Ever wonder why praying in the NAME of Jesus is so important? Well in this lesson, Mr. Murray gives us three illustrations to help us understand this idea. Praying in Christ's name is more than just saying those words. "The free use of the name of another is always the token of great confidence, of close union." How is it that we've been entrusted to carry out the Lord's business as His representatives? What did we ever do to deserve such honor? Regardless, it is a privilege our Master has bestowed upon us. We represent Him in these three ways: in a legal union (as His business partners or stewards), in a life union (as His children and heirs), and in a love union (as His beloved bride). In all three respects He has given us the authority to carry out His plans and desires on this earth. It is a responsibility we should take seriously and utilize to bring blessings on those around us.

"The one thing He commands us as His branches is to bear fruit. Let us live to bless others..." - Andrew Murray

Not just Him, but His Words. What if God limited Himself to answering our prayers only as far as we were willing to obey Him? We know His blessings are directly connected to our obedience. When we obey, He blesses. When we disobey, He confronts and corrects. As His children, we have the responsibility to know what He wants and to give Him what He wants... which, in case we've forgotten, can be summed up in one simple request: "Just love me." That's literally all He wants from us. The rest will naturally follow as we grow in our love for the One who first loved us. This flows even into our prayer-life. It's more than just praying Bible verses back to God. If we want God to hear and answer us, we must first learn to consistently hear and answer His desires. He says, "Come to me." So come. He says, "Repent." So repent. He says, "First, let my words live in you; follow my instructions; yield to my will; then ask me anything. I'll give it to you." So believe His promise and do it! He's a good God: a loving and merciful Father who deeply desires to hear from you. If you can believe in who He is, the secrets of the prayer world have been unlocked. Approach Him with gratitude. Approach Him boldly... with all your requests.

"Prayer is not monologue but dialogue... Listening to God's voice [not just hearing but also obeying His Word] is the secret of the assurance that He will listen to mine... May my speaking [in prayer] be the echo of Thy speaking to me." - Andrew Murray

"Let us not be so much occupied with the abiding, as with Him... It is not the effort of faith, seeking to cling to Thee, nor even the rest of faith, trusting Thee to keep me; it is not the obedience of the will, nor the keeping the commandments; but it is Thyself living in me... that alone can satisfy me." - Andrew Murray

The definition of "glory" as given by the New Oxford American Dictionary is: 1) High renown or honor won by notable achievements, 2) Magnificence or great beauty. Examples further down in the 2nd definition go on to use words like "splendor," "bliss," distinctive," and "special cause for pride, respect, or delight" to describe the word "glory." So what does it mean then to pray in such a way that God the Father is glorified? Praying this way was a keynote of Jesus' life. It's worth noting that LIVING this way was also a keynote of Jesus' life. As Andrew Murray puts it: "...the desire for the glory of the Father is not something that we can awake and present to our Lord when we prepare ourselves to pray. No! it is only when the whole life, in all its parts, is given up to God's glory, that we can really pray to His glory too." Sometimes the idea of praying purely for God's glory can sound dull to us. This is because our hearts are slothful and self-glorifying and we do not take time to allow Christ's life to dictate the way we live and pray. "...it is Jesus Himself coming in, who can cast out all self-glorifying, and give us instead His own God-glorifying life and Spirit. It is Jesus, who longs to glorify the Father in hearing our prayers, who will teach us to live and to pray to the glory of God." When we remember what glory is - high renown and honor for someone who has earned it with NOTABLE achievements (like saving our souls for starters), magnificence, beauty, splendor, bliss, delight - maybe it wouldn't be so hard to want to live and pray all for the glory of God. Do we truly believe He is worthy of such honor? In praying and in living? If not, what else do we believe is worth it? Who else has the magnificence and beauty of God? Who else can carry himself with the distinction and splendor of the Almighty? The answer is, no one. Well then, my friends, let's learn to pray like He's the only one worth glorifying.

Jesus was ready to leave His life work in the hands of His disciples. Along with some final instructions came two very big promises: “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; AND GREATER WORKS than these…”and “WHATSOEVER ye shall ask in my name, that will I do.” (Jn. 14:12-13) These promises are hugely contingent upon the disciples’ assignments that they were given. As they do the works that Christ is passing on, they have His power also. As they glorify the Father, they have the Spirit, working out the very life and works of Christ through them. Andrew Murray says, "Effectual working needs first effectual prayer... Prayer not only teaches and strengthens to work: work teaches and strengthens to pray." The two fit together perfectly. When we understand that these promises were not primarily intended for application to our own personal gain or comfort but rather for the WORK of the Lord - the discipleship of others and the glorifying of God - we can then claim these promises within the proper context and we need never be disappointed. We will begin to do greater works because we will be praying bigger prayers, and we will begin to pray bigger prayers because the greater works will demand it.

The destiny of man... Hear what Murray has to say about this: "The image he bears decides his destiny. Bearing God's image, he belongs to God: prayer to God is what he was created for. Prayer is part of the wondrous likeness he bears to His Divine original; of the deep mystery of the fellowship of love in which the Three-One has His blessedness, prayer is the earthly image and likeness." Although sin has warped the original destiny of man, redemption through Christ has begun the restoration. Not only are we destined to reflect the love and character that exists in the Trinity by fellowshipping and communicating with God in prayer, and not only are we to glorify God as our Creator by reflecting His image to a lost world, our prayers are also to be the means of bringing others back to their original destinies. By fulfilling our divinely appointed destiny, we play a part in the ruling of the rest of mankind and, in essence, take part in determining their eternal destinies. So whose destiny is riding on your prayers today?

Andrew Murray touches on the very nature of prayer itself in this episode. How can such a form of communication exist between God and man? If God is perfect and perfectly independent of human authority, what gives us the right to approach Him and even to influence His course of action? Does prayer truly hold power with God? How much power? These are some of the questions answered.

Have you ever wondered why we sometimes have to pray more than once before we get an answer that has already been promised? Could it be that God just isn't willing to answer that particular request? How can God promise to "avenge us speedily," but then expect us to come to Him over and over about the same thing and then to wait for perhaps weeks or even years before the answer we seek becomes reality? This lesson unravels the mystery and gives us several encouraging reasons for the necessity of persevering prayer. Have you ever been discouraged by what seems like a long delay? The need for persevering prayer is something Andrew Murray calls "one of the greatest practical difficulties in the exercise of believing prayer." The first practical step in overcoming this difficulty will come as no surprise: it is faith. Faith is the only thing that can give our prayers the endurance and stamina they need in order to finally see God move in all the fullness of what He plans to do for us. If you want a rich harvest, you'll simply have to have patience through the intermediate seasons of sunshine and rain. No farmer expects fruit as soon as he places his seed in the ground and neither should we. Let God have His time and His way with your prayers and the answer you receive will far exceed your beginning expectations.

Unity, agreement, under the authority and in the name of Jesus equals great power in the spiritual realm. Whether it is a husband and wife, a group of friends, or a whole church family, Jesus promises a special presence and recognized answers to corporate prayer. In the words of Mr. Murray, "When any of us have distinct desires in regard to which we feel too weak to exercise the needful faith, we ought to seek strength in the help of others. In the unity of faith and love and of the Spirit, the power and the Name and the Presence of Jesus acts more freely and the answer comes more surely... What an unspeakable privilege this of united prayer and what a power it might be."