We usually end our prayer with the words "In Jesus' Name, we pray, amen." Why do we do that? Why don't we say "In the name of one of the Apostles or Father or Holy Spirit" or "In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit we pray," like when we do baptism?
The words "in the Name of Jesus we pray" are NOT a mantra or magical words like 'Bim sala bim' or 'Abra cadabra.' And they are NOT fancy words that meant to make our prayer sounds more beautiful (Some Christians end their prayer with: "In the Name of the most beautiful, precious, powerful Name, we pray!"). It's more than that! Some Christians think that by saying "in Jesus' name" at the end of the prayer, God would grant whatever they ask. That is essentially treating the words "in Jesus' name" as an unbiblical magic formula.
We end our prayer by saying, “In Jesus’ name, amen” because Jesus tells us to do it. Let us look at these verses:
John 14:13 "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son."
John 14:14 "You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."
John 15:16 "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you ... "
John 16:23 "In that day, you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name."
John 16:24 "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask, and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."
John 16:26 "In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf."
So when we close our prayer with the words "in the Name of Jesus, we pray," we do what Jesus teaches us.
How could Jesus dare to make those promises? No prophet or founder of any religion had told their followers to pray in their names. Jesus is different from them. He is the Son of God who became a human (John 1:1-3, 14). When He became a man, he is a perfect human: He didn't have any weakness and never committed in sin (John 8:46); He always had an intimate fellowship with His Father (Mark 1:35 "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." Matthew 14:23 "After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone. Luke 6:12 "One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray and spent the night praying to God.")
Jesus showed perfect obedience to God (John 4:34 "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work."). He even obeyed to carry the sin of the world (Luke 22:41-44 "He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.").
He died on the cross and rose again to redeem us (Galatians 3:13 "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.")
Because of who Jesus was and is, and what He has done for us, therefore:
1. He is our High Priest. The priest was responsible for bringing the people's petitions before God. In the Old Testament, God chose the tribe of Levi to produce a priesthood in Israel. Thus, the book of Leviticus was written as instructions for the priesthood. Human has never been able to go to God on our own because of the separation caused by sin. In the OT, the priest would have to go to God for the people. And he went through a specific cleansing period before he could even do that. The presence of God is so awesome that someone who was considered unclean would die in His presence. But Christ became our High Priest. Hebrews 4:14-16 says, "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Christ is referred to as High Priest over 15 times in the 13 chapters of Hebrews. Christ does what we cannot do for ourselves: He goes to God on our behalf.
2. He is the Mediator between God and us. Apostle Paul says in 1 Timothy 2:5, "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus." The Bible not only claims that Jesus is our high priest, but He also our Mediator, who, through His death and resurrection, opens the way for us (who believe in Him) to come to the holy throne of God. And the bible is very clear that Jesus is the only Mediator between God and humans. Therefore, we must only pray to God through Him! So, do not pray to others, including the Archangels (Michael, Gabriel), to the saints (St. Anthony, etc.) and Mother Mary!
Illustration: There is a story of a Union soldier who desperately needed to be discharged to see his sick wife during the civil war. He sat outside the Whitehouse crying because, as he tried to get in, the security stopped him. Just then, a little boy asked the man, "why are you crying?" After hearing the man's tail, the boy took him by the hand and led him through the Whitehouse's rooms, past the guards, and into the president's office. The boy was Tad Lincoln, the president's Son.
3. His Name is the Name above all names - only Jesus who can save us. The Bible says, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). Because of Jesus’ humility and obedience to death, “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledges that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil 2:9-11). So, Jesus’ name is above every name! And at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.
Testimony: Some time ago, I witnessed the mighty name of Jesus when I served a 29-year-old man (who holds a black karate belt) in my home country. After sharing the gospel with him, I asked him if he was ready to accept Jesus into his heart, and he said, "yes." So, I started to pray with him. But suddenly I heard a loud voice like a roaring lion in front of me. When I opened my eyes, I saw that the man had manifested into a lion. His eyes were bulging upward (I could not see the pupils), and his hands were like lions' front feet ready to pounce on me. I immediately realized that a demon had possessed the man. The voice said that the man was his and that no one could ever take him away. The voice also angrily said that he wanted to destroy my family and me. Thank God for giving me his power and great courage to face that scary situation that I had never had. When I asked, "Who are you?" the voice replied, "Legion." But then after I pressed him further, he claimed he was Lucifer. For more than an hour, I fought against Lucifer in the mighty power of God. Every time I prayed and cast Lucifer out in the Lord Jesus’ name, the man bounced back and fell to the floor. After the very tense deliverance ministry ended, the man, who was exhausted, told me that he did make a blood covenant and gave his soul to Lucifer several years ago to derive supernatural power from him. During the spiritual battle, the young man also said that Lucifer was going to attack and kill me several times, but he couldn't because there was something like a transparent shield in front of me, which he couldn't penetrate. I know it was God's power that had protected me from that attack. Praise God for His special protection! Jesus’ Name is indeed above all names!
Conclusion:
We pray in Jesus' name because He tells us to do it. So, when we pray in Jesus’ name, we pray with His authority and ask God the Father to act upon our prayers because we come in His Son, Jesus. Praying in Jesus' name doesn’t guarantee God would answer our prayer. Only prayers that are according to His will that God will hear: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him." (1 John 5:14-15). Praying in Jesus' name is also praying for things that will honor and glorify God: "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son." (John 14:3). If what we ask for or say in prayer is not according to His will and not for God's glory, saying "in Jesus' name" is meaningless.
