March 17, 2021
John 16:23-24, “In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.”
These are some cryptic words from Jesus but not an unfamiliar theme, this idea of “ask and you shall receive.” First, Jesus points to a future day when you will ask “nothing of me.” This most likely means that after the resurrection, the disciple will not have to ask the meaning of the sayings he’s said already concerning his death and resurrection. They will fully understand after they witness his resurrection and ascension. And this bears itself out in truth as you see the apostles preaching with boldness and clarity early in the book of Acts. They do fully understand all of these things. The encourage to ask for things in the name of Jesus is a recurring theme of Jesus’ teaching, and is more proverbial than legalistic in its promises. As one pastor said, “If you knew everything that God knows, you would ask everything perfectly according to God’s will, and we’d receive everything we asked for.” Because we don’t know everything God knows, we ask imperfectly, with lack of foresight and often, sinful motivations. So we don’t get everything we ask for, and this is often because God is gracious. We don’t want something that would damage our hearts, faith, dependence on the Lord, or miss some opportunity that we might be given instead. The saying is rather proverbial in nature and means truly, ask for everything - make your petitions known to God (Phil 4:6). And trust in the Lord regardless of the answer to the prayer.
Further, Jesus’ instruction to pray in the name of Jesus is something new. They would have never done this before. Until now, they have only prayed in the name of the Father - the Son and the Spirit being largely hidden from their view. But once they understand the resurrection of Jesus, his full authority, deity, and power - they will then pray in the name of Jesus, and it’s right that they should. Jesus is our intercessor - the God/man who stands between man and God - it’s always on his merits that we can approach God at all. He was torn down that dividing wall between God and man, and so we acknowledge in every prayer that the reason God accepts us in his presence is because of Jesus. We plead his name then, it is the calling card that says any person can approach God - we flash that badge, so to speak, and we are heard with tenderness like a loving father before his children.
Prayer: God the Father, we know that it is because of Jesus that we can come before you. So show me truly my heart - and mend it to your will. Let me be as thankful as I should be, as repentant as I should be, and let me with confidence draw near to you and ask you for everything I need. I do pray to you based on the blood of Jesus, who purchased new life for me and makes me righteous in your sight. In Jesus’ holy name, Amen.
40 Days of Joy: Juno. A weirdly pro-life movie full of the joy of youth and quirkiness of teenage life - it’s one I highly recommend. Enjoy.
