05/11/2024
THE AUTHORITY OF HIS NAME
And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it (John 14:13-14).
Notice carefully that the Lord Jesus didn’t say, “Whatsoever you shall ask me in my name, that will I do.” Rather, He said, “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name”; there’s a crucial difference here. You can't ask Jesus something in the Name of Jesus.
Often, people pray without thinking about their words. Many pray to the Lord Jesus and end the prayer with “in the Name of Jesus.” This is not correct. This is a prayer without understanding, and some pray this way without seeing results because they approach prayer with a religious mindset, not with the understanding of what Jesus taught.
When Jesus said, “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name,” He meant that whenever you make a demand or declare something in His Name, He will make it happen. It's about exercising the authority that His Name represents. In Acts 3, we see a practical demonstration of this by Peter and John when they encountered a beggar who had been lame from birth. In verse 6, Peter said to him, “...Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.”
Peter didn't pray to Jesus. He spoke to the man in the authority of the Name of Jesus. Peter then took the man by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately, the man's feet and ankle bones received strength. He jumped up, stood, and began walking, leaping, and praising God. Hallelujah! Afterwards, Peter explained and said to the people: “And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all” (Acts 3:16). Peter and John were demonstrating exactly what Jesus taught in John 14:13-14. They used the authority of Jesus' Name to perform miracles, signs, and wonders.
When you speak in His Name, Heaven responds; miracles happen. His Name carries the same power and authority of His person. So, when you use it, you invoke His presence and direct His glory to the situation you’re dealing with. We’ll learn more about this in our next study.
Prayer / Confession
Dear Father, I thank you for the power of attorney to use the Name of Jesus to effect changes. I exercise that authority to establish your will in the earth and in the lives of men. I pray today, that people everywhere will experience the goodness of God, for indeed the whole earth is filled with your goodness, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Further study
Acts 3:12-16; Philippians 2:9-11; Mark 16:17-18
1-year bible reading plan
Hebrews 4:14-16; Hebrews 5:1-10; Jeremiah 44-47
2-year bible reading plan
1 Peter 3:1-12; Ezekiel 36
