Praying in Jesus' name

Last night in the Midweek Prayer Gathering we were looking at Paul's prayer in Romans 1.8-12 and we began by thinking together of the significance for our understanding and practice of prayer of the way Paul begins that prayer in 1.8 I thank my God through Jesus Christ. Considering that phrase through Jesus Christ we spoke about the fact that the Christian prays and can only pray in Jesus name because the Christian (and indeed anyone) can only ever come to God through Jesus cf Jesus saying in John 14.6 and Jesus say I am the way, the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.

Following on from that here are some words from Tim Keller, given in an interview in which he had been asked - Why is it so crucial to pray in Jesus's name? What are some ways we pray in our own names instead? 

To pray in Jesus’s name means to acknowledge that we only have access to the Father’s attention and grace through the mediation and work of our Saviour. So just using the words “in Jesus’s name” is not sufficient. We use the words to reinforce the required attitudes and motives. To pray “in Jesus’s name” is to come before God in both humility (knowing we don’t deserve God’s help) and confidence (knowing that we are clothed in Christ’s righteousness and worthiness), as well as grateful joy.

To pray in Jesus’s name, then, is to be aware of the grace of the gospel as the basis of prayer, and to have our attitude in prayer deeply enriched—both humbled and exalted. When we consciously or unconsciously expect God to hear our prayer because of our relative freedom from overt sin or because of our service and moral effort, we are praying in our own name. (if you want to read the rest of the interview you can access it here https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/tim-keller-on-prayer)

Here finally is another quote from his recent book on Prayer:

“...."in Jesus' name is not a magical incantation...To pray in Jesus’ name means to come to God consciously trusting in Christ for our salvation and acceptance and not relying on our own credibility or record. It is essentially, to reground our relationship with God in the saving work of Jesus over and over again. It also means to recognise your status as a child of God, regardless of your inner state.” (p105 of Prayer: experiencing awe & intimacy with God Hodder & Stoughton)