USE HIS AUTHORITY, PRAYING IN HIS NAME
Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind (Colossians 2:18).
In Christianity, we don’t worship angels, neither do we ask angels to pray for us. No matter how much you call on them to pray for you, they won’t pray for you because they can’t pray for you. Jesus told us how to pray; He said, “…Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you” (John 16:23). We pray to the Father in the Name of Jesus.
We’re the only ones with the right, privilege and blessing to use His Name in prayer. We don’t even ask Jesus to pray to the Father for us. Jesus said, “At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: for the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God” (John 16:26-27). So, we don’t say, “Lord Jesus, please talk to the Father for me.” No; the Father Himself loves us, so we talk to Him directly.
I’ve always pointed out the difference between praying to God through Jesus Christ and praying to God in the Name of Jesus. They’re not the same. Praying to God in the Name of Jesus is what Jesus told us to do. Praying to God through Jesus Christ is making Jesus a medium, and after you’re born again, He’s not a medium to you. He’s a medium to God only for the sinner.
Remember what He said: “…I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). But when you come by Him to the Father, you don’t need a medium anymore because you’re now in the presence of the Father. Praying in the Name of Jesus is a matter of authority. It means you’re using His authority.
Why do you use His authority? Because He saved you, and He owns everything. His Name is on all creation; everything was created in His Name. Everything belongs to Him. The Father put the Name of Jesus as the stamp on all of His creation: “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” (Colossians 1:15-16). Therefore, everything listens to Jesus (Matthew 17:5). Everything! So, use His Name today with boldness.
PRAYER
Dear Father, I thank you for the authority you’ve given me to use the Name of Jesus in prayer. I exercise this authority with boldness, knowing that I have direct access to you and that all creation listens to me as they listen to Jesus. I walk in health, dominion, strength, victory, peace and the abundant life, because I live in the Name of Jesus. Hallelujah!
FURTHER STUDY:
John 14:13-14, Philippians 2:9-11, Colossians 2:18 NIV
1-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Revelation 5, Joel 1-3
2-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Revelation 12:11-17, Micah 3-4
