For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him (Colossians 2:9-10).

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, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith (Ephesians 3:14-17).

The Apostle Paul prays to God the Father that He would, in a measure, equal to His glorious riches, grant/give us to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in our inner man, that Christ may dwell (remain, be at home) in our hearts through faith. Paul’s prayer is that we might have the abiding, miraculous power of Christ permeating our inner man, our mind, and our heart, conscious and subconscious. His prayer is that Christ would be the only and dominating force within us through the Holy Spirit. He asks the Father that we be strengthened (empowered) in our inner self with might (power, force) through His Spirit.

Paul believes that the Holy Spirit’s presence in believers brings all that Jesus Christ is into their very core. Therefore, his prayer is that whether we are intentionally engaged or in repose, we are the same. This means that when we are caught off guard, our response is the same as when we are expecting a particular action against us or in regard to others. The One who said, “for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me” lives in you (John 14:30)! No matter what happened in Jesus’ life, His response never contradicted His nature and character. This must also be seen in us; it must be lived out! We have not yet seen it manifested in the Church as was prayed by Paul, but there will be a fulfillment of this prayer, then the Church will take her proper place as His Body in the world.

Pastor Don