Praying “in Jesus’ name” means more than closing a prayer with that phrase. Indeed, mentioning “in Jesus’ name” at the end of every prayer is never a requirement.When the Bible tells us to pray in Jesus’ name (Jn. 16:23-24), it means first and foremost that we must be mindful of the fact that we are able to approach the holy throne of the Father only through the mediation of our Savior Jesus and by virtue of our union with Him (Jn. 14:6; 2 Cor. 5:19; Eph. 1:3; Heb. 4:16); and, secondly, that our prayers must always be in line with the will of Christ (Jn. 15:7). Since Jesus is our Lord, His priorities must be our priorities, and Christ's main priority is summarized in this way:
"Our Father in heaven,All our subsequent supplications must be consistent with and subservient to this overarching priority. Our requests must be to the glory (hollowing) of God's name and for the propagation of the Kingdom of Jesus on earth as it is in heaven. We must therefore stop making self-serving requests sealed by superstitious mantras like “I declare in Jesus’ name!” To pray in Jesus’ name is to subject your will to Christ, not Christ's to yours. This is how we truly pray “in Jesus’ name", and there's a promise attached to it:
Hollowed be your name.
May your kingdom come,
And your will be done
On earth as it is in Heaven..."
"If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it." (Jn. 14:14)
