Where Did Christ’s Soul Go After His Death? (part 2)

Posted on April 11, 2012 by russellmckinney

For centuries, the classic King James translation of the Bible was the favored one for the English-speaking world. Many of us grew up reading the K.J.V. and memorizing its verses, and undoubtedly it’s a generally solid translation. Unfortunately, the way it uses the word “hell” has been a longstanding problem.

In the K.J.V.’s New Testament, three very different Greek words get translated as the one word “hell.” This has caused untold confusion among sincere students of the Bible. The three words are Tartarus, Gehenna, and Hades. I could devote an entire series of posts to explaining what the Bible teaches about each place, but I won’t do that because I’m already in a series. For my purposes here, let me just give you the barest of the bare basics.

First, Tartarus (2 Peter 2:4) is a place exclusively for the imprisonment of certain fallen angels. No human souls have ever been or ever will be incarcerated there. The New Testament refers to this place by two other names. One name is “the bottomless pit,” which is referenced in chapters 9, 11, 17, and 20 of the book of The Revelation. The other name is “the deep,” which is referenced in Luke 8:31 and Romans 10:7. The terms “the bottomless pit” and “the deep” both translate the Greek word abussos, from which we get our English word “abyss.”

Second, Gehenna is the eternal lake of fire of chapters 19-21 of The Revelation. Even though this place is in existence now, it is completely empty as of yet. Its first occupants will be the Antichrist and the False Prophet from the coming tribulation period (Revelation 19:20).

This leaves us with Hades, which is where Acts 2:27 places Christ’s soul after His death. Perhaps it’s best to think of Hades as being a general realm of the dead. In the Old Testament Hebrew, it goes by its Hebrew name Sheol. In Old Testament days, the soul of every deceased person went to Sheol (Hades). You ask, “Do you mean that in Old Testament days the souls of saved people went to the same afterlife abode as the souls of lost people?” Yes, that’s right. But there is more to it than that.

Here’s the thing about Hades (Sheol): It has two sections. One section was for the souls of saved believers, and the other section was for the souls of lost unbelievers. While the Old Testament certainly hints at these two sections, the New Testament comes right out and describes each one.

The passage is Luke 16:19-31, Christ’s story of the rich man and the beggar Lazarus. In the story, the souls of the rich man and the beggar both go to Hades upon death. The beggar’s soul goes to the bliss section of Hades, where he is comforted by the soul of Abraham, an Old Testament believer. On the other hand, the rich man’s soul goes to the torment section where there is no comfort. The rich man can engage in a brief conversation with Abraham and Lazarus, but a great gulf prevents him from passing over to that other section.

It is this torment section of Hades (Sheol) that people have in mind when they talk about someone dying and going to hell. And this notion is factual because this is exactly the place where every lost soul goes now. This section is a place of torment and flame (Luke 16:24). It is a place of painful remembrance of the events of your earthly life (Luke 16:25). It is a place where all your requests are denied (Luke 16:24, 27-28, 30-31).

And would you believe that Hades (both sides) is literally located in the heart of the earth? The Old Testament always speaks of the place in terms of being “down.” Read the story of how God allowed a medium to conjure up the soul of the deceased Samuel so that Samuel could pronounce a word of doom upon King Saul (1 Samuel 28:3-25). According to that story, Samuel’s soul ascended up out of the earth, not down from heaven. Furthermore, not only is Hades located somewhere in the heart of the earth, the Bible also teaches that the place has gates (Job 17:16; Isaiah 38:10; Matthew 16:18).

So now the question becomes: Which section of Hades did Christ’s soul go to at His death? We find the answer in Luke 23:43. There, just before He dies, Jesus promises the believing thief on the cross beside Him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Make no mistake, there is no correlation whatsoever between the torment section of Hades and “Paradise.” And since Jesus said, “you will be with Me,” He obviously went to the bliss section of Hades.

I should point out that the word “Paradise” is used in two other places in the New Testament. First, in 2 Corinthians 12:4 the apostle Paul uses it in reference to “the third heaven,” which is God’s heaven, the place we think of when we use the word “heaven.” Second, in Revelation 2:7 (when interpreted through the lens of Revelation 22:2) the word is used in reference to the future city of New Jerusalem, the city where the saved of all history will spend eternity.

