Every Christian should be a praying Christian. Prayer is a distinguishing characteristic of the Christian life.
What is prayer? Simply put, prayer is communion and communication with God. Christians pray because of who God is, because of what Jesus has done for us, and because of the Holy Spirit who helps us.
Jesus said to his disciples (and to us), “And I will do whatever you ask in my name so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it” (John 14:13-14).
Right away, we find ourselves asking if this promise is to be understood as an all-inclusive guarantee, like an Aladdin’s lamp with a magic genie inside. No, there are some built in limitations in this promise. The mention of the Father means that any request that would be granted must bring glory to God. Also the mention of the name of Jesus means that our petitions should be consistent with the character and purposes of the Lord Jesus.
The immediate context of this promise emphasizes the fact that Jesus was about to return to the Father in heaven. In preparing the disciples for this, the Lord mentions the Father twelve times in John 14:1-14. He wants us to think of God as a Father.
The Father is willing to hear us, to help us, to listen and to understand. He is strong and sympathetic. Jesus invites us to pray to him because of who he is, what he has done, and what he has promised to do. This gives us assurance in prayer.
Because we are sinners, we need a way of approaching God. We have such a way. Jesus is the Savior who died to take away our sins. He is the mediator who intercedes for us as our representative before God. He is the one who says to believers, “You are in me and I am in you” (John 14:20). This union with Jesus makes the Father accessible to us. We may approach God with freedom and confidence in the name of Jesus. The name of Jesus gives us authority in prayer.
Furthermore, in the verses that follow, Jesus promised the disciples that he and the Father would send the Holy Spirit to them. He would indwell them and help them. One of the ways the Spirit helps believers is in prayer. Romans 8:26-27 tell us that the Spirit intercedes for us when we do not know how to pray as we ought. He helps us in our weakness. The Holy Spirit, then, gives us ability in prayer.
Robert Murray McCheyne wrote, “When we pray in private there are three persons with us: there is God the Father, whose eyes see in secret and whose ears are open to our cry; there is God the Son, blotting out our sins, and offering up our petitions with the incense of his own merit; and there is God the Holy Spirit, quickening our spirits and putting into our hearts good desires.”
Let us pray.
Pastor Randy Faulkner