We live in changing times and that is certainly true in the way we do church today.  Intead of the ‘one-man’ show, we now have some very capable worship leaders, bible readers, children section leaders, and those who lead in congregational prayers and that has been a blessing.  However, from time to time, there are some things we do in worship that we need to perhaps revisit and see whether the way we are doing and saying things align with Scripture. One such important part is how we address God and how we end our corporate prayers.  

Some ‘modern’ preachers and others who lead in corporate prayer simply refer to the Triune God as “God” throughout their prayers. For example, “God, we thank you for the opportunity to worship” or “God, we pray to you that you will answer our prayers for the sick and under-privileged,” or “God, thank you for forgiving us our sins” or “God, thank you for living in us” etc.  For some reason they never address our awesome God as ‘Our Father’ as Jesus encouraged us to do (Matthew 6:9, cf Romans 8:15) or mention the other members of the Trinity by name and their part in the work of redemption and regeneration.  To simply address ‘God’ as ‘God’ in our prayers may not necessarily be wrong or disrespectful, for the Holy Spirit and the Son intercedes for us (Romans 8:26, 34), but it does make ‘God’ out to be distant, transient, and impersonable, rather than being near, warm and personable.  

Second, some ‘modern’ preachers and others who lead in prayer during worship simply end corporate prayer by saying ‘Amen.’  They do not close corporate prayer by saying, “In Jesus Name, we pray, Amen.” This doesn’t mean we have to end every prayer with that exact same phrase.  We could end by saying, “In our Lord’s precious name we pray” or, “In Christ’s name” or “in Your Son’s name” we pray etc.  

Now you might be thinking that I am majoring on a minor and it isn’t all that important, but I beg to differ.  Scripture often mentions that we should pray in Jesus’ name.  Jesus repeatedly taught His disciples to pray in His name (Praying in Jesus’ name aims at his Father’s glory, and the Father’s glory in him John 14:13–14; 15:16; 16:23–24).  To pray in Jesus’ name is to acknowledge that our access to God in prayer comes only through Jesus alone (Jn 14:6).  Praying in Jesus’ name gives us confidence to enter the holy of holies, for we know that Jesus has paid our debt in full, and the Father now sees us as righteous for we are clothed in Jesus’ righteousness (Eph 3:12; Heb 4:16; 10:19).

Praying in Jesus’ name gives us unhindered access to the very throne room of grace and is also part of Jesus’ high priestly role (Hebrews 7:25; Lord’s Day 12 Q&A 31;). By praying in Jesus’ name, we acknowledge that we have a high priest who can sympathise with our weaknesses, shares our human pain, and knows the connection between temptation and suffering yet was without sin.  The apostle Paul spoke of Christians as those who “call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:2) and give thanks “to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20;).  

We could ask the question, “If we don’t pray ‘in the name of Jesus’ how does one expect their prayers to be heard?”  Surely, none of us would think for a moment that our prayers, prompted by the Holy Spirit, are so ‘perfect’ and ‘sinless’ that they can reach the throne room of grace apart from Christ’s cleansing blood.         

Finally, if you are privileged to lead in corporate prayer during a worship service this coming Sunday, consider for a moment our great privilege as Christians that we can address our God as ‘Father.’ It reminds us of an intimate relationship that we have with the Author of the universe, who redeemed us through His Son and now lives in us by his Holy Spirit.  As his sons and daughters in Christ, it’s a blessing to be reminded of the close relationship during our corporate prayers.  

Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, we thank you for your love and mercy.  Jesus, we thank you for your wonderful and completed work of salvation for us.  Holy Spirit, we thank you for residing in our hearts and reminding us of our most privileged position that we can enter the very throne room of grace in Jesus’ name, all because we are clothed in the righteousness of our Saviour. In His precious name we pray and give thanks. Amen.  JZ