Lessons #283 and 284
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual exposition not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GWT = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New English Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
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Praying in the spiritual warfare (Eph 6:18a)
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests....
The central message we have been expounding with respect to the spiritual warfare is that you should live as a Christian in the spiritual warfare that involves being strong in the Lord, putting on the full armor of God and forming the habit of prayer at all times or on all occasions. We have also expounded on the fundamental truth of the passage of Ephesians 6:14-20, which is that spiritual armor consists of defensive and offensive weapons. We considered five defensive weapons and one offensive weapon of the sword of the Spirit that the apostle defined as the word of God. It is following his exposition of this defensive weapon that he wrote the verse that is before us that no doubt is concerned with prayer or doing of prayer. The issue of prayer in this passage is whether we should consider it an independent offensive weapon like the sword of the Spirit or to consider it an offensive weapon that is associated with the defensive weapons and the offensive weapon already described.
The problem we raised may not be that obvious but a careful reading of the NIV and a few English versions will reflect the problem we have raised. The translators of the NIV began verse 18 with the conjunction and that is not found in the Greek text and in addition they rearranged the Greek sentence so that their translation does not follow the Greek order. The use of the conjunction and in the NIV gives the impression that the command to pray is another action that is related to taking up the sword of the Spirit of verse 17. Of course, as we will note later, there is no direct indicator in the Greek of a command to pray although majority of our English versions translate verse 18 as a command. Nonetheless, most of our English versions begin verse 18 in such a way as to imply that it is independent of what preceded it. In other words, that verse 18 and what follow are independent of what preceded. This being the case, prayer may be taken as an offensive weapon that is not associated with the defensive and offensive weapons we have considered. However, the TEV in its translation of the first part of verse 18 as Do all this in prayer implies that prayer is a spiritual weapon that should be applied in all phases of the believer equipping self with defensive and offensive weapons and in the process of actual spiritual warfare. In effect, prayer is part of what is involved in holding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare.
By the way, it is not clear that prayer is an offensive weapon because the apostle did not associate it with any imagery involved in warfare of the ancient world. We are saying that it is difficult to consider prayer as an offensive weapon since there is nothing in the description of the apostle using the imagery of equipping of a Roman soldier for warfare that is associated with prayer. This means that technically prayer is not a part of offensive or defensive weapon but that with which the believer holds his/her ground in the spiritual warfare. This notwithstanding, in terms of the application of prayer in the spiritual warfare, it is proper to consider it as an offensive weapon that is in a class by itself, as we can establish indirectly from the Scripture and by analogy from the use of offensive weapons in the ancient world or even in modern warfare. An offensive weapon may be used to soften the enemy’s position by bombing the enemy location in the modern warfare. The same result was achieved in the ancient warfare using projectiles like javelins or shooting of arrows. Thus, if an offensive weapon serves to soften the enemy position or even to keep the enemy from advancing then it is easier to see from the Scripture that prayer is an offensive weapon against satanic forces. There are at least three ways we can deduce from the Scripture that prayer is an offensive weapon. First, our Lord implies that prayer can keep a believer from satanic attack in form of temptation, as we read in Matthew 26:41:
“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
Temptation implies satanic attack on the believer. If a purpose of prayer is to keep the believer from falling into temptation, that is, to keep satanic forces from attacking believers then it must be that prayer is an offensive weapon that is fired into the domain control by satanic forces to keep them from attacking believers. It is for this reasoning that we deduce that prayer is an offensive weapon. Second, Apostle Paul was convinced that prayer would open for him doors for evangelism, as we read in his prayer request to the Colossians in Colossians 4:3:
And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.
A door that keeps someone from entering an area can only come down if it is pushed open by an intruder who uses some force that is in a sense an offensive weapon. The implication of what we have said is that if prayer could result in God opening the door for preaching of the gospel for the apostle then we can deduce that prayer is an offensive weapon that is at the disposal of the believer that when used would serve as an offensive weapon that defeats satanic forces. Third, the apostle also believes prayer is a weapon that can lead to his deliverance from the wicked, according to 2 Thessalonians 3:2:
And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not everyone has faith.