You see, in the New Testament the specific “Paradise” being mentioned is determined by the context and timeframe of the passage in question. Before Christ’s death and resurrection, “Paradise” was the bliss section of Hades. After Christ’s death and resurrection, “Paradise” became the third heaven, God’s heaven. In the prophetic future, after Christ’s 1,000 year reign upon this earth, “Paradise” will become the heavenly city called the New Jerusalem.

Okay, I’m going to put a period here for now, but it’s not because I don’t have more to say about Hades. I just feel like I’ve given you plenty of scriptural meat to chew on for one post. Let me encourage you to study all these references for yourself. I think you’ll find them interesting reads. Then, in my next post, I’ll say the rest of what I need to say about Hades and Christ’s soul going there after His death.

Posted in Bible Study, Christ's Death, Christ's Resurrection, Easter, God's Word, Heaven, Hell, King James Only, Prophecy, Series: "Where Did Christ's Soul Go After His Death?" | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Where Did Christ’s Soul Go After His Death? (part 1)

Posted on April 10, 2012 by russellmckinney

In the days leading up to Easter Sunday, I had two different people ask me the same question: “Where did Christ’s soul go after His death?” So, I felt led of the Lord to build my Easter sermon around that question. What I’d like to do with my next few posts is share that information with you.

Let me begin by saying that every human being consists of a body, a soul, and a spirit. This applied to Jesus as well because He was God in human flesh. I could use individual passages that specifically mention the body, other passages that mention the spirit, and other passages that mention the soul, but I’ll just go with 1 Thessalonians 5:23, which brings all three into play:

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (N.K.J.V.)

Several months ago, I devoted a series of posts to the body, the soul, and the spirit, and I’ll not repeat all that information. Let me just say that each human being is a soul who lives in a body and possesses a spirit. The soul is the eternal you. The body is that which houses the soul. The spirit is the life-giving spark of God that makes the body alive. As James 2:26 says, “…the body without the spirit is dead.”

Now, we know what happened to Christ’s body after His death, don’t we? Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus removed the body from the cross, bound it in strips of linen, and buried it in Joseph of Arimathea’s personal tomb (John 19:38-42). Furthermore, we also know what happened to Christ’s spirit. His last words on the cross weren’t, “It is finished,” as some people wrongly believe (John 19:30). Not long after He uttered those words, He said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit” (Luke 23:46). This chimes in perfectly with Ecclesiastes 12:7, which teaches that at death the spirit returns to God. And so all this leaves only the matter of what happened to Christ’s soul after His death.

Thankfully, the Bible hasn’t left us in the dark as to the answer. As a part of the famous sermon that Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost following Christ’s resurrection and ascension, he loosely quoted Psalm 16:8-11, which is an Old Testament Messianic passage that speaks of Jesus. In Acts 2:27, we read these words from that passage:

For You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will you allow Your Holy One to see corruption. (N.K.J.V.)

Frankly, these words really aren’t hard to understand. First, the part about God the Father not allowing Christ to see corruption refers to Christ’s body not experiencing the normal process of decay in the tomb. Second, the part about God the Father not leaving Christ’s soul in Hades refers to His soul going there after His death but not remaining there. The point is, Christ’s soul obviously went to Hades immediately following His death.

This gets us onto the subject of Hades, and since that is something of a complex subject I’ll wait until my next post to tackle it. I’m not trying to needlessly draw this out. Nor is this a ploy to keep you coming back. It just takes a little bit of time to get everything explained. So please stay tuned.

Posted in Christ's Death, Christ's Resurrection, Easter, Hell, Series: "Where Did Christ's Soul Go After His Death?" | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Personal Word This Monday

Posted on April 9, 2012 by russellmckinney

Well, I’m glad to be back with you today. Sorry for my infrequent posts lately. I had planned to do more blogging in the days leading up to Easter Sunday, but things just didn’t work out. One day I got involved in a home landscaping project that got a lot more complicated than I had estimated. Another day the high school dismissed early because of a transformer blowout, an event that started enough dominoes falling in my life to thoroughly mess up the day I had planned. Then Ryan had a j.v. baseball game on Good Friday (don’t ask me why). The following day, Saturday, not only did I have a funeral to conduct but Ryan had an away game. On and on I could go, but you get the idea.

