If Jesus gave us the Lord's prayer as an example...?

To ask in Jesus' name is to call upon his authority as the Son of God.

Luke 14:13-14: "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."

Thus, for Rick Warren to cite Jesus' name would mean that he would be asking for God's blessing in an effectual way, the only way pleasing to God. However, two caveats:

1. Simply saying Jesus' name or claiming his authority is not sufficient; his name is no magic incantation:

Matt 7:21-23: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

2. The church has always prayed in the name of the Trinity--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Cheers,

Bruce

Pure politics. Nothing to do with faith. As an Atheist I am rather disgusted by the entire Rev.Write debacle.

And this is why Christians are the biggest hypocrites on earth.

I Don't know Dierdre. The reason Jesus name is not a part of the Lords prayer is because it is Jesus saying the Lords prayer, therefor it is called "The Lords Prayer". If I were to ask my neighbor for a half inch socket I wouldn't ask for it in Kent's name. I'm Kent but if I was asking for it for Bill down the street I would mention Bills name , "As in Bill needs a 1/2 ' socket. I don't think I should get involved in other peoples prayers. I have a hard enough time remembering to say my own, I don't think anyone else should either. A prayer is a very personal thing and may be said in different ways. Its talking to God. Jesus gave us the Lords Prayer as an example, not a script. Happy New Year, God bless everyone in 2009.

Love Kent

Evangelicals are not followers of the Sermon on the Mount... they are followers of Paul/Saul, who terrorized the first Christians and then after Christ was gone, went on to proclaim his own Apostleship.

If it all sounds a bit confusing, this will sort the whole thing out. http://gospelenigma.com/

And thanks for this very bright question. You are quite alert to pick up on a point like this. Keep up the good work.

I think we should pray in the name of Christ, not Jesus, as the demons called Him, "Jesus" while Christ lived on earth as a sign of disrespect.

His disciples and other followers referred to Him as "Master" and "Rabbi" as a sign of respect and authority.

I don't think his disciples ever referred to Christ as Jesus,not in the bible, that I know of.

If I am wrong, please give bible references, as I would like to know this.

You're missing the point. He should have the right to observe his religious practices as guaranteed in the first amendment. Personally, I have deep-seated objections to the entire basis of his faith - but he has a right to pray in whatever name he chooses.

There are other places in the Bible where the term is used, and Christian tradition has always dictated that since Christ is the supreme intercessor between God and man, that all prayer must be through Jesus, or in Jesus' name. However, other words express the same meaning, and these words are not necessary, as long as the prayer is directed to Jesus. For example, many also say "Through Christ our Lord."

God bless and Happy New Year

Barack says he's a Christian. So, if he wants a Christian prayer with Jesus or anything else in it, then he should be able to have it. It's HIS inauguration, right.

Their objections are purely political.

They tend to proclaim that their objections are about belief and faith, but watch their actions: it's all about pushing their opinions and dogma onto the rest of us.