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Sermon #4027

The Father of Glory

A Sermon on Ephesians 1:17

Originally preached May 15, 1955

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Scripture

Ephesians 1:17 ESV KJV
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, (ESV)

Sermon Description

Prayer is central to every believers’ life and critical to discipleship and worship. However, Christians often feel ashamed to talk about their personal prayer life. They read books and manuals on prayer, hoping to find the perfect solution to a fickle prayer life. In this sermon on Ephesians 1:17 titled “The Father of Glory,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones argues that questions found in books on prayer often miss the point. Christians must not focus on form or saying the most beautiful words. Nor should Christians simply telegraph their petitions in a sentence or two. Instead they must remember, recollect, and pause, as the apostle Paul does, to whom they are speaking. Paul, in just one verse, notes in his prayer that he is praying to the God with whom he has a covenant relationship. The God of the incarnate Son. Not an unknown god, but the God revealed through the Lord Jesus Christ. This God is the source of all glory. He is the glorious One, who gives glory, not only to the Son, but to His people. When one remembers who they are praying to before they begin, they will, indeed, find little trouble engaging in the greatest activity any human being can do: speak to God.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The apostle Paul prays to God the Father, not Jesus or the Holy Spirit. While we can have fellowship with all three, prayer is generally addressed to the Father.
  2. Paul pauses before praying to remind himself of who he is praying to - the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory. We must do the same to pray truly.
  3. Paul prays to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. This means:
  4. He is not an unknown God but has revealed himself in Christ.
  5. He is the God of the covenant of grace made with Christ for his people.
  6. He is the God who sustained Christ throughout his life and ministry.
  7. Christ is now in his presence interceding for us.
  8. We can only know and approach God through Christ.
  9. The Father of glory means:
  10. God is the source and embodiment of all glory. Everything he does displays his glory.
  11. He shares his glory with the Son, who came to glorify the Father.
  12. He shares his glory with us as we are in Christ. We pray to receive revelation of his glory.
  13. We must pray with reverence for God's glory but also confidence through Christ. We can call God our Father.

The Book of Ephesians

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.