The Word God Spells

John 16:23-28
Acts 18:23-28 / Ps 47

Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My Name, He will give you.”
John, 16-23

The most precious thing in life to claim
From the Father is Jesus His Son,
But to become worthy of His Name
We must see His face in everyone.

Jesus said, ‘On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete. I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.’

Reflection

These holy words from our Saviour come as a Promise and a great assurance whenever we feel anxious about our needs. During this time, Jesus was preparing His chosen disciples for His inevitable captivity, suffering and death. In a few hours they would be leaving for the garden of Gethsemane, where His fate awaited Him. But His message to them was, even if He was leaving them, the power of His Name would still remain with them, so that anything they asked the Father in His Name would be granted them. In fact they discovered later that they could perform healing and other wonders just by the mere mention of Jesus’ Name.

This century has perhaps seen the greatest blasphemy that man can ever be guilty of. The Da Vinci Code book and movie production have not only taken the name of our Lord in vain, but has even desecrated His memory. While the followers of Jesus Christ revere His Name and recognize the great power that may be derived from it, those who do not take their faith seriously especially the amoral regard it as just another word in their vocabulary. This is a chilling testament to the depths of immorality that this modern world has plunged itself into. Satan, the Great Liar that he is, has propagated the false information that what was once considered venerable is now in the modern sense banal and irrelevant. What was considered sacred may now be desecrated, if man wants to give free rein to his creativity in the name of modernization. But this is only true for those who belong to the world and are not concerned about the Other World beyond this temporal one. We who are not in fellowship with this world but belong to God are the ones who worship the Name of our Lord because “it is by His Name that we are saved.” It is by His Name that we have found true joy and contentment, and peace that this modern world, with all its high-tech gizmos can never provide.

Lord Jesus, we are reminded in today’s Gospel that as long as we abide in Your Name, whatever we ask the Father will be granted. You came into this world to be our Model. And You left this world with the certainty that Your Name will live on forever long after You have gone. We are the inheritors of Your Holy Name, our beloved Saviour, and in your Name we will continue to work out the Will of the Father for the transformation of His creation. It is not for this world that we live, dear God, but for the hope of spending eternity in Your kingdom. Amen.