John 14:12-14 The Comfort of Prayer

John 14:12-14 The Comfort of Prayer

Introduction: Andy Benes 

Promises:

a. To go and a place for us

b. Believers will on Jesus’ work

c. Whatever you ask in Jesus’ name — He do

Four Stages

Stage One: A Personal Relationship with Jesus

What does it mean to be a Christian? 

It is through Jesus that we are to Christ and brought into His family as sons and daughters.

How can we have a personal relationship with Jesus when He is ?

“True, He would be in heaven, and they on earth, but prayer could remove all sense of distance, prayer could bring them into His very presence at any time.” ~A.W. Pink

Without prayer, there is no with Christ. 

Illustration: Chinese Pastor’s Garden

Application: Spending time in the garden with Jesus is more than what often occupies our time

Stage Two: The Scope of our Requests: 

Often, when we pray, our priorities are not — but the Lord’s are for us. 

The emphasis of the Lord’s promise is that He will give them they ask (He doesn’t tell them what they can and can’t ask for). 

Illustration: Alexander the Great

Ephesians 3:20

“Thou art coming to a King, large petitions with thee bring; for his grace and power are such, none can ever ask too much.” John Newton

Stage Three: The Condition

What does it mean to end our prayers by saying, “In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.”

Prayer is made to the Father, in the name of in the of the Holy Spirit. 

prayer is Trinitarian

Illustration: R.A. Torrey

Jesus is the and goes to the Father on our behalf, and He will never advocate for something that is not in His .

Illustration: Colony of Mercy

How can we be sure that we are praying in Jesus’ name? 

We are to ask for the things the Bible tells us to . 

Stage Four: The Goal of Our Prayers

Why do we pray if God is sovereign? 

That the Father may be in the Son.

The more our prayers fall in line with the of God, the more God is glorified. 

“This is a new thought for many people, for we are so filled with the idea that prayer is getting something from God, that we rarely consider that prayer is actually a means by which God gets something from us. What he wants from us is glory, a glory that will leads others to trust him.” JMB

“To ask in the name of Christ is, therefore, to set aside our own will and bow to the perfect will of God.” A.W. Pink