In His Name part 2
When we ask for something in Jesus's name, that doesn't mean asking God for any old thing that we want and then slapping "In Jesus's name we pray, amen" onto the end of it. God isn't a genie where we rub the bottle and get three wishes. Asking for things in His name means asking for things with His authority and character. Asking for the things that HE would ask for. And, for the record, there's a prime example in the Bible of what Jesus would--and did--ask His Father for. He was on the cross. Bloody, beaten, terrorized, humilated, and dying... and He said, "...Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do..." (Luke 23:34). Now before I say my next thing, let me ask you this: Do you think God answered that prayer? I do. Not only because Jesus had previously said that whatsoever you ask for in His name His Father will give you... but also because God is love. Forgiveness is a big part of loving people. Because people are messy. They will do you wrong. Probably without even meaning to. I always say, "Don't take things personally, even if they are." So, having said that, I believe Jesus was asking His Father not only for forgiveness for the people who were literally killing Him then and there... I believe He was asking for forgiveness for the entire human race; past, present, and future. Think about it: Jesus is the Lamb of God that took away the sin of the world, right? How did He do that? Well, if sin is unbelief... He took away unbelief by giving us something (someONE, Himself, love) to believe in. He did it by assuring forgiveness for us. He did it by using His authority. By expressing His character. His nature. His name. I'm telling you, your name is more than just what people call you. And I'm telling you you are NOT what people call you... but you ARE what you answer to. So don't answer to false allegations. Don't answer to things that happened in the past that don't define who you are. Answer to your new name. Your true name. It is written in the Lamb's book of life and it is written on a white stone. But I believe there is only ONE white stone. With ONE name written on it. The name of Jesus. YOUR true name. Your true authority and character as a king and priest equipped and empowered to rule and reign on this earth. So doing things in His name... asking for things in His name... it's not about trying to figure out who He is or what He would do or what He would want. We know who He is. We know what He did. We know what He wants. And it's all love. He is love. He did love. He wants love. And we don't even need to ask our heavenly Father for love... because He has already given it to us. Filled us up to overflowing with His love. His spirit. His nature. His character. His authority. His name. That is our true identity. JESUS is our true identity. God in the flesh. Love in a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. In there... so it can come out of there. I think on this side of the cross it is more important to ACT in His name (nature, character, authority) than it is to ASK for things in His name. Because through the cross He gave us everything He had. Everything He is. He gave us His name. Everything we do is holy... because the Holy one lives inside us. That's a lot to unpack. We'll leave that for another time. For tonight, just know that acting in His name means acting in love!