We had a great sermon today! (I’ll link to it once it’s uploaded.) That’s not unusual, of course. But I particularly liked a couple of points our pastor made. Go listen if you have time. I liked the part where he pointed out that God the Father responds to our love for Christ, even knowing how poor our love is.

God responds to our love for Christ? That’s something I want to chew on more.

In discussing this passage of scripture in our Home Fellowship Group, we were talking about what it means to pray in the name of Christ. What does it mean that the Father will give us whatever we ask in Christ’s name.

I remembered once getting a speeding ticket in Canada–hey it was hard to convert the kilometers per hour to miles per hour –and on the ticket I was ordered to appear in court. That order was given in the name of Her Majesty the Queen. The queen herself, through the hand of her agent, the mountie, was ordering me to appear in court. The mountie who pulled me over was acting in the queen’s name. He was acting under her authority.

What if the guy had pulled me over and told me to dance a jig on the roof of my car? I’d not have been obligated to obey him. The queen never authorized him to ask that of me. All she told him he could do was write me a ticket, arrest me under certain circumstances, shoot me if such force was warranted, I suppose, but he didn’t have free reign. He was limited in what he could ask of me.

In the same way, we may pray to the Father in the name of the Son and the Father really is obligated to give us whatever we ask. He’s promised and he is no liar. But what we may ask of the Father is only that which Christ authorizes us to ask. We may not ask the Father to dance a jig. Nor may we expect the Father to take away all our suffering—Christ has told us we will suffer (go listen to the sermon when it’s uploaded—May 11) he hasn’t authorized us to demand that all our suffering be removed.

But he’s given us authority to pray in his name!

We have direct access to God the Father. We have a mediator, Christ the man, who has said, in effect, “You go right to the Father and mention my name and the door will open wide for you.” Using the name of Christ in prayer is like a policeman showing a search warrant. When he shows that paper we understand he’s working with the authority of the law behind him and we let him come in.

There was a time when Christ sent out his disciples and gave them authority over evil spirits. In John 16, he gave them authority with God the Father.

We also have that authority. Not over the Father, obviously, because the Son doesn’t have authority over him. But we have authority to go boldly into his throne and seek his mercy. We don’t have to wait for an invite. My pastor pointed out today that we don’t have to meet with the number four man and work our way up to the big man at the top.

No, we go right to the top and say, “Jesus sent me.”

This just boggles my mind.