June 3 Can You Hear Me Now?

June 3

Can You Hear Me Now?

The casket was slowly rolled from the church. He was only 33. He was a farmer.  He had been harvesting. Something had gone tragically wrong.

The service ended with the Lord’s prayer. There had been several prayers during the funeral service. They all ended with a simple Amen, omitting the words “In Jesus name” like I was accustomed to hearing. Does it matter if you say “In Jesus name” at the end of a prayer? Or is it just different prayer habits? Does it really matter? Doesn’t God hear all our prayers anyway?

The answer is a definite Yes, No, Maybe, Perhaps and it depends!

If you ask a rabbi, a priest and a protestant minister how you should pray you will get very different answers. Instead of asking men the right way to pray, let’s consult God’s Word, the Bible.

“Lord, can you hear me now?” is our question. The answer is often “NO”! How can that be?  There are several places in the Scriptures where God replies He does not hear us.

Ps 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart,

the Lord will not hear me:

Pr 1:28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:

Jas 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss,

that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

The Bible has a lot to say about prayer. Today we just want to answer the question about praying in Jesus name. Is it required or just how some folks pray? In Luke 18:10 Christ tells of two men who went to the temple to pray. One of them said he was thankful he was such a good guy and not like the awful publican. Do you think adding “In Jesus name” to that prideful arrogant prayer would have made it any more acceptable? No, because the phrase “in Jesus name” is not a magic word, not like abra-ca-dabra.

But we are told to pray in Jesus name in several scriptures. John 14:13-14, 15:16, 16:23 Eph 5:20  

Joh 15:16 …that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father

in my name, he may give it you.

Eph 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Joh 14:14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

The essence of why we add in Jesus name to our prayers is found in Acts 3. There we find Peter and John going to the temple to pray. A lame man asked them for alms and Peter responded;

Ac 3:6 …Silver and gold have I none; but such as

I have give I thee:

In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth

rise up and walk.

Peter did not act in his own name, power, goodness, or merit. He gave all credit to Jesus Christ. Later in Acts 4:10 when he was questioned by the high priest and others Peter amplified his answer so there was no misunderstanding.

Ac 4:10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

That is the essence of praying in the name of Christ. The recognition that we have neither merit nor standing with God apart from His son. What we do and what we ask for should recognize that and acknowledge that we are coming in the name of Jesus.

Imagine a bank where you wanted to get a loan. The bank president had a son who managed the bank. But you just walked into the president’s office, sat down and said you needed a loan to buy this and that and the other thing. The bank president would say his son had not mentioned anything about your requests. If you responded “Oh, I skipped him. I am an important person and didn’t want to waste my time on him. Besides, I didn’t think he mattered all that much anyway!”  Do you think you would get that loan? 

That is a crude example to explain why we go in Jesus name. We are acknowledging we have no right to come to the throne of God in our own merit. Our access to God is through our relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ.

1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

John 14:6 No man cometh unto the Father but by me!

 There is no Scriptural basis for the “Name it and Claim it” crowd. The audacity of going to God and demanding He give you lots of stuff is contrary to the very spirit of prayer.

What about all those times when we hear a public prayer and the name of Christ is omitted or not permitted, and they end with Amen. 

2Ti 3:5 Having a form of godliness,

but denying the power thereof:

 from such turn away.

The world today wants to make God in their own image. They want to make their own rules. They want anything and everything that is even remotely religious to be acceptable. The Bible says it is not.

What about praying to the Holy Spirit, or in His name? The Holy Spirit is our comforter John 15:26, dwells in us Rom 8:11, helps us to pray Rom 8:26, but is not our advocate.

1Jo 2:1 ¶ My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin,

we have an advocate with the Father,

Jesus Christ the righteous:

We pray to God the Father, in the name of Jesus the Son, with the aid of the Holy Spirit.  Recognizing this pattern will make our prayer life more productive. Praying in Jesus name also helps us realize we are simply blood bought sinners who stand before God clothed in the righteousness of Christ.

Lastly the purpose of prayer is not for ourselves or others we may pray for. The ultimate purpose of prayer is to bring glory to God. When God answers prayer we need to do as Peter did. We should explain that it had nothing to do with our ability but was all done through the power of Christ and His name.  Let us continue to pray without ceasing….in the name of Christ. Then give God the glory for whatever the answer is.

Mt 5:16 Let your light so shine before men,

that they may see your good works,

and glorify your Father which is in heaven.