I’ve been told by others that I have a talent for writing. Therefore, I feel a responsibility to use that talent for the Lord. It’s tough, though, when that responsibility runs headlong into my other responsibilities, that of husband, father, pastor, etc. For one thing, there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done I’d like to get done. For another, at the age of 45, my energy level isn’t what it used to be.

I once heard an interview in which a great sportswriter, Frank Deford, talked about his process for writing. He said that he did his writing when he first got up in the morning because that’s the only time he had the energy. I said to myself, “I’m glad it’s not just me.” The problem is that some mornings start out wide open and never let off the gas!

If all I had to do was write blog posts, I’d churn them out at a prolific rate. If all I had to do was prepare sermons, I’d have a stockpile of them waiting to be preached. If all I had to do was church visitation, I’d be preaching to more people every Sunday. If all I had to do was work in the yard, my place would be the nicest on the block. If all I had to do was run Ryan and Royce around to their various ballgames and practices, we’d be there early every time. If all I had to do was help Tonya with the household chores and grocery shopping, I’d be a professional Mr. Mom. But when you throw all the balls into the air at once and have to juggle, that’s when things get hectic.

Please understand that I’m not complaining. I lead a blessed life and I know it. Also understand that I’m not claiming that my life is any busier than yours. Many of us are skimming atop life’s turbulent waves in the same speed boat these days, aren’t we? All I’m doing is offering an explanation as to why I don’t post more blogs. The tinge of responsibility is certainly there. For that matter, when I’m at my best, the desire is even there. But when it comes to the time and energy, ah, there’s the rub.

In conclusion, let me say that I sincerely thank you for your readership. Don’t ever think that I take it lightly. Please keep checking in periodically or, better yet, click on “Sign Me Up” in the top-right corner of this page and become a subscriber. But whether you are a subscriber, a first-time visitor, or somewhere in between, just know that I appreciate you giving me a read. You keep reading and I’ll keep writing, at least as much as this busy life allows.

Posted in Children, Fatherhood, God's Work, Husbands, Marriage, Parenting, Personal, Talents | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Easter Means A Promise Kept

Posted on April 5, 2012 by russellmckinney

Consider the following passages:

“But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.” (John 15:26)

Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” (John 16:7)

And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (Acts 1:4-5)

“This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.” (Acts 2:32-33)

In each of these passages we see that Jesus did indeed keep His promise to send the Holy Spirit to help His followers. This helping came by way of the Spirit indwelling those followers. The dawn of this new era was the Day of Pentecost that is described in Acts chapter 2, but the era continues today as each person who believes in Christ as Savior is “baptized” with (indwelt by) the Holy Spirit from the moment of the belief. As Romans 8:9 puts it:

…Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.

But what does the coming of the Holy Spirit to indwell believers have to do with Easter? That’s simple. The fact that the Holy Spirit came proves that Jesus did rise from the dead. Think about it, He had to resurrect and ascend before He could send. So to deny Christ’s resurrection is to deny some 2,000 years worth of the Holy Spirit ministering through Christians. That’s a lot of denial, much more than is logical in light of all the good Christians have done down through the centuries.

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Easter Bells

Posted on April 2, 2012 by russellmckinney

But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming. (1 Corinthians 15:20-23, N.K.J.V.)

In March of 1799, the Austrian campaign of Napoleon’s French army was in full swing. One army of French forces was led by General Andre Massena, while Austria’s troops were led by General Franz Jellacic. It is from these days and these military maneuvers that an often-cited story comes.

As the story goes, on March 23rd, 1799, which was the eve of Easter that year, Napoleon’s troops, led by General Massena, were poised to take the town of Feldkirch. The town was located on the outskirts of Austria and was home to somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 citizens. Some accounts place the French troops camped atop the heights that surround Feldkirch. Other accounts place them camped six miles outside the town.

With their town seemingly without hope, the citizens of Feldkirch were desperate for a plan, and their town council convened a meeting that night to try to formulate one. Since everyone agreed that it was useless to fight the approximately 18,000 soldiers of Massena’s army, a suggested plan involved a delegate, carrying a flag of truce and the keys to the town, being sent to the French camp. The thinking was that perhaps a voluntary, total surrender might cause General Massena to show some degree of mercy by not killing the women, children, and elderly. If Massena was especially merciful, maybe even the town itself could be spared a complete looting.

