Interceding Like Paul, Pt. 1
"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Eph. 3:14-21)
Paul prays. His prayer is eloquent and impassioned, transcendent and immanent, lofty yet practical, simple yet profound. His prayer is full-orbed. We should desire to pray this way. Not to impress, of course. I want to pray like this. Too often our prayers are two miles wide but only two inches deep. Indeed, they are sincere and filled with gratitude, but our intercessions rarely ever sound like Paul’s.
In its simplest sense, prayer is communication with God. It is not less than that, but certainly more–it is conversation and encounter with God. The late Eugene Peterson said that "Prayer is the lingua franca of humankind…Prayer is attentiveness to God…Prayer…is the practice of shifting preoccupation away from yourself toward attentiveness and responsiveness to God. It is a deliberate walking away from a me-centered way of life to a Christ-centered way of life."
For intercessory prayer to be truly intercessory there must be, as Peterson discernibly noted, a movement away from ourselves to the other. Intercessory prayer is always others-centered. Paul’s prayer is truly intercessory–it is neither self-absorbed nor self-indulgent, it is outward focused. And it is also responsive. “Prayer is the human response to the perpetual outpouring of love by which God lays siege to every soul.” Prayer responds to the love of God, and it is love that shapes and informs Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian Christians.
We should want the love of God to shape and inform our intercessions too.
Paul prays. His prayer is eloquent and impassioned, transcendent and immanent, lofty yet practical, simple yet profound. His prayer is full-orbed. We should desire to pray this way. Not to impress, of course. I want to pray like this. Too often our prayers are two miles wide but only two inches deep. Indeed, they are sincere and filled with gratitude, but our intercessions rarely ever sound like Paul’s.
In its simplest sense, prayer is communication with God. It is not less than that, but certainly more–it is conversation and encounter with God. The late Eugene Peterson said that "Prayer is the lingua franca of humankind…Prayer is attentiveness to God…Prayer…is the practice of shifting preoccupation away from yourself toward attentiveness and responsiveness to God. It is a deliberate walking away from a me-centered way of life to a Christ-centered way of life."
For intercessory prayer to be truly intercessory there must be, as Peterson discernibly noted, a movement away from ourselves to the other. Intercessory prayer is always others-centered. Paul’s prayer is truly intercessory–it is neither self-absorbed nor self-indulgent, it is outward focused. And it is also responsive. “Prayer is the human response to the perpetual outpouring of love by which God lays siege to every soul.” Prayer responds to the love of God, and it is love that shapes and informs Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian Christians.
We should want the love of God to shape and inform our intercessions too.
Rev. Mike Hernandez serves as the senior pastor of Crossroads Presbyterian Church. He is a graduate of Trinity International University (B.A.), Knox Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) at Reformed Theological Seminary Orlando.
Share this post:
1 Comment
Oh how beautiful is Paul’s prayer. I too want to pray like Paul. Thanks for this encouragement.