«　WEEK 3　DAY 3　»

　　John 14:13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the

　　Father may be glorified in the Son.

　　Rev. 3:8 …I have put before you an opened door which no one can shut, because you have a little power and have kept My word and have not denied My name.

　　We may…pray in the name of Jesus (John 14:13-14; 15:16; 16:24). This does not mean that we pray a long prayer and conclude it with the words in the name of Jesus. That is too formal. However, I do not oppose this, for I have done this many times. Rather, I would say that in our prayer it is good to call on the name of Jesus and say, “O Jesus! Jesus! I come to pray!” In the name of Jesus you will have a real burden to pray, and it will be very easy to have the assurance that your prayer has been heard and answered. If we call on the name of Jesus, we will have the assurance that we will receive what we have asked.

　　After the Lord Jesus told us to pray in His name, He proceeded to say that the Spirit will come to dwell in us (14:13-17). This indicates that the indwelling Spirit has very much to do with our prayer in the name of the Lord Jesus. In order to pray in the name of Jesus, we need the Spirit. When we are in the Spirit, we are in the reality of the name of Jesus in which we are praying. (Life- study of Matthew, p. 65)

　　The name of Jesus is also for us to be gathered into (Matt. 18:20)…Whenever you come to a Christian meeting, you must realize that you are being gathered once again into the name. We have been put into the name of Jesus, but we are not yet very deep into Him. Hence, we need to come back again and again to be gathered into His name. We can all testify that after every meeting we have had the sense deep within that we have entered further into the Lord. The Christian gatherings will bring us more deeply into the appreciation of the name of Jesus.

　　When we speak, we must speak in the name of Jesus [Acts 9:27]. Speaking in the Lord’s name must be done in the Spirit, for the Spirit is the person of the Lord and the reality of His name. When we speak in His name, we need the Spirit to make it real…Never forget the name of Jesus. His name is a sweet name, a rich name, a powerful name, a saving name, a healing name, a comforting name, and an available name. This is the name that is exalted, honored, and respected. And it is the name feared by the enemy.

　　As a believer, you probably have had the following experience. When you are about to talk to others about Plato or Abraham Lincoln, you do not feel ashamed, but whenever you talk to people about Jesus, a strange feeling comes over you. When the Chinese speak about Confucius, they feel glorious. We should also feel glorious whenever we speak to others about Jesus, but often we do not have a glorious feeling. Instead, we have a rather strange feeling. This is devilish! In this universe and on this earth, there is a devilish element that is against Jesus. You have no problem as long as you are talking about the world situation, the economy, science, and so many things; but whenever you talk about the name of Jesus, you have a strange sense. This comes from the devil. Because Satan and all his demons hate the name of Jesus, we must proclaim it all the more. We must be bold with this name and say, “Satan, Jesus is my Lord! Satan, stay away!” We need to shout the name of Jesus.

　　When the apostles were persecuted, they rejoiced that they were counted worthy to be dishonored on behalf of the name of Jesus (5:41). Is this not wonderful? They even risked their lives for this name (15:26). Because Satan attacks the name of Jesus with all his evil power, we must learn to suffer for this name.

　　In Revelation 3:8 the Lord Jesus praised the church in Philadelphia because they did not deny His name…We should deny every other name but keep the name of Jesus. We must testify that we do not belong to any person or to any sect but that we simply belong to Jesus. The name of Jesus is the only name we own. (Life-study of Matthew, pp. 65-68)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Isaiah, msg. 8