Moreover, the Lord’s name has been given to us not only to deal with men, to save men, to heal men, to have authority over the demons, and to cast them out of men. Even more precious is the fact that the Lord’s name enables us to go to the Father and speak to Him. When we go to the Father in this way, He has to answer us. John 14—16 speaks of the Lord’s name three times. We have to say with reverence that the Lord Jesus was very bold! What did He say? “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it” (14:13-14). Oh, this name is above all other names! This name is the name every tongue in heaven, on earth, and under the earth should openly confess as Lord. It is the name to which every knee should bow! This name is powerful before God; God honors this name. When we do things in this name, God honors it. The Lord said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and I set you that you should go forth and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give you” (15:16). Again He said, “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Truly, truly, I say to you, Whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give to you. Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be made full” (16:23-24). Brothers and sisters, can we think of another promise greater than this?
What then is praying in the name of the Lord Jesus? Praying in the name of the Lord Jesus is saying to God, “I am not trustworthy. I am useless. But I am praying in the name of Jesus.” Suppose you send a letter to a friend through a messenger, asking your friend to return a sum of money through the same messenger. When your friend sees the signature, he should give the money to the messenger. Is this not right? Will your friend ask the messenger, “Are you educated? What is your family background? Who is in your family? How is your temper?” He will surely not ask these questions. He is not concerned with who the messenger is. He only needs to make sure that the letter has your signature. The messenger has come in your name, and you have put your trust in this messenger. Hallelujah! To stand before God in the name of the Lord Jesus is to say that you do not stand on your own merit but on the merit of the Lord’s name. It is to say that you are not counting on what you are or what you will be, but on what the name of the Lord is. Many people pray with the hope that they will be answered in the future. Some pray with the hope that they will be answered in a few months or a few years. They hope in this way because they expect to become better in a few years. Because they expect to become better, they expect that their prayer will be answered. But we have to realize that our prayer is answered because of His name and not because of our name. We have to completely deny our flesh, and we need to be in the name of the Lord Jesus. All the ground we have is gained through Him. We stand before God because of Him and not because of ourselves. It is not because of our righteousness but because of His blood; it is not based on what we want but on what He wants. We are here in the name of the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, the knowledge of the name of the Lord Jesus is a revelation and not a doctrine. The day will come when God opens our eyes to see the power in this name, the greatness in this name, and what a wonder it is that God has committed this name to us. Because God has committed His Son’s name to us, we can say, “God, we do this in the name of Your Son Jesus.” This means, “God, You believe in us. You trust in us. You take responsibility for everything that we do.” Brothers and sisters, since this name is placed in our hands for the purpose of dealing with men, the devil, and God, we should realize that we must live a certain kind of life before we can have the power to use this name. Therefore, we must learn to know the cross every day. Only then can we apply this name. Brothers and sisters, please remember that the cross cannot be separated from this name. May the cross work deeply in us to the extent that we know how to apply this name to men, how to use this name to deal with the devil, and how to pray to the Father through this name. May the Lord give the church abundant knowledge concerning this name so that the position, authority, and power of this name is recovered among us today and the church will receive many spiritual riches through His name.
(The Prayer Ministry of the Church, Chapter 3, by Watchman Nee)