(John 16:23,24 NLT) At that time you won’t need to ask Me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and He will grant your request because you use My name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using My name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.
This morning we continue our new series entitled, “Re-Energizing Your Prayer Life.” We will close out the week by closing out the thoughts from yesterday’s message. As I stated yesterday, in John chapter 16 Jesus was preparing His disciples for this impending death and departure. These guys had been totally reliant on Jesus for well over three years. And while they were relying on Him, Jesus was relying on the Father. Since Jesus knew He would soon be gone, He wanted the disciples to learn to depend on the Father directly. Jesus said, “At that time you won’t need to ask Me for anything.” To this point in their lives and ministry, the disciples’ petitions were directed at Jesus. Jesus wanted them to shift their focus to the Father. So Jesus went on to say, “I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and He will grant your request because you use My name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using My name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.” Let me highlight a few things here:
1. We are supposed to pray to the “Father.” This may seem like a small point, but it actually is not. I will teach more about this in this series, but search the scriptures and you will find that Jesus, like most of us, had no problem with calling God “God.” When He was talking to others about God He called Him “God.” But when Jesus prayed He did not pray to a disconnected God, but rather to a loving, caring, and sharing heavenly Father. When speaking to God directly Jesus called Him “Father” because He came to Him as a Son. If you see God as simply a God, then you will see yourself as a subject, servant, or slave. But when you see God as a “Father” and you see yourself as a son or daughter, then you will address Him with another level of intimacy, confidence, boldness, and expectation. Why? Because your children have access to you that others do not have. You children have rights with you that others don’t have. You are not a subject, servant, or slave, you are a SON! That makes the world of a difference. Understanding your position with God impacts your disposition in prayer!
2. When we approach the Father in prayer, it must be in the name of His Son. There are many scriptures in the Bible that support what Jesus was saying here and what He said is very clear. Jesus told His disciples that they reason the Father would grant them their requests is because of the use of His name. Make sure you understand this: in and of yourself you have no righteousness. You have only been declared righteous because of the Blood of Jesus. You and I have no right to approach the Father on our own. But when we acknowledge the fact that Jesus died for our sin and rose for our redemption, then we can boldly approach His throne IN THE NAME of His Son! And lastly, I don’t want to pick nits here, but don’t pray to Jesus. Pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus, there is a difference. Simply put, if you want to get results in prayer you need to pray in accordance with how the Bible teaches us to pray.
3. When we pray and receive it ignites our joy. Later I will give you some personal stories about the joy I experienced the first few times the Father answered me in prayer. But for the sake of time I will simply tell you that when you pray and the Father responds to your prayer, it does something for you, on the inside, that no one can take from you. It ignites your joy in a way that very few things can.
Closing Confession: Father, the more I learn about prayer the more I am amazed by the fact that You actually give me direct access to You, in the name of Your Son. I know me, and I know my faults, flaws, and failures. In and of myself I would never be worthy of approaching Your throne. I am extremely thankful that Jesus died in my stead, that He took on my sin, and that He paid the penalty for it once and for all. I am MADE righteous by the Blood of Jesus and as a cleansed, washed, blood-bought, Spirit-filled, and faith walking believer, I can come boldly before Your throne, in the name of Your Son, and every time I do I experience the grace to help in the time of need. Thank You Father for loving me enough to give me access to You in prayer. I will use this access daily! In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
