Jesus is our Mediator, Intercessor, Advocate, and Lord. He stands between us and the Father. In no place in the Bible is it recorded that Jesus told His disciples to pray to Him. They were always to pray to the Father in His Name. If we wish to be sure of reaching the throne, we must come according to the rules laid down in the Word of God.
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 to you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
(John 16:23-24)
Notice that Jesus said, “…in that day ye shall ask me nothing.” Jesus said this just before He went away. He was talking about His mediating role at the right hand of the Father when He ascended and was seated.
Another translation reads, “In that day ye shall not pray to me.” Jesus said to ask the Father in His Name. There is no other way to pray.
We can tell Jesus how much we love Him and appreciate Him, but when it comes to praying and asking, we must ask the Father through the Lord Jesus. Ephesians 3:14-15 says, “For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named.”
It is not important what church you belong to, but it is important whose family you belong to.
Many people know about praying to God, but they know nothing about praying to the Father. They don’t sound as if they really know Him. He is God to the world, but Father to me. There is real joy in knowing that the Father will answer our prayers.
Ephesians 5:20 says, “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul is telling us that it is to the Father and not to Jesus that we give thanks. The Name of Jesus is the access to the heart of the Father. When you desire to get an answer, follow the teaching of the Word. Pray to the Father in the Name of Jesus.
If you go to the bank with a check and ask the cashier to cash that check for a friend, you will be asked if you have money on deposit to guarantee it. However, if that check has the name of a person who has an account at that particular bank, there will be no questions asked. We fail in our praying sometimes because our approach is all wrong.
Thank God that Jesus has a standing in heaven. He is the only approach to the Father. Let us use the mighty Name of Jesus that He has given us. He gave us the power of attorney to use His Name. He said, In my name shall they [believers] cast out devils…” (Mark 16:17).
We have a right to use the Name against the devil. We have the right to use that Name to call out demons and bind men’s souls.
Excerpt permission granted by Faith Library Publications
Rev. Hagin served in Christian ministry for nearly 70 years and was known as the "father of the modern faith movement." His teachings and books are filled with vivid stories that show God's power and truth working in his life and the lives of others.
Rev. Hagin was born on Aug. 20, 1917, in McKinney, Texas, a son of the late Lillie Viola Drake Hagin and Jess Hagin.
Rev. Hagin was sickly as a child, suffering from a deformed heart and an incurable blood disease. He was not expected to live and became bedfast at age 15. In April 1933 during a dramatic conversion experience, he reported dying three times in 10 minutes, each time seeing the horrors of hell and then returning to life.
In August of 1934, Rev. Hagin was miraculously healed, raised off a deathbed by the power of God and the revelation of faith in God's Word. Two years later, he preached his first sermon as pastor of a small community church in Roland, Texas.
In 1937, Rev. Hagin was baptized in the Holy Spirit and began ministering in Pentecostal churches. During the next 12 years he pastored five churches in Texas: in the cities of Tom Bean, Farmersville (twice), Talco, Greggton, and Van. In 1949, he began an itinerant ministry as a Bible teacher and evangelist.
During the next 14 years, Jesus appeared to Rev. Hagin eight times in visions that changed the course of his ministry. In 1966, he moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he opened a ministry office. That same year, he taught for the first time on radio—on KSKY in Dallas. In 1967, he began a regular radio broadcast that continues today as Faith Seminar of the Air. Teaching by his son, Rev. Kenneth W. Hagin, is also heard on the program.
In 1968, Rev. Hagin published the first issues of The Word of Faith magazine, which now has a monthly circulation of more than 250,000. The publishing outreach he founded, Faith Library Publications, has circulated more than 65 million copies of books by Rev. Hagin, Rev. Hagin Jr., and several other authors worldwide. Faith Library Publications also has produced more than 9 million audio teaching tapes and CDs.
Other outreaches of Kenneth Hagin Ministries include RHEMA Praise, a weekly television broadcast hosted by Rev. and Mrs. Kenneth W. Hagin; RHEMA Correspondence Bible School; RHEMA Alumni Association; RHEMA Ministerial Association International; RHEMA Supportive Ministries Association; the RHEMA Prayer and Healing Center; and a prison ministry.
In 1974, Rev. Hagin founded RHEMA Bible Training Center USA and in 1976 moved the school and ministry offices to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, where they remain. To date, RHEMA Bible Training Center USA has 23,000 alumni, and RHEMA Bible Training Centers have opened in 13 other nations: Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Peru, Romania, Samoa, Singapore, South Africa, and Thailand. Together, the 14 schools have more than 28,000 graduates worldwide.
RHEMA Bible Church, pastored by Rev. Hagin Jr., began holding services in October of 1985 on the RHEMA campus in Broken Arrow and has since grown to become a thriving congregation with more than 8,000 members.
Rev. Hagin's daughter and son-in-law, Pat Harrison and the late Doyle "Buddy" Harrison, founded Harrison House Publishers in 1975 and Faith Christian Fellowship International Church in 1977. Both organizations are based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Until shortly before his death in September 2003, Rev. Hagin continued to travel and teach throughout the United States and into Canada conducting All Faiths' Crusades and other special meetings.