Day 9 - The Power in the Name of Jesus

Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full....At that day ye shall ask in my name. - John 16:24, 26

Day 9 of Murray's book, The Secret of Intercession, focuses on the importance of our connection to Jesus Christ and the power that resides in that connection.

Murray asserts that many Christians do not see the full understanding of what Christ says in the passage above:

... there is such a lack of knowledge of their oneness with Christ Jesus, and of the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of prayer, that they do not even attempt to claim the wonderful promises Christ gives here. (36-37)

But what brings that understanding is FAITH, "faith in the power of Jesus' name and in our right to use it that will give us the courage to follow on when God invites us to the holy office of intercessor" (37).

In this short chapter, Murray concludes by saying that when Christians have this faith and understanding, when they know Jesus' name has power, and they know they have the right to use it, and they know that using it in prayers will bring answers, then they will be in the midst of living a healthy spiritual life:

Oh, if Christians but knew what it is to yield themselves wholly and absolutely to Jesus Christ and His service, how their eyes would be opened to see that intense and unceasing prayerfulness is the essential mark of the healthy spiritual life. (37)

At the end of Day 9, Murray poses the question: How is being an intercessor indicative of having a healthy spiritual life?

Murray defines intercession as essentially when a man is bold and asks from God what he desires for others. As intercessors, we are to pour out our souls, give of ourselves, which is the divine meaning of intercession. Intercession is, if you will, a lifestyle. It is not a hobby. It is a way of being that is ingrained in you and becomes as important as the air you breathe. Intercession also, as Day 9 suggests, requires you to have faith in Jesus' power, in your ability to use that power, and in the belief that answers will be given to what you ask for. Important to these last points comes our abiding in Jesus, our yielding "wholly and absolutely to Jesus Christ and His service."

With our chief position on earth as intercessors, which God sees as the strongest power of man according to Murray, we are living a life in which day or night, we are ever vigilant to God's causes and his children. We cry out for others. We give of ourselves in order for God's mercy and grace to fall upon his children. When our lives are aligned with the most powerful work we can do for the "church," when we become the intercessors for one another through the power of Jesus Christ just as Jesus is The Intercessor for us, it's not difficult to see how we move toward having healthy spiritual lives.


Other Posts in The Secret of Intercession series

1. "Kickstarting Intercession"
2. "Day 1 - Intercession"
3. "Day 2 - The Opening of the Eyes"
4. "Day 3 - Man's Place in God's Plan"
5. "Day 4 - Intercession in the Plan of Redemption"
6. "Day 5 - God Seeks Intercessors"
7. "Day 6 - Christ as Intercessor"
8. "Day 7 - The Intercessors God Seeks"
9. "Day 8 - The School of Intercession"