ADDENDUM

After the sermon, The Power of Prayer in Healing and Faith, many asked the question, “Does the Bible teach that Christians should not pray to Jesus?”

For clarification, the following is my response to that question.  

Does the Bible Teach That Christians Should Pray to God and Not Jesus?

In the Old Testament, prayers were directed to “The LORD” which always refers to the Godhead, but the New Testament introduces prayers to Jesus, reflecting the fuller revelation of the Trinity. The Bible does not explicitly teach in the New Testament that Christians should pray solely to God the Father to the exclusion of Jesus. Instead, it presents a nuanced view. From a Trinitarian viewpoint, praying to Jesus is considered praying to God because Jesus is divine. This belief underpins varied Christian practices where some pray directly to Jesus or the Holy Spirit, while others focus on praying to the Father through Jesus’ mediation. Therefore, prayer is to the Triune God. All prayer should be directed to our triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Since they are one, praying to one member of the Trinity is prayer to all. This is evidenced by…

…Prayers to the Father (Psalm 5:2), where the psalmist cries, “Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.” Also, Jesus taught His disciples to pray to the Father in the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4). 

…Prayers to Jesus, like Stephen’s prayer during his martyrdom, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59), and Paul’s benedictions like in 2 Corinthians 13:14. 

A Scholarly Insight: Wayne Grudem in “Bible Doctrine” notes that while most New Testament prayers are to the Father, praying directly to Jesus is biblically supported due to His role in the Trinity.

…Praying in Jesus’ name, as instructed in  5:20 and John 15:16; 16:23, where Jesus promises that requests made in His name will be granted. In John 14:6 Jesus states, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,” emphasizing Jesus’ mediation but not excluding direct prayer to Him.

In addition, the Holy Spirit aids our prayers when we don’t know what to ask (Romans 8:26; Jude 20), suggesting a prayer framework where we pray to the Father, through the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit.

In conclusion, the Bible does not advocate against praying to Jesus; rather, it supports the practice within the context of the Trinitarian doctrine, where praying to Jesus is seen as an extension of praying to God. There’s no clear biblical prohibition against this, allowing for a diversity of prayer practices across Christian traditions.