That plan, however, was tabled when the town’s revered elderly priest said, “My brothers, this is Easter. Cannot God, who arose from the dead, protect us in our distress? Shall our first act in this calamity be to forsake him? Let us go to church as usual and trust God for the rest.” The members of the council, being devout Christians, chose to put the priest’s plan into action. As for what supposedly happened next, there are two versions of the story. I’ll give you both versions so that you can decide which one you favor. No matter which version you prefer, the story’s purported outcome remains the same.

According to one version, the next morning, Easter Sunday, the citizens flocked to their churches and the church sextons carried out the custom of ringing the church bells loud and long in celebration of Christ’s resurrection. The French army, not realizing the day was Easter Sunday, took the ringing of the bells to mean that the Austrian army had marched into Feldkirch during the night and the bells were being rung in celebration of it. Based upon this assessment, General Massena ordered a retreat and the town was saved.

But according to another version of the story, General Massena knew that it was Easter Sunday and in a ploy to make the citizens of Feldkirch believe he was sparing them in honor of the day, he withdrew his troops. As this version goes, the withdrawal was supposed to be a temporary one done as a way of getting the people of Feldkirch to abandon all their defenses so that a later attack would result in less French soldiers being killed. That plan failed, however, when the dawn of Easter Sunday revealed to the citizens that Massena’s troops had retreated. In celebration of what they believed to be a miracle of deliverance, the citizens then joyously rang the church bells, which in turn caused Massena to make the withdrawal permanent because he believed the bells were being rung to celebrate the arrival of the Austrian army to defend the town.

Now, did any of this actually happen? Well, I’m no expert, but historians do tell us that General Andre Massena was ordered by his superior, Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, to lead the French Army of Helvetia in an attack on the town of Feldkirch in late March of 1799. Furthermore, those historians tell us that after French defeats at the Battles of Ostrach and Stockach in those same days, the French military machine was forced to recoil and regroup. Perhaps, then, somewhere in all of that recoiling and regrouping, the old story of how the ringing of the church bells on Easter Sunday saved the town of Feldkirch really did take place. Admittedly, it’s kind of hard to believe that such a story could have sprung up for no good reason.

One thing is for sure: We Christians should let the bells of our praise ring out in celebration of the fact that Jesus is alive and has delivered us eternally from the forces of sin! Of all people on earth, we should feel the most joy and hope because even though we will surely be forced to live through some difficult times in this life, our everlasting victory is secure because of Christ’s resurrection. Not only will we get to spend eternity in perfect bliss with Him, we will get to spend it in a glorified body that is just like the one He has had since He arose from the dead that first Easter Sunday.

So, Christian, are you having difficulty this Easter season? Is your situation desperate? Then let the bells of your heart ring out loud in praise to Jesus! Remember that He lives and stands ready to help you not only in eternity but in your times of trouble here on earth (Psalm 46:1). Like those church bells of Feldkirch sending those French soldiers into confusion and retreat, your praise of Jesus in times that are dark and foreboding will send Satan’s soldiers into confusion and retreat. Remember, we don’t praise Jesus so that we can become victors; we praise Him from victory that we already have because in all things (even things that are truly awful) we are more than conquerors through Him (Romans 8:31-39). Happy Easter!

Posted in Adversity, Attitude, Christ's Resurrection, Church, Church Attendance, Depression, Easter, Eternity, Fear, Joy, Praise, Problems, Resurrection, Trials, Trusting In God, Worry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Empty Bottle Membership

Posted on March 30, 2012 by russellmckinney

The story is told of a man who hopped from church to church, never remaining long in any one place as a member. One day he asked his current pastor, “What would you think if I joined another church?” The pastor answered, “I think it would be alright in your case. It doesn’t do any harm to change the label on an empty bottle.”

Have you ever met a professing Christian who couldn’t settle down in any one church? I have. Have you ever met one whose church letter never seemed to translate into much holy living? I have. Have you ever met one who seemed to think that church membership was some kind of get-out-of-jail-free card in regards to sin? I have.

While I’m not trying to devalue having your name on a church roll, I would like to point out that it’s not exactly the end-all-be-all of living the Christian life. As a famous preacher once said, “The Lord has some the church doesn’t have, and the church has some the Lord doesn’t have.” That sums up the situation pretty well, doesn’t it? Along the same lines, another preacher once said concerning the “dead wood” on our church rolls, “We’ve got some members even the C.I.A. couldn’t find.”

