9.—Should Prayer Be Addressed to Christ?
Some may be surprised at any doubt on this point; for the instincts of the soul that has been born anew, lead it out frequently in prayer to the Lord Jesus, as well as to the Father. Still the question has been raised, and it may be useful therefore to refer to scriptures which bear upon the subject.
That which has given rise to doubt is the following verse, viz., “And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you” (John 16:2323And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. (John 16:23)). Taken as it stands, this would seem conclusive that prayer should not be addressed to the Lord. But the translation is misleading; for two words of differing force in the original are here rendered by the one word “ask.” The word rendered “ask” in the first sentence of the verse is ἑρωτάω (erotao); that in the latter sentence is αἰτέω (aiteo). Thus, “And in that day ye shall ask (erotao) me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask (aiteo) the Father in my name, he will give it you.”
The former word (erotao) originally only meant to inquire, and in classic Greek is used in that sense only; but in Hellenistic, or New Testament Greek, it has the same double meaning as our English word “ask,” namely, both to inquire and to make request, as in the instances: He asked the way to Richmond; he asked water.
The second word, “aiteo,” means only to ask for something. But, “erotao” having two meanings, the question arises, in which of those meanings is it to be taken, in the verse we are considering? and this seems to be indicated by the context, for the Lord had just been answering the inquiries of the disciples; as it says in the nineteenth verse, “Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him.” Here the word translated “ask” is “erotao.” Then He answers their questions, and in ver. 23 adds, “In that day ye will not question (erotao) me.” And now, passing on to treat of prayer, He leaves the word of double meaning, and employs one which only means to make request (aiteo), “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask (aiteo) the Father in my name, he will give it you.” So that when the Lord said, “In that day ye shall ask me nothing,” He was not forbidding prayer to Himself, but informing them that in a day soon to come they would no longer be interrogating Him. He, indeed, would not be here to be inquired of; He would be at the Father’s right hand, and the Holy Spirit would be here to guide them into all truth. This verse therefore may safely be said to give no countenance to the view that prayer may not be made to the Lord Jesus.
Not only, however, does this scripture furnish no objection against prayer to the Lord, but we have elsewhere in scripture the highest positive authority for it, namely, Stephen, and the apostle Paul.
“And they stoned Stephen calling upon, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge” (Acts 7:59, 6059And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:59‑60)).
And the apostle Paul tells us, “There was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me” (2 Cor. 12:7, 87And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 8For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. (2 Corinthians 12:7‑8)). Besides this there are prayers to which Paul gives utterance in the course of his epistles; and these are addressed both to the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, “Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way unto you: and the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men” (1 Thess. 3:11, 1211Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. 12And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: (1 Thessalonians 3:11‑12), R.V.). Again, “Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father which loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and stablish you in every good word and work” (2 Thess. 2:16, 1716Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, 17Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work. (2 Thessalonians 2:16‑17), R.V.). Once again, “And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ” (2 Thess. 3:55And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ. (2 Thessalonians 3:5), R. V.).
E. J. T.