Deliverance requires overpowering or disarming of an enemy. Therefore, if prayer directed to God serves to deliver the apostle from the wicked, we should conclude that prayer is an offensive weapon that can be used to disarm the enemy. For these reasons we have given, we believe that it is proper to consider prayer an offensive weapon that is at the disposal of the believer although different from the offensive weapon the apostle mentioned as the sword of the Spirit, that is, the word of God. Furthermore, we can deduce that it is because prayer in the hands of the right kind of believer is an offensive weapon that it is described as powerful and effective to do great things, as implied in James 5:16:
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
In any event, we have shown that prayer is an offensive weapon in a sense that belongs to the believer, so we return to consider the problem we are dealing with respect to how we should view prayer that is the subject of the section of Ephesians 6:18-20 that we are considering.
Prayer in our passage is to be taken as an offensive weapon that is in a class by itself in that it is associated with all the defensive and the offensive weapons we have considered as well as the means of holding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare. The reason for this interpretation is that verse 18 of Ephesians 6 begins in the Greek with a Greek preposition (dia) that has a range of meanings or usages. For example, it can be used as an efficient cause of something so that it means “through, via.” Hence, Apostle Paul used the preposition to show that he became a spiritual father to the Corinthians through the preaching of the gospel, as recorded in 1 Corinthians 4:15:
Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.
The Greek preposition may also be used as a marker of attendant or prevailing circumstance of an event or whereby something is accomplished in which case it means “with.” It is in this sense that the apostle used it to describe the circumstances that accompanied his second epistle to the Corinthians, as we read in 2 Corinthians 2:4:
For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.
The phrase with many tears is literally through many tears, implying that the apostle cried or shed tears as he wrote this second epistle. It is true that some take the Greek preposition to convey means of praying, implying that they adopt the meaning “through”, nonetheless, because what follows in verse 18 relate to what preceded, it is in this sense of attendant or prevailing circumstance that it is used in our passage so that verse 18 of Ephesians 6 should begin with the word “with” as done in the NET or the NASB although we are not sure in what sense they used the preposition. The NIV and some other English versions recognized that the Greek preposition used in Ephesians 6:18 has the meaning “with” and so translated it as such although not beginning the verse with it. If the verse is begun with the word “with” it is easier to understand that prayer is associated with the spiritual armors that were described prior to verse 18 and following, that deal with the subject of prayer.
Prayer can be a broad subject as may be evident by a detailed subject of it. For example, we spent twelve weeks or 24 lessons considering the subject of prayer, available in our website, so one gets the sense that prayer is not a simple matter. Apostle Paul being aware of the nature of prayer indicates that the prayer he meant is to be understood as involving prayer in general and prayer applicable in specific situations. It is this view that is reflected in the phrase with all kinds of prayers and requests of Ephesian 6:18 of the NIV although the Greek literally reads with every prayer and petition. The translators of the NIV used the phrase all kinds of to cover everything that can be classified as prayer that include prayer one offers for himself/herself to God. Anyway, the apostle spoke of prayer in general but also mentioned a specific aspect of prayer using the word “requests” that is primarily concerned with intercessory prayer. There is a connection between the word “prayer” and “petition” or “request”, as we will demonstrate.
The word “prayer” is translated from a Greek word (proseuchē) that may mean “a place for prayer”, as the word is used to describe the place of prayer Apostle Paul sought out in Philippi, as we read in Acts 16:13:
On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.
However, the Greek word in the NT commonly means “prayer” as the apostle used it in his instruction to believers in Colosse to devote themselves to prayer in Colossians 4:2:
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.
The word “request” of Ephesians 6:18 is translated from a Greek word (deēsis) that is concerned with urgent request to meet a need, exclusively addressed to God, hence means “prayer, petition”, as it is used in Philippians 4:6:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Here the word is translated “petition” in the NIV although some of our English versions used the word “supplication” or “requests.” Both Greek words translated “prayer” and “request” in Ephesians 6:18 are often used together that it may be difficult to differentiate their meanings. This notwithstanding, some attempt a strict distinction between them implying that the Greek word translated “prayer” in Ephesians 6:18 should always mean “prayer” in general while the second means “prayer for particular benefits.” This strict distinction is not always sustainable since the Greek word (deēsis) translated “request, petition” also means prayer, as in in Luke 5:33:
They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.”
