God's Gospel Truths
John 14:8-14
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
Pondering Point
Following up on yesterday's devotional promise in John 14:12, we have a second promise in 14:13 -- but this one comes only with prayer. "I will do whatever you ask in my name so that the Father may be glorified in the Son." That's the promise. As you ponder that, also remember that God taught in James 4:2 that you "don't have because you don't ask." Finally, also keep in mind that to ask for something “in Jesus’ name” means that you are aligning with Him and His ways rather than asking for things based on your agenda and your ways. That helpful truth will resonate well with the reading from our book found below.
Prayer for the Day
Lord Jesus, help me adopt Your lifestyle as an apprentice or disciple or Yours, enabling me to benefit from Your promises of praying in Your name. Amen.
Dallas Willard wrote this about Matthew 11: “In this truth lies the secret of the easy yoke: the secret involves living as [Jesus] lived in the entirety of his life – adopting his overall lifestyle... Our mistake is to think that following Jesus consists in loving our enemies, going the "second mile," turning the other cheek, suffering patiently and hopefully – while living the rest of our lives just as everyone else around us does... It's a strategy bound to fail." What he’s saying here is simple but profound. Here's my paraphrase of the secret of the easy yoke: If you want to experience the life of Jesus, you have to adopt the lifestyle of Jesus.
J.M. Comer, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, p. 81, 82