Q. Would you mind sharing your knowledge of God's word on just how we relate to Jesus during the time we are living? I believe conservative Christians avoid being a cult type "Jesus person" and avoid Him completely except for a closing to prayers. Do we only talk thru Him as our mediator or do we also talk to Him directly? I don't want to ignore Him but I don't want to assume a relationship that is in any way disrespectful. - JWW.
- - answer page #6

“Now let us have a little talk with Jesus
Let us tell Him all about our troubles
He will hear our faintest cry, He will answer by and by
And when you feel a little prayer wheel turnin'
And you will know a little fire is burnin'
Find a little talk with Jesus makes it right” - a gospel music song by Cleavant Derricks and recorded by many notable artists

Do all your prayers begin with “Heavenly Father” or “Our Father” or “Dear Father” and end with “In Jesus’ name. Amen”? Does it make you uncomfortable to hear a prayer led that does not mention the Jesus ending? What if it addressed “Lord Jesus”?

The following sections are a result of restudying the question by reading over 20 articles of which I will give references. The named denominational views are used as representative and are based on related articles plus my own college studies (in addition, I have personally studied with the Adventists and Knights of Columbus). Like many of you I have engaged in my home some JW with their New World Translation: e.g., John 1:1 " ... and the Word was a god." ^xiii [see endnote for my article on John 1:1]. Although I've had Mormons in my classes, I have not studied the Smith's revelation. I trust I have properly represented the various views sufficiently for this study.

IN THREE SECTIONS
1. Unbelievers (of deity)
2. Believers of deity
3. Those that pray to Him.

*definition for the purpose of this article-- UNBELIEVER: "DOESN’T BELIEVE IN THE DEITY OF JESUS."

Many of us grew up beginning our prayers with “Our Father” and ending them with “in Jesus’ name. Amen.” So that, it was odd as adults to hear prayers by those such as military chaplains praying “God, … Amen.” Nothing about Jesus. Actually though in classes in some schools in the South where the Lord’s Prayer was recited, there never was anything about Jesus. Even the 10 commandments as displayed did not say anything about Jesus. In schools, with the exception of Christmas and maybe Easter, the name of Jesus was never mentioned.

Historically non-Christian religions have prayed to a pantheon of gods, dead relatives, “saints”, and spirits. On the other hand, in western Christendom, Roman Catholics are taught to pray in addition to God and Jesus, to Mary and various proclaimed “saints.”ⁱ Why do not all “Christian religions” pray to Jesus?

A. ANTI-DEITY OF JESUS. Prayer by its chief meaningⁱⁱ is considered as worship. There are those that believe that Jesus is not God. Hence, they will not worship Him by praying to Him. Examples:

1. Jehovah Witnesses teach that Jesus is not God. “Jesus is not Almighty God, and only God is to be worshipped.” In their view, “According to the Scriptures, God and Jesus are not equal.”ⁱⁱⁱ To JW it is Idolatry to pray to Jesus.^iv They have conveniently quoted from the British New Testament scholar James Dunn’s Did the First Christians Worship Jesus?: “In no case in the New Testament is there talk of offering cultic worship to Jesus.”^v And some KJV verses they use are Colossians 1:3 and Ephesians 5:20 where Paul encouraged others to pray to the ‘“God and Father for everything”—but, of course, in Jesus’ name —Colossians 3:17.’ Like Arianism^vi they say that we cannot pray to Jesus because He is not God. The answer would be in John 20:28, “And Thomas (an apostle) answered and said unto him [Jesus], My Lord and my God.”

2. Seventh-Day Adventist. The Adventists taught me many years ago many of the same dogmas that are heralded by the JW. One basic tenet was that Jesus was Michael the Arch-Angel. One of the angels of Revelation 17:1 told John to not worship him (Revelation 19:9).