The sentence John’s disciples often fast and pray is more literally the disciples of John fast often and make prayers. Here in Luke, the meaning “request” or “petition” does not seem to apply to the second Greek word (deēsis) translated “request” in the NIV of Ephesians 6:18 since it means “prayer.” Thus, it may be difficult to press this distinction in all passages. Nonetheless, in our specific context of Ephesians 6:18, it appears that the first Greek word (proseuchē) is the more general term for “prayer” and the second (deēsis) focuses on petition, that is, prayer for specific benefits on behalf of others.
It is probably that when the apostle mentioned the subject of prayer as what should accompany the spiritual defensive and offensive weapons he already discussed, he felt the need to be specific as to what he had in mind in mentioning prayer that he had to use the second Greek word that is translated “request” in the NIV of Ephesians 6:18 since the apostle recognized that there are several components of prayer. For example, he conveyed that a component of prayer is specific petition as he indicated with respect to his request for God to make it possible for him to visit believers in Rome, as recorded in Romans 1:10:
in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
Another component of prayer the apostle mentioned is thanksgiving in Ephesians 1:16:
I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
Another component of prayer is intercession on behalf of others. Thus, the apostle mentioned Epaphras as an example of one who practiced this in Colossians 4:12:
Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured.
Of course, the apostle commands all believers to be involved in intercessory prayer, as stated in 1 Timothy 2:1:
I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—
In any event, the apostle having mentioned prayer as a general subject in Ephesians 6:18 was concerned with intercessory prayer as he elaborated later. Meanwhile, the apostle was concerned with the subject of prayer as it relates to the spiritual armor so he proceeded to elaborate on how to ensure that spiritual armor is accompanied by prayer.
There are two related actions the apostle stated should ensure success in both equipping oneself with the spiritual armor and in actual withholding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare: doing prayer and being alert. It may not appear that doing prayer or praying is an action that is to accompany both equipping oneself with the spiritual armor and in actual withholding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare because the NIV and most of our English versions have the command pray in the Spirit on all occasions in Ephesians 6:18 although the literal Greek reads praying at all times in the Spirit. The literal translation is because the word “pray” is translated from the participle of a Greek word (proseuchomai) that means “to pray.” A Greek participle is subject to various interpretations. It is because of this that the translators of our English versions have interpreted the participle as serving as a command, implying that Ephesians 6:18 is independent of the preceding verse. It is doubtful that the apostle had in mind to issue a command that is independent of the preceding verse for at least three reasons. First, to read the Greek participle as a command implies that verse 18 begins a new subject that is not connected with the spiritual warfare that is the concern of the apostle in verses 14 to 20 of Ephesians 6. However, we have already argued that verse 18 began in the Greek with a Greek preposition(dia) that we indicated in the context of verse 18 should mean “with” to indicate an attendant or prevailing circumstance that is to be associated with what is stated prior to verse 18. Second, it appears that if the apostle meant to issue a command that is perhaps independent of his previous discussions that he would have used the Greek form that clearly indicates a command. For the apostle used our Greek word three times to issue a command regarding the independent action of prayer. He commanded the Thessalonians to form the habit of praying in 1 Thessalonians 5:17:
pray continually;
He used an imperative mood (used to express various kinds of commands) in the Greek with respect to our Greek word to request the believers in Thessalonica to pray for him without being specific as to what they are to pray, as we read in 1 Thessalonians 5:25:
Brothers, pray for us.
It is also the imperative mood in the Greek that is used with our Greek word to request specific prayer from the Thessalonians in 2 Thessalonians 3:1:
Finally, brothers, pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you.
One wonders why the apostle would have used a participle in Ephesians 6:18 instead of a command as he did in these three passages. Of course, one could argue that it is interpreting the participle as a command that enables us to make sense of what the apostle writes in Ephesians 6:19 about praying for him. This is not necessarily the case since the action of prayer the apostle introduced in verse 18 enables us to make sense of his request in verse 19 that literally reads and for me. Third, to take the Greek participle as a command ignores the assertion of the acknowledge Greek scholar A.T. Robertson when he stated “In general it may be said that no participle should be explained in this way that can properly be connected with a finite verb.”[1] In effect, he cautioned with respect to interpreting a participle as a command unless the context clearly supports this. Wallace in his “Greek Grammar beyond the Basics, p.650” elaborated on this warning and provided an example of such interpretation from the writing of the Apostle Paul where the participle because of the context should be interpreted as a command, that is, Romans 12:9:
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
The command Hate what is evil is more literally hating the evil. The context indicates that there is no finite verb that the Greek participle translated hating could be connected and so it is proper to interpret that participle as a command. This cannot be said of the Greek participle in Ephesians 6:18 that literally reads praying. Thus, to translate it as a command violates that caution stated in Robertson Greek Grammar.
