Strengthened by Love, Filled with God: A Window into Paul’s Spiritual Longing

By Dr. Tim Orr

There is something profoundly moving about eavesdropping on someone’s prayer. In Ephesians 3:14–21, the Apostle Paul doesn’t just present theology—he prays it. And in doing so, he opens a window into the heart of Christian spirituality. This is not a prayer rooted in abstract speculation or cold doctrine. It is a passionate, Spirit-infused cry for believers to be inwardly transformed by the presence and love of Christ. What makes this prayer even more remarkable is how it builds on and differs from Paul’s earlier prayer in Ephesians 1. That first prayer emphasizes enlightenment—asking God to help believers grasp the hope, riches, and power that belong to them in Christ. The second prayer in Ephesians 3 shifts from head to heart. It’s not about gaining new information but about being filled with all the fullness of God—to know Christ’s love in a way that surpasses intellectual comprehension.

From Enlightenment to Empowerment

In Ephesians 1:15–23, Paul’s intercession focuses on what believers need to understand. He asks God to give them the Spirit of wisdom and revelation to grasp three great truths: the hope of their calling, the riches of God’s glorious inheritance, and the immeasurable greatness of His power toward those who believe (Eph. 1:17–19, ESV). This prayer is theological in structure, logically layered and exalted in tone. It reveals how Paul’s pastoral concern is grounded in sound doctrine. He wants the Ephesian believers to comprehend their identity in Christ and the implications of the gospel. As Lincoln (1990) points out, this prayer marks a shift in the letter from praise to petition and aims to deepen their intellectual grasp of salvation history (p. 62). But in chapter 3, Paul takes a different route—he now yearns not just for their understanding but for their experiencing of these truths.

A Spiritual Crescendo

Ephesians 3:14–21 reads like a spiritual crescendo. Paul begins by bowing his knees before the Father, a posture of humility and awe (v. 14). Kneeling in prayer was not the common Jewish posture; this signals an extraordinary intensity. He refers to God as the one “from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named” (v. 15), emphasizing God’s cosmic dominion and the intimate fatherhood that defines Christian identity. From here, Paul makes a series of requests that climb ever higher: that believers be strengthened in their inner being, that Christ may dwell in their hearts through faith, that they be rooted and grounded in love, that they may comprehend the multi-dimensional love of Christ, and ultimately, that they be filled with all the fullness of God. Each petition builds upon the last, culminating in an almost breathless vision of Christian fullness (Hoehner, 2002, pp. 476–485).

Christ Dwelling in the Heart by Faith

The heart of Paul’s prayer is that believers would be strengthened “with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (Eph. 3:16–17, ESV). The Greek word katoikeō translated “dwell” denotes more than just temporary lodging; it suggests a settled, enduring presence (O’Brien, 1999, p. 257). This is not about Christ merely being present, but Christ taking up residence, shaping every corner of our lives. Paul then shifts metaphors: he wants the Ephesians to be “rooted and grounded in love.” These images—one botanical, one architectural—speak to stability, nourishment, and resilience. Love is not a fleeting emotion here; it is the soil and foundation from which all Christian maturity springs. As Stott (1979) aptly puts it, “Love is to be the soil in which their life is rooted and the foundation on which it is built” (p. 137).

The Four-Dimensional Love of Christ

Perhaps the most astonishing part of the prayer is Paul’s desire that they “may have strength to comprehend...what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge” (Eph. 3:18–19, ESV). It’s a striking paradox—to know something that surpasses knowledge. Paul is not asking for new data points but for an experiential encounter with Christ’s love that breaks the boundaries of intellectual comprehension. The fourfold dimensions of love—breadth, length, height, and depth—suggest an all-encompassing reality. Christ’s love is wide enough to embrace Jew and Gentile, long enough to span from eternity past to eternity future, high enough to lift us into the heavenly places, and deep enough to reach the most broken sinner. Sinclair Ferguson (2007) comments, “Paul is not praying for more facts to be known, but for the facts to be felt in the soul and lived in the heart” (p. 119).

Filled with the Fullness of God

Paul’s prayer ends with a doxology that expresses confidence not in the believer’s ability to grasp these truths, but in God’s ability to make them real. “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think… to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations” (Eph. 3:20–21, ESV). This is not theological filler—it is the necessary conclusion to a prayer so audacious it verges on the impossible. Yet Paul reminds us: God’s power is already “at work within us.” It is the same power that raised Christ from the dead (Eph. 1:20) and now animates the believer from within. As N.T. Wright (2013) beautifully writes, “When the Messiah lives in you by faith, the life of heaven comes to earth” (p. 40).

Knowing and Becoming

In the end, these two prayers in Ephesians complement one another. The first is a prayer for eyes to see the truth; the second is a prayer for hearts to feel and embody it. Christian growth requires both—the intellectual grasp of the gospel and the Spirit-led experience of its transforming power. The challenge for many modern Christians is that we often settle for cognitive assent without seeking spiritual fullness. As Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1972) once observed, “To be filled with all the fullness of God is the ultimate goal of the Christian life. Nothing less than this will satisfy the Apostle Paul, and nothing less than this should satisfy us” (p. 212).

A Prayer for the Present Church

So what do we do with this prayer? We pray it. Slowly. Repeatedly. Personally. Not just for others but for ourselves. In an age where so much of our Christian life is reduced to information and performance, Paul’s prayer calls us to something deeper: to be strengthened by the Spirit, rooted in love, and filled with God Himself. This isn’t spiritual extravagance—it’s normal Christianity, and it’s available to all who bow their knees before the Father.

References (APA 7th Edition)

Bruce, F. F. (1984). The Epistles to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians. Eerdmans.
English Standard Version. (2001). The Holy Bible. Crossway.
Ferguson, S. B. (2007). Let’s Study Ephesians. Banner of Truth Trust.
Hoehner, H. W. (2002). Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary. Baker Academic.
Lincoln, A. T. (1990). Ephesians (Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 42). Word Books.
Lloyd-Jones, D. M. (1972). The Unsearchable Riches of Christ: Studies in Ephesians 3. Baker Book House.
O’Brien, P. T. (1999). The Letter to the Ephesians. Eerdmans.
Stott, J. R. W. (1979). God’s New Society: The Message of Ephesians. IVP.
Wright, N. T. (2013). Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters. Westminster John Knox Press.