Jesus has promised to do anything you ask Him. Sort of.
John 14:12-14 (NIV)
12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
Listen to passage & devotional:
Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 26: The Intercession of Christ
We believe that we have no access to God
except through the one and only Mediator and Intercessor:
Jesus Christ the Righteous.
We should not plead here
that we are unworthy—
for it is not a question of offering our prayers
on the basis of our own dignity
but only on the basis of the excellence and dignity
of Jesus Christ,
whose righteousness is ours
by faith.
Since the apostle for good reason
wants us to get rid of this foolish fear—
or rather, this unbelief—
he says to us that Jesus Christ
was “made like his brothers in all things,”
that he might be a high priest
who is merciful and faithful
to purify the sins of the people.
For since he suffered,
being tempted,
he is also able to help those
who are tempted.
Since it has pleased God
to give us his Son as our Intercessor,
let us not leave him for another—
or rather seek, without ever finding.
For when God gave him to us
he knew well that we were sinners.
Therefore, in following the command of Christ
we call on the heavenly Father
through Christ,
our only Mediator,
as we are taught by the Lord’s Prayer,
being assured that we shall obtain
all we ask of the Father
in his name.
Summary
John 14 is a chapter we've come to often as we read the Bible together. It's the beginning of a long talk Jesus has with His disciples on the cusp of His crucifixion. It's here in these couple of chapters that so much of our theology and understanding about our Triune God is based.
The disciples listen to Jesus in a hushed fear, as the authoritarian establishment begins to surround them and their prospects grow dim. At this point, they know things won't end well, but they don't yet know just how difficult it will be. So imagine how their ears must have pricked up as Jesus speaks these promises that seem so... so incredible (literally: unbelievable).
I know what I'd be thinking if I heard this. How can these words be true when absolutely nothing seems to be going well and mortal danger looms? Is Jesus some sort of genie in a bottle that grants every wish? If so, why doesn't Jesus break out some of that magic He demonstrated in so many other places and solve all these pressing problems that will likely lead to death?
But yet notice that none of the disciples press Jesus on this. Nobody uttered a word. Nobody asked Him to clarify, elaborate, or explain. It's not that they were afraid to; both Thomas and Philip asked some pretty big questions a few paragraphs before this. I have a few theories as to why nobody spoke up, but they're just theories.
What do you think? What would you have wanted to ask Jesus here, and why do you think the disciples were silent?
Dig Deeper
It's quite likely you're reading this in a comfortable space and you're not facing imminent doom. And there's a big lesson in this. One of my theories on the disciples' silence is that it's hard to cleary think and articulate under that kind of stress. This is why you need to build up your theology in the good times, so it's there for you when you need to rely on it. Building theology in the midst of trouble is like trying to pitch a tent in a windstorm.
This short passage packs in so much theology that we could literally spend hours unpacking it, and we only have a few moments left. Understand that Jesus' promises here are all predicated on alignment. You believing in Jesus, Jesus going to the Father (on your behalf), so that you can ask Jesus, who's standing before the Father, for anything in His name, which will result in you being able to do even greater works than Jesus did here on earth!
When you're aligned with the Father through Jesus, the appeal of silly trinkets you might ask of a genie goes away. When we do ask for those sort of things - which we do often - Jesus is under no obligation to comply, because these requests are selfishly made in our own name, and not in Jesus' name. The next time you mumble the words "In Jesus' name we pray" at the end of your prayer, ask yourself if what you just prayed for is actually aligned with His name!
Jesus adds one more aspect of alignment to these amazing words at the end. The emphasis gets lost in English, but is super apparent in the Greek words John recorded. Literally translated, Jesus said, "You may ask me for anything in my name, and I - Me! - I will do it!"
When you ask for things aligned with God's will, you will be able to do it, but not just you on your own, rather Christ will be working directly through you!
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, before whom we stand in our Savior, Jesus Christ;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Be certain that the words "in Jesus' name I pray" are accurate of your prayer;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year! Today: 2 Corinthians 3
Comentários