Unfortunately, the church growth movement has taught our churches to equate God’s blessing with how many names we have on our membership rolls. That’s why it’s good that we remind ourselves regularly that the great commission calls for the making of disciples, not just church members (Matthew 28:18-20). Speaking as a pastor, if I’m given a choice between a disciple and an “empty bottle” church member, I’ll take the disciple every time. Why? It’s because bloated membership rolls really don’t help much when it is time to do the Lord’s work, but disciples definitely do.

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Be Wary of Hay

Posted on March 28, 2012 by russellmckinney

One Sunday morning a pastor noticed that a certain farmer wasn’t in church. Because the farmer never missed a service, the pastor figured that something must be wrong. So, after church he drove out to visit the man and found him working in a hay field. The pastor walked up to him and said, “We missed you in church this morning, brother. I hope nothing is wrong.” The farmer replied, “No, nothing is wrong, preacher. But I had this hay cut and lying on the ground and it looked like rain, and I figured it’d be better to be here and thinking about God than sitting in church worried about my hay.”

I’ll reserve judgment on where God would have had that farmer be that Sunday morning, but any pastor will tell you that a lot of people sit in church services and think about some kind of “hay.” Their “hay” keeps their minds off worship. It causes them to zone out during the Sunday School lesson or the sermon. It keeps them from vibrantly participating in the congregational singing. We might say that these peoples’ bodies are at their posts, but their minds are somewhere else.

Is such a thing pleasing to God? Of course not. He wants more than mere zombies who dutifully report for roll call. Certainly this goes for church attendance, but it also goes for Bible study, prayer, witnessing, and giving. Any time we are engaged in doing these things, our minds should be fixated on the task at hand. No “hay” should divide our thoughts and focus. Remember this whenever you find your mind drifting as you try to do something for the Lord.

Posted in Bible Study, Church, Church Attendance, Faithfulness, Giving, God's Work, Prayer, Preaching, Sunday School, Witnessing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Wonder of Being Childlike

Posted on March 26, 2012 by russellmckinney

My oldest son, Ryan, was a freshman on his high school’s j.v. baseball team, and the team had an away game against a school that was located an hour and a half away. So, I made the drive to watch him play a game that ended in a 2-2 tie. The conference rule for j.v. games was that teams played six innings and then got one extra inning to decide a tie. If the score was still deadlocked after that seventh inning, it was time for the varsity teams to hit the field for warm ups.

Because it was a school night and the varsity team would be getting back home quite late, the j.v. players were allowed to ride home early with their parents. That meant that Ryan would be riding home with me and I would be responsible for getting him some supper. This is where Burger King comes into the story. After I had I ordered my usual Whopper with cheese and Ryan had ordered his usual chicken tenders, we sat down at a table. I had to get back up, though, because it was one of those “fill your own drink” places and I hadn’t filled mine yet.

When I returned from getting my drink, I saw that Ryan was praying. I figured he was offering his typical fast prayer over his fast food, but I soon noticed that the prayer seemed a touch more lengthy and intense than usual. Once he was finished praying, I took my seat across from him and just had to ask, “What were you praying?” Yes, that was nosy of me, but, hey, that’s how parents roll. Before Ryan answered, he gave a little grin as if he had been caught doing something off limits. Then he said, “I thanked God for the game. I thanked Him for the food. And I asked Him to have you let me get some dessert.”

You’d understand that request perfectly if you knew how passionate the boy was about his desserts. It was an ongoing issue that he always had to have dessert at a restaurant. While the extra expense was one thing, the extra time required to deal with dessert was another. Nevertheless, I almost always gave in and let him have dessert.  And, yes, that night he got his ice cream/brownie thing at Burger King. How could I possibly have refused him after he had melted my heart with such a sweet, simple, childlike request, one that he wasn’t even going to let me in on if I hadn’t asked?

Okay, so where am I going with this story? Well, as I sat there eating my Whopper that night, I couldn’t help but think how wonderful it would be if we Christians could master the childlike faith of a boy asking God to lead his daddy to let him buy a dessert. What was it Jesus said?

Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3-4, N.K.J.V.)

Tell me, Christian, how much of the pure, innocent, guileless faith of a child do you have left about you? I must confess that my level at this stage of my life isn’t as high as it once was. Unfortunately, as you get older, and as life runs you through some painful experiences, your childlike faith can take a real hit.

