After the Tables

Adoration

Study Break ~ September 1, 2026

Part of Paul’s opening for his letter to the church at Ephesus is a prayer. The formal prayer is contained in Ephesians 1:15-23. Before he moves into his thanksgiving and petitions for the church, Ephesians 1:3-14 provides a vital element that establishes a true attitude of prayer – an attitude that we need to acknowledge and adopt.

This is truly one of Paul’s master classes in knowing God. In this sweeping passage, he lays out God’s work for us through Christ. At its core, adoration is God’s people testifying to who He is and what He has accomplished for us through His Son. He has chosen us, redeemed us, and sealed us for Himself. These truths are our basis for adoration; thanksgiving and petitions follow naturally. This is precisely how Paul builds the opening of this letter.

This past Sunday, Seth did a superb job of bringing us to a more concrete realization of the purpose and use of adoration. He took us all the way back to the beginning, literally. We experienced Genesis 1:1 as a point of adoration: “In the beginning, God…” Our worship of God begins with our realization that He is our entire reason for existence. It is our “spiritual act of worship” (Romans 12:1) to adore God.

Many prayers in the Bible provide us with examples of adoration. Seth reminded us of Jesus’ model prayer in Matthew 6:9 that begins, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed (or revered) be Your name.” Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1:5) and Daniel (Daniel 9:4) begin prayers for Israel with adoration. Mary’s and Zechariah’s prayers in Luke 1 express adoration to God and for His blessing to His people. Paul simply continues a pattern that God’s people had known for centuries.

Prayer ultimately deepens our relationship with God. It accomplishes a lot of things in and for us spiritually, but drawing us closer to God is one of its more important functions. We can only experience this if we do it. Expand your prayers this week to include adoration for who God is, for what He has done, for what He provides, for what He has promised.