John 14:12-18 The Answered Prayer
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”
The disciples are confused! For three years, Jesus has been leading the disciples throughout much of Judea and Samaria, teaching and preaching and modeling the kind of behavior he wants his followers to exhibit. The Passover meal has gone smoothly, except for Judas Iscariot suddenly leaving as Jesus urges him to do what he is going to do quickly. But Jesus is always doing strange things, so the remaining disciples simply assume Jesus has given Judas a special assignment.
But now Jesus is suddenly dropping heavy teaching after heavy teaching on the disciples’ heads, as if his time to teach them is getting short. The disciples might be excused if they wonder what’s going on; after all, Jesus can continue to teach them tomorrow, can’t he? And why does Jesus keep talking about going to his Father? Everybody knows Jesus’ earthly father Joseph died years ago. It seems as if Jesus is speaking in riddles.
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” Jesus knows that sometime in the next 18 hours, he is going to die, leaving his earthly body to ascend to his Heavenly Father. The disciples have already enjoyed the heady experience of being sent out in pairs to preach, teach, heal, and cast out demons.
Luke 10:1-12, 17-18 tells the story of Jesus sending out seventy of his followers, not merely the twelve closest to him. Luke 10:1-12 “After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go. Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves. Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road. But whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, ‘The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you. Nevertheless, know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.’ But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.”
Luke 1-10:17-18 The Seventy Return with Joy
Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”
And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”
The eleven disciples left in that upper room all participated in that great campaign of healing and deliverance. Now Jesus says they will do even greater things.
“And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” Again, the disciples might be listening but they aren’t understanding. Why is Jesus speaking in riddles? Surely, Jesus isn’t going to die anytime soon, so why mention praying in his Name?
The advantage the disciples have over us is that they get to hear Jesus speak these words for the very first time in history. The advantage we have over the disciples is that we know why Jesus is saying these things; Jesus is giving the disciples a final briefing just before he is dragged off to be interrogated, tortured, and crucified.
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” The amazing thing is that Jesus is not merely speaking to those eleven disciples but also to us. Throughout the history of the church, believers have healed people, have cast out demons, have sometimes even been transported from one place to another-all by asking God the Father to work in the Name of God the Son, Jesus. Many times, we might pray without asking specifically because we aren’t certain what God wants to do; however, if we pray asking God to work His perfect Will in a given situation, we can rest assured that He will do so.
What if you want to pray for a given situation but are uncertain as to how you should pray? Here is one model prayer: Heavenly Father, You see this situation. You love this person better than anybody else; in fact, Jesus went to the cross and died for this person’s sins. Lord, we ask for healing, for deliverance, for restoration. We soak this person in the Blood of Jesus, the Love of Jesus, and the Fire of the Holy Spirit. Please deliver this person from any demons working in their life. Please correct anything that is out of place. May Your Kingdom fully come and Your Will be fully done in this person’s life. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. Help us to trust that You WILL do greater things in us and through us because You are faithful. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
Leave a comment