John
16:23-28
“When that day comes, you will not ask me for anything. I am telling you the truth: the Father will give you whatever you ask of him in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your happiness may be complete. I have used figures of speech to tell you these things. But the time will come when I will not use figures of speech, but will speak to you plainly about the Father. When that day comes, you will ask him in my name; and I do not say that I will ask him on your behalf, for the Father himself loves you. He loves you because you love me and have believed that I came from God. I did come from the Father, and I came into the world; and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”
Food for thought!
Today, Jesus says something that is indeed food for thought. He said, "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name; ask (in my name) and you will receive, so that your happiness may be complete." In order to understand the weight of this statement, let us look at what is in a person's name.
First and foremost, we know that our names re-present us; our names make us present. When someone calls our names, they turn us from absence to presence; our names turn us into a present. When we call someone's name, we call all that that person represents and is. You are your name; your name is you.
The same with Jesus. His name turns him present. When we call on the name of Jesus, we call on the Son of God; when we call on the name of Jesus we call on his power, his personality, his presence. It should be comforting to know that in the most violent storms of our life, Jesus promises to be always present with us; he commends us to call upon his name. Understand today that in your storms of life is Jesus with you. So, don't suffer alone; call upon his name; and be assured that Jesus will not allow you to perish, if you will call upon his name, which as we said, turns Jesus present. Surely, your boat cannot go down with the Jesus in it! Don’t be deceived, Jesus didn’t come to get you out of the storms in your life— He came to take you through them.
By telling us to use his name, Jesus is telling us, in other words, that when we are one with him, we can dare to ask the Father anything; Jesus is saying that "You are mine; I am yours." That we are so intimately united more than husband and wife are. These two are just an image of his union with each one of us. We are one WITH Christ; we are one IN Christ.
Our spouse, Jesus, is saying: Use my name to pray to the Father; He will not refuse you anything in my name; don't be afraid; don't fight alone; don't suffer alone; don't die alone. Unit now you have not used my name! You have not yet used my name for your benefit. You are still using your name, your poor and weak name. Use Jesus' powerful name!
"God raised him to the highest place above and gave him the name that is greater than any other name. And so,** in honor of the name of Jesus** all beings in heaven, on earth, and in the world below will fall on their knees." (Phil 2:9-10).
"Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only by the name of Jesus." (Acts 4:12)
“When that day comes, you will not ask me for anything. I am telling you the truth: the Father will give you whatever you ask of him in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your happiness may be complete. I have used figures of speech to tell you these things. But the time will come when I will not use figures of speech, but will speak to you plainly about the Father. When that day comes, you will ask him in my name; and I do not say that I will ask him on your behalf, for the Father himself loves you. He loves you because you love me and have believed that I came from God. I did come from the Father, and I came into the world; and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”
Food for thought!
Today, Jesus says something that is indeed food for thought. He said, "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name; ask (in my name) and you will receive, so that your happiness may be complete." In order to understand the weight of this statement, let us look at what is in a person's name.
First and foremost, we know that our names re-present us; our names make us present. When someone calls our names, they turn us from absence to presence; our names turn us into a present. When we call someone's name, we call all that that person represents and is. You are your name; your name is you.
The same with Jesus. His name turns him present. When we call on the name of Jesus, we call on the Son of God; when we call on the name of Jesus we call on his power, his personality, his presence. It should be comforting to know that in the most violent storms of our life, Jesus promises to be always present with us; he commends us to call upon his name. Understand today that in your storms of life is Jesus with you. So, don't suffer alone; call upon his name; and be assured that Jesus will not allow you to perish, if you will call upon his name, which as we said, turns Jesus present. Surely, your boat cannot go down with the Jesus in it! Don’t be deceived, Jesus didn’t come to get you out of the storms in your life— He came to take you through them.
By telling us to use his name, Jesus is telling us, in other words, that when we are one with him, we can dare to ask the Father anything; Jesus is saying that "You are mine; I am yours." That we are so intimately united more than husband and wife are. These two are just an image of his union with each one of us. We are one WITH Christ; we are one IN Christ.
Our spouse, Jesus, is saying: Use my name to pray to the Father; He will not refuse you anything in my name; don't be afraid; don't fight alone; don't suffer alone; don't die alone. Unit now you have not used my name! You have not yet used my name for your benefit. You are still using your name, your poor and weak name. Use Jesus' powerful name!
"God raised him to the highest place above and gave him the name that is greater than any other name. And so,** in honor of the name of Jesus** all beings in heaven, on earth, and in the world below will fall on their knees." (Phil 2:9-10).
"Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only by the name of Jesus." (Acts 4:12)
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