No Power Shortage Here

In tomorrow's Gospel reading Jesus tells his followers,

Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.

But can we ask for anything in his name and receive it. Really? I think so, but the key is what we ask for in his name can happen if it is in God's will. And if that is true, amazing things can and do hapen. The Rev. Dr. Fred Anderson wrote on this passage for Day 1 noting,

As Jesus prepares to return to the Father, he tells us that you and I have access to the same power, when asked in his name. He promises to do whatever we ask in his name. Now hear me clearly. This is not a promise for chocolate cake at the drop of a hat, straight A's without some very hard work, instant parking places, or a stock-market portfolio that is always ahead of the Dow Jones Index. It is a promise Jesus gives to his body, the church, for the church. This is the meaning of asking in his name. To the extent that what we ask of the risen Lord is in accord with his will and purpose for the church in the world. That he will do in and through us.

Think about it. Indeed, we have seen even greater works than he did, whether that has been the world-wide spread of the gospel with his word of love, forgiveness and reconciliation in the search for peace, his work to heal and make whole as the church has established hospitals and schools all across the globe, or his value for human life, even the least of these a norm woven into the ethics of much of western culture. Whatever we ask in his name he promises to do. There is no power shortage here for any of us, so long as it is Christ's work we are taking up.

What does that mean for us as his body as we face the complex questions of immigration justice in this country? What does that mean for us as his body as we face the challenge of global ecology? We are not only commissioned to be the custodians and stewards of creation, we have the Creator's power to do so, if we will.

What does that mean about confronting the challenges of decline in the church in the west? Every study that has ever been done on evangelism and church growth says the same thing: it happens when the members of the congregation begin to take up their responsibility for inviting people-family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances-to worship with them. When you and I begin to speak openly and unapologetically about the faith that sustains us, the power of God engages our words to do God's work, and people respond. We do not need to prove the truth of the Gospel or of Jesus' claims. We simply need to confess them, bear witness to them, say "come and see," trusting the power of God to do the rest.

Are you facing a power shortage in your congregation? What are you failing to ask of him in his name?

The full text of his essay is online here: No Power Shortage Here.