NUMBER 1: PRAY TO THE FATHER IN JESUS NAME !

NUMBER 1: PRAY TO THE FATHER IN JESUS NAME: (John 16:23-24). "And in that day you shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, whatsoever you shall ask the father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have you asked nothing in my name: ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full." When Jesus spoke these words, He was here on earth. He was talking about the day in which we live. He had not yet gone to Calvary. He had not died and been buried. He had not risen from the dead. The New Covenant Was not in force. His blood had not been carried into the Holy of Holies. They were still under the law of Moses. His blood is the seal of the New Covenant. Man had the promises of redemption, but had not received it. Eternal life had been promised, but had not been provided. None had the New Birth -- they only had the promise of it, because the New Birth is available only under the New Covenant. This New Covenant was prophesied about in the Old Covenant. Under the Old Covenant, men's hearts never were changed. That's the reason they kept on sinning. They couldn't help it but kept on sinning. Some of the greatest saints of the Old Testament sinned. After they were forgiven for one sin, they will commit another. Their natures were all wrong; their hearts were all wrong. They only had a covering for their sins. But God promised in His Word that He would take that old heart out of us and give us a new one. He said he camp that would put a new spirit in us (Ezekiel 11:19). This became available under the New Covenant or The New Testament. In (John 16:23-24), Jesus told His disciples that after He went to Calvary and was raised from the dead, people were to pray to His Father. Prayer based on legal grounds should be addressed to the Father in the Name of Jesus. We are not suppose to pray to Jesus. This was and is His instructions. The disciples asked Him, while He was here on earth, to teach them to pray. He taught them to say, "Our Father. . ." We referred to this as the Lord's prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), but it is not New Testament prayer. This prayer didn't ask anything in Jesus Name; His Name wasn't even mentioned. This prayer was prayed under the Old Covenant or Testament. Under the New Covenant or New Testament, which was sealed with the precious blood of Jesus, we are to pray to the Father in Jesus Name. Now let us focus our attention on the word "whatsoever" in (John 16:23). Often we say we are believing for an answer to prayer "if it is God's will." But this verse makes no such condition. On the contrary, it says, "Whatsoever you shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you." It must have been His will; Otherwise, He wouldn't have said it ! Why did Jesus say, "Whatsoever you shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you" ? The answer is found in verse 24: ". . . That your joy may be full." Our joy certainly can't be full if we are out of work and our children are hungry. Our joy can't be full if our bodies are racked with pain. Our joy can't be full if there are problems in our home. Jesus said the Father would give us "whatsoever" we asked so our "joy may be full." But there is a secret to success with this kind of praying. The key is in the words, "whatsoever you shall Ask The Father In My Name. . ." We are to address our prayers to the Father in the Name of Jesus.