything they do say is important. This is probably why Jesus told the disciples to let the little ones come to Him. Anyway, one time I ended our time together by telling a story of a child praying. I think that there is something about a child praying that we should pay attention. We can learn a lot from them. For one thing they are not afraid to bring anything to God. Have you ever noticed that? They also have such wonderful ways of saying things. Most important is the fact that these young ones are dead serious. They know that Jesus will answer them and aren’t afraid to ask. So what happens to us as we grow older? Why do we rely less and less on prayer? Today, we are going to look in Ephesians to see what makes a good prayer. Let’s see if we can find ways to help us get the Lord’s attention.
Pastor Jeff Strite tells the story of a businessman who was worried about an upcoming business deal that was huge for his company. Now check out what he did first. First he went to his church to pray about this. I have been here 9 years and I have only seen a few people come here to pray other than Sunday mornings. Anyway, he knelt down beside a man who was praying for $100 to pay off an urgent debt. When the businessman overheard the poor man’s prayer, he took out his wallet and pressed $100 into the other man’s hand. The man was overjoyed and he got up and left the church. The businessman then closed his eyes and prayed, “And now, Lord, that I have your undivided attention…” Wouldn’t it be nice if you could feel you have God’s attention every time you would want it? It would be nice if you could get anyone’s attention when you need it. Today’s lesson should apply to talking to God and just about anyone else.
We have talked about other prayers by Paul and this one is very similar. The first thing that Paul does is he bows down before the Lord or he kneels. Paul is very deliberate and subtle at the same time. He is teaching new Christians how to pray. He is teaching them that they should have all the reverence they can muster when they come before the Lord. He wants the church, which is the people and not a building, to have the best chance at life possible. The only way for that is the same as it is today. The best life comes through Jesus Christ and no one else. Therefore he bows down before the Lord.
Now I know from experience that for some of us, there is no way we can bow down unless we don’t want to get back up again. I think that is ok because that really isn’t what Paul is talking about here. If you can bow down, then do it. But if you can’t, then assume a posture of bowing before the Lord. It might be that you can only bow your head and that is ok. Sometimes people are bedridden and can’t do much of anything but close their eyes and that is ok also. Whatever posture you can do, do it before the Lord.
We need to do it to acknowledge in our minds that we are coming before the very Lord of the universe. He is the maker of everything. He can make the mountains tremble, the wind blow and make the seas become calm. He can and has done anything and everything. What He does is totally out of our realm of understanding. We don’t need to assume a posture pleasing to the Lord because He needs to see us in submission. No! We need to assume some sort of reverent posture so that you know you have come before God. We need to remind ourselves of this every time we come before the Lord. All honor and glory goes to God. This is who we are coming before with our requests.
Now I would like you to think about some prayers that you have seen or taken part in or the ones that didn’t happen that should have happened. We live in an age where most people don’t pray at any time. I think that we are seeing this turn around a bit. I notice more people praying at restaurants than ever. Of course when you go from no people praying to just a few it’s real noticeable. I think that some local churches have become more mindful of prayer and I’m glad for you.
I think that one of the reasons people don’t pray other than they don’t have a clue about God or who He is, is that in order to pray you have to be submissive. One of the dichotomies of being a Christian is that in order to gain all things of the world we first have to submit to God. Most people in this country will not submit to anything, God or not. We are so strong willed that no matter what we do, it is right. This is stinkin thinkin in its finest hour.
We were made by God to do God’s work. As a little sidebar here, I’m going to tell you the purpose of life. It doesn’t matter who you are, we all have the same purpose in life but we have been equipped to carry it out in different ways. Our purpose in life is to glorify God. Then we are to help others. It is that simple. We begin this purpose as we assume the posture of coming before God.
The next thing I would like you to notice is what Paul is praying. He is praying for strength, not for himself but for the other believers. He is praying for the strength that only comes from the Holy Spirit. He doesn’t want everyone to have a new car or a new camel. He doesn’t want everyone to have any type of worldly item. He wants everyone to have the Holy Spirit inside them because we were made to have the Spirit in us. When you don’t have the Spirit, you are incomplete.
Paul tells them that this all comes through faith. He is basically telling them the same thing that I say when I ask you to confess to Jesus, repent and ask Jesus to live in your heart. This takes total surrender and faith. Then with the surrender comes the power of the Holy Spirit living inside you. This is your faith in Christ.
This is all new to these people because it’s only been in the last few years that Paul established churches in the area. However, these people had an advantage over us today. They knew how to surrender. They lived in a world where the Romans ruled. If you disobeyed them, you could lose your life. Things were harsh for these people. It’s pretty obvious that the pagan religions of the time weren’t working as thousands of people were flocking to Christ. There were times when even the disciples found little time to eat and rest as we talked about last week. If the pagan religions were working, this wouldn’t happen.
