A Prayer for Knowledge and Strength

¹⁵ This is why, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ I never stop giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. ¹⁷ I keep praying that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, will give you the Spirit^[a] of wisdom and revelation in knowing Christ fully. ¹⁸ I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope to which he has called you, just how rich his glorious inheritance among the saints is, ¹⁹ and just how surpassingly great his power is for us who believe. ²⁰ It is as great as the working of his mighty strength, which God worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule, authority, power, and dominion, and above every name that is given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²² God also placed all things under his feet and made him head over everything for the church. ²³ The church is his body, the fullness of him^[b] who fills everything in every way.

⁷ But to each one of us grace was given, according to the measure of the gift from Christ. ⁸ That is why it says, “When he ascended on high, he took captivity captive and gave gifts to his people.”^{[a] 9} Now what does it mean when it says “he ascended,” other than that he also had descended^[b] to the lower parts, namely, the earth?^{[c] 10} He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things. ¹¹ He himself gave the apostles, as well as the prophets, as well as the evangelists, as well as the pastors and teachers, ¹² for the purpose of training the saints for the work of serving,^[d] in order to build up the body of Christ. ¹³ This is to continue until we all reach unity in the faith and knowledge of the Son of God, resulting in a mature man with a stature reaching to the measure of the fullness of Christ. ¹⁴ The goal is that we would no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, when people use tricks and invent clever ways to lead us astray. ¹⁵ Instead, speaking the truth in love, we would in all things grow up into Christ, who is the head. ¹⁶ From him the whole body, being joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows in accordance with Christ’s activity when he measured out each individual part. He causes the growth of the body so that it builds itself up in love.