May 2

Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive. - John 16:24.

SOME suppose that in this Scripture our Lord gave a gentle rebuke to his disciples for their contractedness in their prayers. As if he had said, Hitherto ye have asked nothing in my name compared with what you might, with what you ought to have asked. But it is an intimation of their ignorance as to the proper mode of prayer; for as the Apostle says, “At this time the way to the holiest was not fully made manifest.” It had been typified and prefigured from the beginning, but the disciples themselves did not understand the thing designed. Hitherto they had not expressly prayed in his name, neither did it seem necessary while he was with them. But now, says he, “If ye ask anything in my name, I will do it.” “Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will do it for you.” Now ask, and ask in my name.

Nothing can be more decisive, more expressive than the declarations of Scripture concerning the nature and availableness, and only availableness, of our Saviour’s mediation. “We have boldness to enter into the holiest of all by the blood of Jesus.” We come unto God by him. “Through him we have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” “I am the way; no man cometh unto the Father but by me.” And be it observed that our asking in his name is not, as the Socinians explain it asking by his authority; but it means that we are to pray through his mediation; imploring blessings for his sake-pleading his incarnation, his sacrifice, his intercession. Abel was heard and accepted because of the excellency of his sacrifice. Under the law no penitent was ever pardoned in any other way, for without the shedding of blood there never was any remission.

We learn, therefore, from hence, that our prayers to be available must be Christian, to be Christian they must be in his name; that is, we must be sensible not only of our unworthiness, but of our guilt, not only of our wants, but of our desert; not only renouncing our own sufficiency, but our own righteousness, submitting ourselves unto the righteousness of God, acquiescing in this mode, placing all our dependence upon it, and even glorying in it. Without this, if we seek we shall have not, “because we ask amiss.”