We don’t know how to surrender in this country, but they know in Africa and Asia. They know what happens if you don’t follow the present rulers. For most people in this country, surrender is not an option. We can try to follow Jesus but we cannot surrender our lives to Him unless we are down and out. I have found out something the hard way as I was getting ready for our revival few years ago. I had contacted 2 bands to play months in advance. All was set. Both bands cancelled out at the last minute. Luckily, we had some talented people to take their place. What I found out was that many of the musicians in the area were too busy to be bothered with trying to help people come to Christ. Many pastors can’t be bothered with something like this for the same reasons, although I know that they have a lot on their plate. This was all the work of Satan. But even though the hierarchy of the church doesn’t receive something like this very well, the people do. The common everyday people were excited about this and I praise the Lord. I learned so much by putting this together. Thank you, Jesus for this learning moment plus the many others.
Anyway, I digress. When we go out in public, we need to be thinking of the image we present at all times. There are people watching us all the time. I don’t know how many times I have heard of people being attacked by other people because they are Christian. We get attacked whether we know it or it’s behind our backs. You have heard this many times. People are jealous of what you have. They want to have the happiness you have but don’t have a clue as to how to get it.
Everyone in the world wants to be happy. They want to be sure of who they are and where they are going. However, most people are not willing to do what must be done by surrendering to Jesus. They perceive surrender as weakness. It’s up to us to show the world that the way to the top of everything; we have to be at the bottom of everything. The first shall be last. This is how God works. I don’t mean that surrender is work. It is part of the conversion process like water is part of the washing process.
So we have to learn a prayer posture for ourselves and to pray in the strength of our faith. The last thing here might be the most important. If you look at this prayer closely, you will find that Paul does not pray for himself. The closest that he comes is when he prays for others. This is a good thing to do, pray for others. But notice how he does this.
Paul comes before God giving all glory to Him. He tells God that all the heavens and the earth belong to Him. Paul prays in the glorious riches that are only found in God. Just think about how much more we have today than they did in the times of Paul. Then think about how grateful they would be for God who would love the poor and hurting like He does. Then you will begin to understand why so many people are coming to know Christ in other parts of the world where they don’t have as much.
God always has been and God always will be. There is nothing that can out do God. As we look around ourselves today, I would like you to show me what God didn’t provide for you. Everything you see can be trace back to the glorious generosity of God. When you pray, all of your prayer should be pointing to God. If you pray for health or whatever, it should be wrapped up in God. In other words, heal me if it is in you will and plan to do so. If I should get wealth, I pray that I can use it for the glory of God.
This is for the practical people who are listening. How you treat God should be no different than how we treat each other. When you want something from someone, how do you go about it? This is an art form that they teach to all people when they get married. The worst way to get something from someone is to be blunt. Hey, give me a $100, probably won’t work.
However, if you come to a person and ask about their family, their health, their general well-being, you have a much better chance of getting that $100. Some people call this small talk but it is important because it shows you are interested in them as a person. If you want something, young people pay attention here, if you want something, then you start out by treating the person who you want from, with extra special kindness. This is just common courtesy.
Well, it’s the same way with God. What do you think your chances are of getting something from God if you just say, “Gimme this, gimme this and gimme this.”? Any time you come before God, you should come with reverence and awe. You should always acknowledge what He has done for you and for the world. Then ask what you want from Him as long as it glorifies Him. Does that make any sense at all? You are standing before the maker of the universe, so acknowledge Him as such. This is what I would call common God courtesy. I think this is important to do when coming before God because Paul thought it was important enough to show us the way.
Learn to be nice all the time. You don’t know when someone is really watching. Again Jeff Strite tells of a Professor Nash of Kentucky Christian College. Nash once visited the home of a family and talked to them about joining the church. As was his custom, when he got there he went around the car and opened the car door for his wife and walked with her to the house. 30 years later the once teenaged son of this family brought his son to enroll in Kentucky Christian College. He brought his son because he had seen how Nash had treated his wife and he was convinced that he could trust him and his college.
This is how we are to treat God. He is the greatest and you should never forget it. This can all be wrapped up in a song. Does anyone remember the song that went like this, ‘My love is higher than the highest mountain, softer than a sigh?’ All we have to do is change the words a little to say “My God is higher than the highest mountain, softer than a sigh. my God is deeper than the deepest ocean, wider than the sky, my God is brighter that the brightest star that shines every night above, and there is nothing in the world that can ever change my God.” Thank you, Jesus, for first loving us. Praise the Lord! Let’s pray.
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