Then again, maybe I’m just not quite old enough yet. What I mean is, if I keep living, and if the aging process continues to systematically make me less and less self-sufficient, perhaps more of my childlike faith will return to me. That’s what I suspect will happen, anyway. Let’s face it, when you just can’t do for yourself, the Lord has to do for you, right?

This concept of having to be taken care of is one that we instinctively understand as children, but we unlearn it when we become adults. And that unlearning hurts us in regards to looking to God to meet our needs and believing that He is going to grant our requests that are in His will for our lives. Thinking about Ryan’s little prayer that night reminds me of all this. Now we’ll see if I can reclaim some of the childlike characteristics I have lost along the way.

Posted in Aging, Belief, Children, Desires, Faith, Fatherhood, God's Love, God's Provision, God's Will, Grace, Needs, Parenting, Personal, Prayer, Prayer Requests, Sports, Trusting In God, Worry, Youth | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Praying in Jesus’ Name (part 6)

Posted on March 22, 2012 by russellmckinney

For the past several posts, I’ve been explaining what all is involved with praying “in Jesus’ name” (John 14:12-14). Thus far we’ve covered the following ground:

1. Praying in Jesus’ name can only be done by a Christian.

2. To pray in Jesus’ name is to pray in submission to God’s will.

3. To pray in Jesus’ name is to pray in the authority of Jesus.

4. To pray in Jesus’ name is to pray with an understanding of the limitless power such praying offers.

5. Praying in Jesus’ name means praying the kind of prayer that Jesus would pray.

Now let me move on to the sixth and last thing I want to say on this subject. It is this: To pray in Jesus’ name is to pray with an awareness of the work of redemption that Jesus completed.

Christian, whenever you pray you should be keenly aware of the fact that your privilege of prayer rests upon the foundation of Christ’s divinity, virgin birth, sinless life, substitutionary death, miraculous resurrection, and victorious ascension back to heaven. Hebrews is the Bible’s great book here. Allow me to string together some of the relevant passages (all from the N.K.J.V.):

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. (2:9)

Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things, pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. (2:17)

Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (4:14-16)

You see, the teaching of these passages is this: The only reason we Christians can bow our heads anytime, anyplace and have our prayers heard by God the Father is because Jesus did the work that we might be redeemed. If you take that work out of the equation, our prayers take a deadly hit. That’s why, Christian, when you pray you should always have Christ’s work of redemption in the back of your mind. You should remember not only that Jesus is your High Priest but what it took for Him to earn that title. The redemptive work He did is of infinite importance, and without it your prayers would carry little if any weight with God the Father.

Posted in Christ's Birth, Christ's Death, Christ's Resurrection, Prayer, Prayer Requests, Salvation, Series: "Praying in Jesus' Name" | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Praying in Jesus’ Name (part 5)

Posted on March 20, 2012 by russellmckinney

Perhaps the simplest thing I can say about what it means to pray “in Jesus’ name” is this: Praying in Jesus’ name means praying the kind of prayer that Jesus would pray. As we study the four gospels, it isn’t hard to see how Jesus thought, how He responded to certain situations, what priorities He held, and what goals He wanted to achieve. To use an old expression, it isn’t hard to see what made Him tick. So, Christian, as you listen to yourself pray, you should engage in a running analysis of contrasting what you know about Jesus with what you are saying in prayer. You just might be surprised at how different your prayers sound from what you figure your Savior would say if He Himself was doing the praying.

You’ve heard the term “power of attorney,” haven’t you? A person who holds the power of attorney for another person has the privilege of handling that individual’s affairs. However, according to the spirit of the arrangement, the one who has the power of attorney should make decisions that are in line with the wishes and desires of the one he is representing. Well, to a certain degree, Jesus gives Christians the power of attorney to handle His affairs, and much of this handling is done by way of our prayers. This means that it’s vitally important that we pray prayers that are in line with Christ’s wishes and desires.

Some years ago, the letters WWJD became something of a craze. They stood for the question, “What would Jesus do?” My point with this post is that our prayer times should fit into the confines of the letters WWJP: “What would Jesus pray?” Keep these letters in mind the next time you pray, and I’ll guarantee you that your prayers will be much more effective.

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