Ephesians 1:15-17 (NLT) - 15 Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God's people everywhere, 16 I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, 17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

Ephesians 3:14-16 (NLT) - 14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, 15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.

A spiritual world:

• God is Spirit. - John 4:24 (NLT) - 24 For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.

• He created a spiritual world. - Colossians 1:16 (NLT)

  • "Many Christians claim to believe in the supernatural but think and live like skeptics."-Michael Heiser
  • "We believe in the Godhead because there's no point to Christianity without it. The rest of the unseen world is handled with a whisper or a chuckle."-Michael Heiser

• You are a spirit.

  • Romans 8:16 (ESV) - 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.

• The Holy Spirit quickens dead spirits.

  • John 3:6 (NLT) - 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.

• Most people stay spiritually ignorant and weak.

  • Revelation 3:17 (NLT) - 17 You say, "I am rich. I have everything I want. I don't need a thing!" And you don't realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.

Two prayers for us:

1. Spiritually ENLIGHTENED

Enlightened to the inheritance

• We have an inheritance. -
  • Ephesians 1:3 (NLT) - 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.
• He has an inheritance. -
  • Ephesians 1:14 (NLT) - 14 The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.
  • Ephesians 1:18 (NLT) - 18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called-his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

Enlightened to His power and POSITION

Ephesians 1:19-20 (NLT) - 19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power 20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms.

Enlightened to His PURPOSE

Ephesians 3:10 (NLT) - 10 God's purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

Spiritually EMPOWERED

Empowered by His SPIRIT

Ephesians 3:16 (NLT) - 16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.

Empowered by Christ

Ephesians 3:17 (NLT) - 17a Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him.

Empowered by LOVE

• Our roots - Ephesians 3:17 (NLT) - 17b Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong.
• Our understanding - Ephesians 3:18-19 (NLT)

Empowered to Fight

Ephesians 6:12 (ESV) - 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.