The answer to this is that the Scriptures deny that Jesus is an angel. “For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee?” (Hebrews 1:5). “And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him” (Hebrews 1:6). Jesus created the universe, including the angels in Heaven: "For by him [Jesus] all things were created: Things in Heaven and on Earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him” (Colossians 1:16).^vii

3. The Mormons (Latter Day Saints). Similarly, the Mormons do not believe in the deity of Jesus. “Mormons believe that all men and women ever to be born, including Jesus Christ, lived with God as His spirit children before this life.”^viii They specifically teach that we are to only pray to God, the Father. Their authority is chiefly in the new modern revelations. “Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name” (their Bible: 3 Nephi, The Book of Nephi). An angel taught Joseph Smith (19^th century), “From the day of Adam, through all ages, however, the true order of prayer has been to ‘call upon God in the name of the Son.’” (their Bible: Moses 5:8). "Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name" (3 Nephi 18:19-20). “Latter-day Saints do not pray directly to Jesus because we would be ignoring the Lord's specific instructions cited above.”

My answer is: the “new scriptures” of Joseph Smith is contrary to such passages in the NT as Galatians 1:8ff: “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” The original Scriptures are the Word received not from an angel (2 Timothy 3:16,17) but from the Holy Spirit through the chosen apostles: “As it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit” (Ephesians 3:5).

As stated above, to anyone of this faith then, prior to His birth, Jesus lived with God as simply a “spirit child” along with every other human yet to be born. Our salvation would then be predicated upon the innocence of Jesus’ perfect life and not His deity. But in this is true, Jesus did not need to die! For there are millions of innocent babies killed throughout history. ^xiv Therefore this doctrine is a lie for “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son.” An innocent life is not sufficient for the redemption of mankind, but the sacrifice of God in the flesh provides salvation to all:

“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory” (1 Timothy 3:16). Who was Jesus? “God manifested in the flesh.” He is God, the Son.

B. LORD’S PRAYER. It seems that most, if not all, of the faiths in Christendom that object to praying to Jesus have this one thing in common: the Lord’s Prayer is used as proof text.^ix A quote that criticizes praying to Jesus: “Some people in the denominations and even in the Church of Christ pray to Jesus Christ the Son. Matthew 6:9-13 [THE LORD’S PRAYER-gw] leaves no room to make such error. For one to misunderstand this passage, he shows no desire to understand the scriptures.”^x

My answer: The Lord’s Prayer was given before the cross and hence was under and limited to the Mosaic era. In addition, we have pointed out that this was a standard instructive tool of the FIRST CENTURY OT rabbis. GW: Please Go to My previous articles on the Lord’s Prayer.^xi

Wayne Jackson uses The Expansion Principle^xii of interpretation to explain the inadequacy of the Lord’s Prayer for Christians but I suggest rather that the Lord’s Prayer is under a different system of governance which Jesus came to fulfil (Matthew 5:17). The prayer model is more compatible with the Old Testament prayers than with the New; e.g., David’s prayer in 1 Chronicles 29:10ff.

These Believers believe that “JESUS COMMANDS US TO NOT ASK HIM ANYTHING AFTER THE CROSS” (John 14-16).

i https://biblestudyforcatholics.com/catholics-pray-mary-saints/

ii https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prayer

iii Chapter 4 of the book What Does the Bible Really Teach? published by Jehovah’s Witnesses. https://www.jw.org/en/publications/books/bible-teach/who-is-jesus-christ. 4/20/2018.

iv http://www.secularrights.com/idolatrytopraytojesus.html

v Did the First Christians Worship Jesus? The New Testament Evidence. by James D. G. Dunn

vi Arian was the adversary of the trinitarian view in the fourth century.

vii https://www.wake-up.org/trinity/jesus-existence-before-he-came-to-earth.html https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/503-revelation-22-8-9-was-christ-an-angel

viii https://www.lds.org.uk/what-mormons-believe-about-jesus-christ

ix Prooftexting is the practice of using isolated, out-of-context quotations from a document to establish a proposition in eisegesis. Such quotes may not accurately reflect the original intent of the author, and a document quoted in such a manner, when read as a whole, may not support the proposition for which it was cited

x http://www.creedrehearsal.com/index.php/creed-busters/praying-to-jesus

xi http://biblestudylessons.net/articles/relateJesus/lordsPrayer4.html;

http://biblestudylessons.net/articles/relateJesus/lordsPrayer5.html.

xii An interpretive principle which suggests that in related topical contexts, one passage may expand upon another.

xiii My article: "Jesus Is Not A Demigod." http://biblestudylessons.net/articles/02_26_15THE.html.

xiv A point made in a sermon by Gene Hill.

Relating To Our Lord #6

v Did the First Christians Worship Jesus? The New Testament Evidence. by James D. G. Dunn