How Much Do we Limit Jesus in our lives?

"Jesus said, 'Take away the stone.' Martha, the sister of the dead man said to him, 'Lord by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days." (John 11:39)

This is a story that most of have heard at one time or another. It is the story of a man named Lasarus, a friend of Jesus who gets sick and dies. When Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick, He intentionally waits two more days before heading to Bethany. And yet the scripture says that He loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. Have you ever wondered, "Does God really care? If He loves me, why does He let these bad things happen?" I have to confess that I have wondered that.

When Jesus arrived in Bethany, Martha greets him with these words, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." I think another way to say that is, "Lord, where were you when we really needed you? We sent word in time. Why did it take you so long to get here?" Again, it sound too closely familiar to my own thoughts at times, and I bet yours as well.

When Jesus promises she will see her brother again, she says, "Lord, I know one day we will all be together at the time of the Resurrection." ,And Jesus says, "I am the Resurrection." Have you come to a place where you realize that Jesus is exactly who you need?

The interesting thing is the prayer outside the tomb, in vss. 41-42. To paraphrase the words of Jesus, God always answered Jesus' prayer. I mention that because in John 14:13-14, Jesus makes an incredible promise to those who are believers. He says that He will always do what we ask in His name. So what does it mean to pray "in Jesus' name." I believe that the short answer to that is that it means to pray exactly what Jesus would pray.

When Jesus told Martha to have them remove the stone from the tomb, she said, "Lord, He has been dead for 4 days. By now He stinks." How often do we limit Jesus in our response to Him? He tells us to pray in faith, and yet we say, "But, Lord..."

In Jesus' Name

Jesus said, "Whatever you ask in My name."

When we arrived in the village where we had been working for over a year to distribute grain to people who were eating grass, they said, "Please pray for us in Jesus' name." It was rainy season, but it had not been raining, and they desperately needed rain to grow the food necessary for the new year. We prayed for rain, "In Jesus name". And within hours there was an abundance of rain. Word went out for miles and people kept coming and saying, "You are the rainmakers."
We kept telling them, God sends the rain, and we prayed in Jesus' name.

Three months later a group of Muslim men came to our team at our hut in the village and said, "We asked the Imam to pray for rain, but he sent us to you. He told us that you are Christians, and God answers your prayers." What does it mean to pray in the name of Jesus?

There are many answers to that question, but two comments are sufficient for our thoughts this morning. First, to pray in Jesus' name is to pray on the basis of His pleasing work on Calvary's cross. His atoning work not only brings forgiveness for our sins, it is also purchased the answer to our prayers. God never answers on the basis of our own merit, but only on the basis of the shed blood of Calvary.

The other comment of significance is that to pray in Jesus' name means to pray what He would pray. It is not a self centered prayer, but a prayer that honors the Father's will. To pray in Jesus'' name is to pray consistenet with His nature and character. There is power in the name that is above every name.