We have argued that the Greek participle that literally reads praying should not be interpreted as a command, so how should it be interpreted? It is used as a means of accomplishing the command(s) that were given in the preceding verses. The most immediate command to this participle is that given in verse 17 in the command Take the helmet of salvation. It could be argued that since this command is nearest to the Greek participle used that the apostle meant to say that the means of taking up the helmet of salvation and that of taking the sword of the Spirit, that is, the word of God is by prayer. This is true but this interpretation is limiting. This is because the command to take the helmet of salvation is a command to take on a defensive weapon that the apostle began to discuss in verse 14 where the believer is instructed to hold his/her ground spiritually by arming self with the spiritual armor that the apostle then elaborated. Furthermore, we have indicated that there are at least two reasons the apostle who had used participles to describe the believer’s equipping of self with defensive weapon switched to a finite verb “take” in verse 17 when he introduced the last defensive weapon and the first definite offensive weapon. The first reason is helmet was the last defensive weapon that a Roman soldier puts on before going into battle. Therefore, it is probably that the apostle wants to get the careful reader’s attention to recognize that this is the final defensive weapon that needed to be taken before one gets involved in the spiritual warfare. A second reason related to the first is that the apostle moves from defensive weapon to offensive weapon. Based on the reasons we have given; it is better to understand prayer as the means of equipping oneself with the spiritual armor, that is, that the Greek participle that literally reads praying is linked to the command of Ephesians 6:14 stand firm. This means that prayer is an important weapon that should accompany all defensive and offensive weapons for spiritual armor as well as the means of holding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare. The implication is that at every stage that a believer equips self with any spiritual armor, prayer should accompany it. In effect, prayer is indispensable with respect to the spiritual warfare. What this means is that as you equip yourself with any defensive or offensive weapon, you should pray. Take for example, to take the sword of the Spirit, that is, the word of God requires that the believer should pray. Some believers probably do not realize the importance of prayer with respect to the word of God so they do not pray before they listen to the teaching of the word of God. A believer who wants to be equipped with the sword of the Spirit, that is, the word of God should pray that God should make His word available to him/her. This is in keeping with the prayer of the psalmist who pleaded with God to make His word available to him, in Psalm 119:19:
I am a stranger on earth; do not hide your commands from me.
The psalmist’s petition do not hide your commands from me is to be understood in a positive manner to mean that he wanted the Lord to make His word available to him, for it is only if the word of God is available to the psalmist can it be said that God’s word is not hidden from him. You may say that the petition is not concerned with the word of God because the passage in psalm does not mention the word of God but you are wrong. This is because the word “commands” is one of the many ways the psalmist described the word of God in the 119th psalm. The psalmist not only prayed for God to make His word available to him but also he prayed for the Lord to enable him to understand it, as indicated in Psalm 119:18:
Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
This petition of the psalmist is for the Lord to grant him spiritual insight to God’s truth which is similar to the prayer of the Apostle Paul for the Ephesians in Ephesians 1:17–18:
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
The point we are stressing is that it is important to pray before studying the word of God since it is through its study that a believer takes up the sword of the Spirt, that is, the word of God. I have illustrated the importance of prayer in every phase of equipping oneself with spiritual armor using the equipping of oneself with the word of God as an example but that is one example. So, every phase of equipping self with spiritual armor requires prayer.
It is our assertion that prayer is an important spiritual weapon that should be used in conjunction with all the defensive and offensive weapons we have considered and for holding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare. Its importance in the spiritual warfare is conveyed in the literal translation of Ephesians 6:18 that we have given, praying at all times. The word “praying” is from a present tense in the Greek but it is associated with commands given in the aorist tense in the Greek. The implication of the use of a present participle with a command given in the aorist tense is that prayer should go on at the same time that one takes up the spiritual armor. This confirms our point that you should never consider putting on any of the spiritual armor that we have considered without it being accompanied by prayer.
