²³ “In that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.”

Whether “that day” refers to post-resurrection appearances of Christ or to post-Pentecostal life in the Spirit, the impact is the same—the disciples of Christ will have unprecedented access to God the Father. And it is obvious that the life of discipleship continues to be one of learning and requesting. No room here for the self-proclaimed, self-sustaining individual. The Christian life is one of dependency on God, and the words of Christ are a great assurance that such dependency is well placed.

Up until now in the life and experience of the disciples, they had gone to Jesus as the Rabbi par excellence, the ultimate source of spiritual truth and understanding. Oh, would it not be nice today to simply find Jesus in the flesh and ask Him all our questions? Or ask His help for whatever we are dealing with? But, no, Jesus says there is something better than going to Him with our questions and requests.

We are invited to God, to the Father, and to do it in Jesus’ name! This is truly a profound truth. The Jews had to approach God with their needs by going through the Levitical ritual system, through a priest, using the prescribed and detailed protocol. Any violation was subject to strict punishment. But now Jesus teaches that we can go to God directly with only one protocol to follow, namely that we approach God in Jesus’ name. Nothing elaborate or ritualistic about this.

Now what does it mean to ask in Jesus’ name? Clearly it must be more than adding the rote addendum to our prayers, “In Jesus’ name.” Prayer is not just a matter of terminology, or legalistic patterns. We go to the Father at Jesus’ initiative. We say, “Father, I am coming because Jesus sent me to You. I am coming on Your Son’s behalf.” It is like, as the old illustration goes, walking into a bank with a check signed by Jesus. It is worth something, not because the bearer of the check is wealthy, but because the person whose name is signed on the check is wealthy.

To go to the Father in Jesus’ name means we represent Jesus’ interests, our concerns have to do with His purposes and ministry. We are His followers, so we ask relative to our involvement in His work. And the key here is that when we do so, the Father “will give it to” us. The only question that remains is, why we don’t do this more often?

Lord, help me to align my requests to Your will, so that my prayers will line up with Your name.