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Introduction
Throughout my many years of
listening to preachers and prayers,
I have often heard the expression,
“For His Name’s sake”. It may have
been at the end of a gospel message
or at the end of a prayer. It has
been said concerning the acceptance
of Christ as Saviour. For
consideration, was it just the
copied way to finish a message or a
prayer? It is possible we have used
that sacred name “like a magic
expression to get things done
without any pre-examination of the
things requested, as to whether the
things requested were according to
His will”. To ask “in His name” is
not tagging on the expression at the
end of a prayer. It means asking in
accordance with His will.
Illustration: I cannot go to a Bank
and ask for money in my son's or
daughter's name. There must be a
guarantee they have given permission
to ask for that to be done. If
there is then I will get the money;
if not I get nothing. To ask in the
Name of Jesus is to ask what He
would ask for, therefore, is my
request according to His will? John
wrote, “And this is the confidence
that we have in him, that, if we
ask any thing according to his will,
he heareth us: And if we know that
he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we
know that we have the petitions that
we desired of him (1 Jn.
5:14-15). God cannot lie and
therefore if we ask according to His
will, He hears us and will answer.
It may not be in our timing as with
Zechariah and Elizabeth, who had
stopped praying (Lk. 1:13).
Consideration
Praying, preaching the gospel,
ministering the scriptures is not
just compiling a few notes and
because asked, one speaks for 20-40
minutes. If an individual wants to
pray, minister, present the gospel
for His Name’s sake, then that which
is spoken must be His message, not
just a thinking one has had, nor
that which has not been lived by.
The preaching of sinners going to
Hell is not something to be
necessarily shouted out, but it
should be spoken with the same
tenderness and passion as if it were
the preacher who was going to Hell.
How would the Lord present the
gospel? As he sat with Nicodemus (Jn.
3:2-15) or the woman at the well (Jn.
4:7-28), it is not only what is said
but how a message is said. We all
have heard many messages on which
the matter of eternity were not
really believed as a reality, for
immediately after the meeting, folks
were laughing, talking about the
weather, and all the time Satan was
taking away the good seed. “If any
man speak, let him speak as the
oracles of God; if any man minister,
let him do it as of the ability
which God giveth: that God in all
things may be glorified through
Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen. (1
Pet. 4:11)
The
Expressions
The expression “In His Name” occurs
in eight verses of the scriptures.
The expression “For His name” is
also used eight times referring to
the Lord; “in His name” is mentioned
eight times; “Unto His Name” is used
four times, and the expression “For
His name’s sake” occurs four times.
What is meant by taking the Name of
the Lord in prayer or preaching?
Some Musings |
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His name is connected with: |
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a) |
Power |
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i) |
As illustrated by Peter and John
when they said, “Silver and gold
have I none; but such as I have give
I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ
of Nazareth rise up and walk” (Acts
3:6). |
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b) |
Glorification |
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i) |
It is manifested by Gods
glorification of Him. “That at the
name of Jesus every knee should bow,
of things in heaven, and things in
earth, and things under the earth”
(Phil. 2:10). |
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c) |
Comfort and blessing |
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i) |
It is associated with comfort and
peaceful blessing. “He restoreth my
soul: he leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness for his name's sake” (Psa.
23:3). |
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d) |
Forgiveness |
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i) |
It speaks forgiveness to the
individual burdened with the guilt
of sins committed. “For thy name’s
sake, O LORD, pardon mine iniquity;
for it is great (Psa. 25:11), but
also consider the longings of his
heart (Psa. 25:4, 15). |
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An observation is, “The Holy Spirit
will never prevent any assistance or
enlightenment to any activity, work,
meditation, exercise of heart that
is honestly seeking nothing but the
glorification of Christ. God will
never say he does not have the means
to begin or maintain a work for the
glorification of His Son.
God and Persons Names
The archangel Gabriel revealed to
Mary that the Lord’s name was to be
Emmanuel, which means, “God with us”
(Matt. 1:23). It indicated the
presence of God with them. God
changed Jacob’s name to Israel (Gen.
32:28). However. it was not always
good when God changed a person’s
name for He changed Jechoniah’s name
to Coniah (Jer. 22:24) indicating
judgment. The first manifestation
of God, it is more than a name, it
is a revelation of Himself and His
glory, “In the beginning God” (Gen.
1:1). This is the beginning of all
wisdom and every aspect of truth
finds its origin in Him. A correct
consideration of God and the Son
will give a true perspective on the
things which are happening in the
world. To have a true Rudder, God
and the Lord must be the centre of
every thought, word, deed and
action. His glory must be the
supreme goal of every prayer and the
goal of every presentation of the
gospel or ministry.
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The expression, “The fear of the
Lord” occurs in 30 verses and all
except Acts 9:31 occur in the Old
Testament.
The fear of the Lord is a
reverential awe due to the glory of
His person, the unwavering
absoluteness of His character, the
majesty of His throne, the
fearfulness of being the object of
His wrath, the infiniteness of His
power, the awareness of His
omnipresence, omnipotence, and
omniscience.
He is not “the big man upstairs”
or
“daddy”. Contrary to
modern casualness and lack of
spiritual understanding, Abba (Mk.
14:36) does not mean “Daddy”.
Since the fear
of the Lord is the
beginning of knowledge (Prov. 1:7),
the beginning of wisdom (Prov.
9:10), and is the instruction of
wisdom (Prov. 15:33), those who are
unsaved have a right to fear God in
alarmed anxiety for God is angry
with the wicked every day
(Psa.
7:11).
For His own there ought
to be a holy awe for, “God is
greatly to be feared in the assembly
of the saints, and to be had in
reverence of all them that are about
him (Psa. 89:7). |
An ancient and modern erroneous
perception
The ancient Greeks divided life into
the ordinary or the secular and the
spiritual. It was their
consideration that nothing the body
could do, or any wrong associated
with the body, could never affect
the spiritual. That is, one could
steal with the body but it would not
affect the spirit. This of course
was wrong ,yet we today have the
same mindset. We divide life into
the secular and spiritual. A major
truth is we are not divided. That
which is done in my body affects the
spirit and that which is done by the
spirit affects the body. Everything
done, whither it is washing the
clothes or making meals, has a
spiritual dimension, and everything
done in the Spirit ought to have an
effect on daily life (1 Cor. 10:31).
There is, to my mind, nothing more
serious than to stand before an
audience of people and speak
professing to do so in His name yet
ad-libbing or just repeating a
sermon that could be rhymed off
without the help of the Holy
Spirit. How will that be seen at
the Judgment Seat? It is
frightening. |
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. . . . Rowan Jennings |
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