06/21/2024
Pray more, pray with great faith, and pray as an emissary of the Lord Jesus, that is the subject of this morning's contemplation, and in his final conversation with his disciples before ascending into heaven Jesus spoke these words regarding how they should pray, and how they should do so under the auspices of His approval, and full authority:
“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.”
John 16:23-24 KJV
Jesus was talking about the days following His ascension and before His triumphant return. He is encouraging them to pray to the Father and assuring them that their prayers will be answered by Him. These answered prayers not only helped them in those days, but they help us through the trying days we find ourselves in now as we too await His return, they are just as meaningful. Jesus gives us His name to us when we pray as a way of providing us confidence that our prayers will be heard and that God will answer us. This serves as reassurance that we have not been abandoned.
We know that the apostles prayed, and prayed often. When they waited for the Holy Spirit they were constantly in the temple praying as they watched for the promised comforter. So what did Jesus mean when He said that in the coming days they would be asking Him nothing?
I have thought and prayed over these particular verses a great deal and have concluded that firstly, since Jesus would not be personally there to hear their requests (and ours), and so that they would not see Him as he physically prayed and interceded for them, the apostles would need to pray directly to God, and in so doing, He realized that they might be uncertain what they should ask for, and how well received their prayers might be without Him there. So He gave them, and us, His name as added authority to bolster their confidence. Jesus is saying that they need to take full advantage of prayer and ask of the Father for all that He himself had been willing to ask for them when he walked among them. Secondly He is encouraging them to lean more heavily on their prayers... to pray more often and with greater intensity and confidence to God the Father as He Himself did in their presence.
Have you ever found yourself in the midst of a crisis that was so severe that you became depressed and lost your ability to pray while engulfed in that sorrowful state? Sure you could say a few words, but the trust and fervency of your prayers was lacking and felt ineffective? A time like this is what Jesus saw approaching for his disciples. His ascension would leave them feeling alone, and crippled. Until this moment they had only been without Him for short periods of time, but now their faith would be mightily tested and they would need to step up in their faithfulness if God's will were to be done through them. Their prayer life would need to be much stronger.
At times like this we have the same reassurances that the apostles had. We have prayer, we have the Holy Spirit, and we have the name of Jesus. At all times, but especially during those of great distress, we are to increase the fervency and quantity of our prayers. In the midst of our trouble we should trust God more and ask Him expectantly, and without doubt, for His assistance. We are never alone and Jesus is always interceding for us. While Jesus was with His disciples He knew that they watched as He prayed for them... He would reach out to His Father in all things, and did every miracle and all the other things before God as His earthly representative. Now Jesus had ascended and was interceding in heaven, and like the apostles we too must have faith that this is so, and pray with the same authority as they did, and Jesus did.
I remember the morning when I brought my wife Ann home from the hospital where she had her second knee replacement. For the next several weeks I would be her caregiver. In times like this Jesus says to ask the Father for healing and for all of the other things we will need during recuperation. By leaning on Him during this time when I was serving and waiting on her, and her body was healing, I was sustained by God’s love and answered prayer. In the tough times we should pray more often, feel His presence more intensely, and trust in Him more. If we do this, just as Jesus instructed His disciples to do, God will strengthen us and provide for us.
This morning, as we pray, let's reach out longingly for His presence, and expect fully to receive His touch and response. Let's come to Him in all things and pledge to pray constantly for all of our needs. Let's thank the Lord for not abandoning us in times of trouble or at any other time, and finally let's praise God for who He is... Our defender, our God, our Father, our provider, our comforter. Let's lean on his strong shoulder just as Jesus did, and as the apostles did when they received the fullness of joy that Jesus spoke of. Then as we say our “Amen”, let's remember and have faith in what Jesus said in the final verse of this chapter...
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33 KJV
Prayer:
Father thank you for your Son Jesus Christ who encourages us in prayer, and gives us His authority with which to come to you as we pray. Help us Lord to be like Him and to ask as He asks so that we too are heard equally by you, and are in full alignment with your will as He is. Help us in our times of trouble and distress Father by allowing us to come expectantly before you. We pray that your answer to us will be “yea” and will come quickly, but in every case we pray that your will be done, and that your desire will supersede our own. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God and Father who is with us always and loves us without fail. Great are you who hears our prayers just as you hear those of your Son Jesus Christ, and by our belief and faith, and our obedience to your will, you will answer them. We give you all the glory Lord, and know that we can do nothing except through you, and only by prayer. We pray in the name of Jesus as He has instructed us, and in that name, above all others, we find our strength and authority. Praised be your name Abba, and we pray today, as on all days, that you send Jesus quickly to claim us. Holy Father your mercy and grace are without bounds, and we pray that you pour it out like a warm and fragrant oil unceasingly over us, especially as we pray and call on the name of Jesus. Hear our prayers, find us worthy, and seat us at your eternal table.
Amen, Amen, Amen!!
Rich Forbes