The necessity of praying at the same time the believer equips self with spiritual armor and in actual spiritual warfare is also implied in the phrase on all occasions of the Ephesians 6:18 in the NIV or more literally at all times. The word “occasions” of the NIV is translated from a Greek word (kairos) that may mean “period of time, time” as in the period of time that spouses may mutually agree to absent from sexual relationship, as stated in 1 Corinthians 7:5:
Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
The word may mean a definite period for an event and so means “seasons, fixed time” as it is used in Galatians 4:10:
You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!
The phrase seasons and years is literally times, and years. The Greek word may mean “opportunity”, as in Galatians 6:10:
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
In our passage, it is in the general meaning of “time” that it is used. However, the Greek phrase translated on all occasions of Ephesians 6:18 may be translated at all times as reflected in many of our English versions. When the apostle literally writes in the Greek praying at all times he does not mean that a believer should pray every minute of the day so to say or to keep praying without stop. No! His point is that believer should have a sense of dependence on God so that he/she has a mindset of looking towards God for help in every step one takes in the spiritual life. In effect, the believer should have the continuous consciousness that he/she could not do anything without appealing to God for help and in that way, the person who has that mentality would pray at all times as he or she puts on the spiritual armor and when in actual conflict with satanic forces.
Prayer is without doubt an important armor that should be deplored in the spiritual warfare. It is because of this reality that those who preach or teach the word of God constantly exhort believers to pray. However, most of the time those who encourage prayer on the part of believers fall short of emphasizing that there are conditions that should be met for an effective prayer since anyone who prays does so because the individual expects God to respond to his/her prayer. This lack of emphasis on conditions necessary for effective prayer is probably because some who teach do not recognize the importance of meeting these conditions for an effective prayer or because they simply ignore these conditions in an effort to encourage people to pray. The reality is that without meeting certain conditions, praying becomes an exercise in futility in that an individual who prays without meeting the conditions necessary for effective prayer would be uttering words that God would certainly ignore. An effective prayer, for example, requires that a believer should be in a state that is free from sin at the point of the prayer involved. The psalmist recognized this truth that he declared the state under which God answered his prayer in Psalm 66:18:
If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;
When the psalmist states If I had cherished sin in my heart he meant that he either was not guilty of sin at the point of prayer or that he confessed his sins as soon as he became aware of them for the Lord to answer his prayer. He could not have possibly ignored sin in his life and pray to God for that will mean that God will not respond to his prayer in the sense of granting the content of his prayer. The psalmist presents a condition necessary for answered prayer in terms of dealing with sin either through confession or resisting temptation so that one does not become guilty of sin. But, the Lord Jesus Christ presented the condition for answered prayer in a positive manner of being in fellowship with Him that implies learning and applying God’s word, as we can gather from John 15:7:
If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
The conditional statement of our Lord in this passage is one that is loaded with conditions that should be met for effective prayer. To remain in Christ means to have continuous relationship with Him. This is another way of saying that the believer should be under the control of the Lord Jesus Christ or under the control of the Holy Spirit. The condition of the words of Christ remaining in the believer is that which requires learning the word of God so that one stores it in the soul, ready to be applied when the condition calls for a specific truth. When the word of God is in a believer, that guarantees such a believer will not ask anything from God that is outside His will, for that is assumed in the second part of the verse ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is not a blanket statement that says a believer could ask anything without limitation but a declaration that is to be understood as being governed by having the word of God so that one knows God’s will, for after all, the Holy Spirit is clear that only if we pray according to God’s will is the answer assured, as recorded in 1 John 5:14:
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
Thus, the Lord Jesus when He stated in John 15:7 ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you, He implied that a person with the word of God in the soul will not be requesting something that is contrary to God’s will.
We should emphasize that a person’s effectiveness in prayer is affected by the person’s relationship to the word of God. You must know and apply God’s word to be effective in your prayer life. This truth is implied in the order that the apostle followed, under the directive of the Holy Spirit, as he wrote about the spiritual armor. He did not mention the matter of prayer until he had finished dealing with all the defensive and offensive weapons of the spiritual warfare. In fact, it is soon after he described the offensive weapon of the sword of the Spirit, that is, the word of God that he mentioned the necessity of prayer. This should tell us that while we are to be prayerful both in the process of equipping ourselves with the defensive and offensive weapons of the spiritual warfare and during actual conflict, we should become aware that our success in the warfare hinges on the word of God. If you do not have the word of God in your soul, you will be defeated by the satanic forces. Victory in the spiritual warfare belongs only to those who know how to use the word of God along with prayer.
