John 14:12 - Meaning and Application

The disciples were deeply grieved at the thought of losing their Master, and they were also anxious about themselves. While Jesus was with them, he supported them, encouraged them, and kept them steady. If he left, they felt they would be like sheep without a shepherd, easy prey for anyone who wanted to attack them.

To calm these fears, Christ assures them that they will be given enough power to stand firm. Since Christ has all power, his followers will receive great power in his name, both in heaven and on earth. He first speaks of great power on earth (John 14:12): “Whoever believes in me, as I know you do, will do the works I do.” This does not weaken Christ’s earlier proof that his works showed he was one with the Father. Rather, it strengthens it, because the miracles the apostles performed were done in his name and through faith in him. That shows his power more clearly, since he not only worked miracles himself, but also gave others power to do them.

He tells them two things. First, they will be enabled to do the same kinds of works he had done, and with greater fullness than when he first sent them out (Matthew 10:8). Did Christ heal the sick, cleanse lepers, and raise the dead? So would they. Did he persuade sinners and draw crowds to himself? So would they. Even though he was leaving, the work would not stop or fail, but would continue strongly and successfully. In that sense, it is still going on.

Second, they would do greater works than these. In the realm of nature, they would perform greater miracles. No miracle is small, but some seem greater to us than others. Christ healed with the hem of his garment, but Peter healed with his shadow (Acts 5:15), and Paul with handkerchiefs that had touched him (Acts 19:12). Christ worked miracles for two or three years in one nation, but his followers worked miracles in his name for many ages and in many lands. If there had been need, the prayer of faith could even have removed mountains.

In the realm of grace, they would win greater victories through the gospel than had been seen while Christ was on earth. In truth, the fact that so much of the world was brought to Christ despite such outward weakness was the greatest miracle of all. This likely points especially to the gift of tongues. That was the immediate result of the Spirit being poured out, a lasting miracle in the mind, where words are formed. It served the glorious purpose of spreading the gospel to all nations in their own language. It was a greater sign to unbelievers (1 Corinthians 14:22), and it was more powerful for persuading them than any other miracle.

Christ gives the reason for this: “because I go to my Father.” First, because he was leaving, they would need this power so the work would not suffer in his absence. Second, because he was going to the Father, he would be in a position to give them this power, since he would send the Comforter, from whom they would receive power (Acts 1:8). The mighty works they did in Christ’s name were part of the glory of his exalted state after he ascended on high (Ephesians 4:8).

Christ also speaks of great power in heaven: “Whatever you ask, I will do” (John 14:13, John 14:14). As Israel was a prince with God, so these disciples would do mighty works because they had such a close interest in Christ, and he in the Father.

Notice first the way they would keep communion with him and receive power from him after he went to the Father, by prayer. When dear friends must be separated, they make arrangements to keep in touch. In the same way, when Christ was going to his Father, he told his disciples how they could write to him at any time and send their requests safely, without fear of them getting lost. “Let me hear from you by prayer, the prayer of faith, and you will hear from me by the Spirit.” This was the old way of speaking with heaven ever since people began to call on the name of the Lord, but Christ’s death has opened it wider, and it is still open to us.

Here humility is required: “You shall ask.” Even though they had given up everything for Christ, they could not demand anything from him as a right. They must come as humble beggars, or they would starve and perish. Yet there is also wide freedom here: “Ask anything,” anything that is good and fitting for you. Ask for help in your work, for wise words, for protection from enemies, for power to work miracles when needed, for success in ministry and the conversion of souls, for guidance, and for defense. Different needs will arise, but all of them may come before the throne of grace.

They must present their requests in Christ’s name. To ask in Christ’s name means, first, to rely on his merit and intercession, and to depend on that plea. Old Testament believers looked toward this when they prayed for the Lord’s sake (Daniel 9:17) and for the sake of the anointed one (Psalm 84:9). The gospel gives a clearer view of Christ’s mediation, which is Christ’s role as the one who brings us to God, so we can more openly ask in his name. When Christ taught the Lord’s Prayer, this was not included, because the disciples did not yet fully understand this truth. They understood it better later, after the Spirit was given. If we ask in our own name, we cannot expect success, because as strangers we have no name in heaven, and as sinners we have a bad name there. But Christ’s name is good, known in heaven, and precious there.

Second, to ask in his name means to seek his glory and make that our highest purpose in prayer. Their prayers would succeed: “Whatever you ask, that I will do” (John 14:13). And again, “I will do it” (John 14:14). They could be sure of this. He would not merely see that it was done or give orders for it to be done. He would do it, because he has not only the standing of an intercessor, but also the power of a sovereign King who sits at the right hand of God, the place of action, and rules all things in God’s kingdom. By faith in his name, we may receive whatever we truly need and rightly ask for.

The reason their prayers would succeed so well is that the Father may be glorified in the Son. This is the goal they should keep before them in asking. All our desires and prayers should come together here as their center. Everything must be aimed at this, that God in Christ may be honored in our service and in our salvation. “Hallowed be your name” is an answered prayer, and it comes first because, if the heart is sincere here, it in a sense dedicates all the other requests too.

Christ gives these gifts with this aim, and he will do what they ask for this reason, so that the Father’s glory in the Son may be made known. God’s wisdom, power, and goodness were shown in the Redeemer when, by power given from him and used in his name and service, his apostles and ministers were able to do such great things. This was seen both in the proofs of their teaching and in the success of their work.