Rather than being a letter of rebuke or correction, Ephesians leans more on Paul’s prayer for the church as a whole. The letter seems to be directed not only at the Church of Ephesus, but rather the church as a community. Penned during one of Paul’s time of imprisonment, he strives to make the reader understand the need to further their relationship with Christ Jesus. He calls the reader to be strengthened in faith and understanding of God. Time after time he urges the reader to be filled with the Spirit of God, and in doing so how to be strengthened by it. Paul expresses great love for the church and its people, reminding them they are children of God and they are sealed by His love. Ephesians 3:14-19 emphasizes this call to be strengthened in His spirit, and gives the reader instructions of how to do …show more content…
In his time, kneeling was not the normal or ordinary way of praying. Throughout scripture, praying is usually associated with standing. In Mark 11:25, Jesus says “When you stand praying…”, leaving the normal posture of praying to be standing. By kneeling, Paul was showing his seriousness and his passion for this prayer. Paul then refers states that “the whole family in heaven and earth” is named solely after the Father. According to Andrew T. Lincoln, the “whole family of heaven” is best interpreted as “referring to family groupings or classes of angels.” What is more important in this passage though is the direction towards “the whole family of the earth.” This stands as a reminder that Christians are all of the same family of Christ Jesus. This included all people, regardless of race or gender. While modern Christians may not take it as seriously, the people of that time period were used to a divided culture, where only certain people were allowed to be a part of the same religious, i.e. the Jews. Now that Gentiles and Jews were of the same branch, they all hand equal standing and connection to the Father. What was once a splinter of people were now a family all of the same name: Child of