In any case, the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul tells us that prayer that is effective in the spiritual warfare is one that meets the condition the apostle stated in the expression pray in the Spirit of Ephesians 6:18 or more literally praying … in the Spirit. The apostle implies that a condition for effective prayer is contained in the phrase in the Spirit. What condition of effective prayer did the Holy Spirit mean for the apostle to convey to us in this phrase in the Spirit? Put in another way, what does it mean to be praying in the Spirit? Our question is because the Greek phrase is translated as in the Spirit, as we find in virtually all our English versions. However, the Greek preposition (en) used in our passage has a range of meanings but two of these are particularly relevant in our passage. The Greek preposition can be used as a marker of agency in which case it means “by”, as the word is used to indicate that the Lord Jesus Christ is the creator of all things in Colossians 1:16:
For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.
Another usage of the Greek preposition that is relevant to our passage of Ephesians 6:18 is as a marker of close association within a limit and so means “in.” This usage may be understood in terms of being under control or influence of the noun associated with our Greek preposition so that the meaning is “under the control of,” “under the influence of,” or “in close association with.” The apostle used this meaning both negatively and positively. Negatively, he used it to describe a person who is under the domination of the old self or sinful nature in Romans 8:9:
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
The clause You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature is more literally But you are not in the flesh. Positively, the apostle used the Greek preposition in the sense of being under a strong urge to do something, that is, under the impulsion of the Holy Spirit or guided by the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12:3:
Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
Both expressions speaking by the Spirit of God and except by the Holy Spirit refer to the Holy Spirit guiding a person when the individual speaks.
Based on the two possible meanings of the Greek preposition used in our passage of Ephesians 6:18, the phrase in the Spirit may be interpreted with respect to the activity of praying in three different ways that are not mutually exclusive but are due to the various ways of interpreting the Greek preposition used in our passage of Ephesians 6:18. A first interpretation that appears to take the Greek preposition as a marker of agency takes the phrase in the Spirit to refer to the power of the Spirit as reflected in the CEV that instead of the phrase in the Spirit translates by the power of the Spirit. This means that a condition for effective prayer is when it is carried out by the power of the Holy Spirit, that is, the power that He supplies. A second interpretation takes the phrase to mean under the impulsion of the Holy Spirit, that is, under the urging or prompting of the Spirit to do something. It is this meaning that is reflected in the TEV that instead of the phrase in the Spirit translates the Greek phrase as, as the Spirit leads. The implication of this interpretation is that a believer should pray when urged or prompted by the Holy Spirit to do so. A third interpretation is to take the phrase in the Spirit to mean to be under the control of the Holy Spirit, that is, to be under the power of the Holy Spirit and so is essentially the same as the first interpretation. This seems to be the view reflected in the NEB that renders the Greek phrase as in the power of the Spirit.
Which of these interpretations did the apostle mean? As we have indicated these three interpretations are not mutually exclusive. Therefore, it does not seem that the apostle intended for us to understand the phrase in any one of these interpretations. This is a situation where all three interpretations that say essentially the same thing and are needed to fully explore what the Holy Spirit intended to convey through the apostle. This being the case, the literal verbal phrase praying … in the Spirit means that for the believer to be effective in using the weapon of prayer in the spiritual warfare, such a person should pray under the power of the Spirit or under His control. This will mean that a believer should pray whenever the Holy Spirit moves the individual to do so. In truth, the condition that is necessary for effective prayer in the spiritual warfare is to be filled of the Holy Spirit as the apostle had already indicated in verse 18 of the fifth chapter of Ephesians regarding the necessity of filling of the Spirit in the spiritual life. This means that the believer should be in a state where the various facets of the fruit of the Spirit are resident in the person. These various facets of the fruit of the Spirit are described in Galatians 5:22–23:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
The point then is that if your prayer is to be effective as a spiritual armor, you must ensure that you are filled of the Spirit. This is done one of two ways. Resist temptation to sin or if you sin, quickly confess it to God. If you follow these two ways then you can be assured you are filled of the Spirit, making your prayer effective on the assumption that you are learning and applying the word of God. In any event, prayer is a means of equipping oneself with spiritual armor and that of holding one’s ground in the spiritual warfare.
[1] Robertson, A. T. (2006). A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical Research (pp. 1133–1134). Logos Bible Software.