I hear most Christians pray “in Jesus’ name” when they’re praying, but sometimes they don’t say “in Jesus’ name.” Why do we pray “in Jesus’ name?”
Question: I hear most Christians pray “in Jesus’ name” when they’re praying, but sometimes they don’t say “in Jesus’ name.” Why do we pray “in Jesus’ name?”
Bill Warren answers: To begin, we need to understand that prayer is not about magic where the right formula brings the desired magical results, but rather prayer is about a relationship.
In other words, praying or using the phrase “in Jesus’ name” is not a magical formula that trumps the relationship requirements.
For example, in Matthew 7:22, Jesus says, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, in your name didn’t we prophesy, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many miracles?’ And then I’ll confess about them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from me, you who practice wickedness.’”
Jesus clarifies that doing God’s will (Matthew 7:21) and practicing righteousness are integral to our relationship with our heavenly Father. Prayer needs to be kept in this relationship context as a starting point.
Within that context, Jesus says in John 16:23b that his disciples have the privilege of approaching the Father in His (Jesus’) name, “anything you might ask the Father in my name, He will give to you.”
The early church used this phrasing in their ministry, as seen in Peter’s statement to the lame man in Acts 3:6b: “In the name of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene, arise and walk.”
Paul also emphasized the phrase, with Colossians 3:17 highlighting this, “and whatever you do in speech or in action, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” So we see that the Christian practice of praying and acting “in Jesus’ name” is solidly biblical.
But why would it be important to pray “in Jesus’ name?”
The one to whom we pray is the most important component of prayer. We are not praying to a false god that has been imagined or created by people, but we are praying to the one true God who revealed Himself to us supremely by becoming incarnate in the person of our Lord Jesus.
When we pray in Jesus’ name, first we are confessing that we are praying to the God who was in Jesus, not a false god. Second, we are confessing that we are approaching God based on the relationship that was made possible by Jesus, our Lord who died for our sins.
Within this relationship context of praying to the one true God who came to us and redeemed us in Jesus, the issues of when we pray, how we pray, and where we pray are secondary.
Relationships require communication, commitment, and common goals to flourish. Prayer is one of the central components of that relationship, providing part of the communication that is essential to a healthy relationship.
But effective prayer needs to be united with a solid commitment to the God who came to us in Christ (to following Jesus) and to a commitment to doing the will of God (the furtherance of the Kingdom of God on all levels). By praying “in Jesus’ name,” we are (or at least should be) affirming these two relationship components of commitment both to Jesus and to his mission and goals in this world.
To conclude, to whom we pray is central, why we pray is crucial, and that we pray is critical!