Is It Biblical to Pray to Jesus?

Dr. Israel Cordoves, Jr.

Yes. Five times in the New Testament we find prayers addressed directly to Jesus.

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1. Stephen at His Death

“As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ He fell to his knees, shouting, ‘Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!’ And with that, he died.” (Acts 7:59–60, NLT)

Stephen’s final moments are among the clearest examples of direct prayer to Jesus in the New Testament. As the first Christian martyr, he entrusted his spirit into the hands of Christ, echoing the words of Jesus on the cross: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (Luke 23:46).

By addressing Jesus with the petition, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit,” Stephen openly acknowledged the divine authority of Christ over life, death, and eternity. Furthermore, his cry, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin,” mirrored Jesus’ intercession for His executioners in Luke 23:34: “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”

Stephen bore witness not only through his words but also through his prayer, affirming the central Christian truth that Jesus is both Savior and God—the One who receives the souls of the faithful and intercedes on their behalf.

2. Paul and the 'Thorn in the Flesh'

“Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, ‘My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.’ So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.” (2 Corinthians 12:8–9, NLT)

In this passage, Paul recounts his persistent prayer concerning the mysterious “thorn in the flesh,” a source of great suffering and weakness. Three times he pleaded with “the Lord” to remove it, and the context makes clear that this “Lord” is the risen Christ.

The response Paul received was not silence but a direct word from Jesus Himself: “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” This reveals that prayer is not merely ritual but an active dialogue in which the living Christ personally answers His servant.

Theologically, this text demonstrates that prayer to Christ was an essential part of Paul’s spirituality. He did not hesitate to bring his deepest struggles directly to the Lord Jesus, showing that prayer to Him was both proper and effective.

3. The Church Calls on the Name of Jesus

“I am writing to God’s church in Corinth, to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.” (1 Corinthians 1:2, NLT)

In this greeting, Paul defines the church not only as a local community but as a universal people marked by one distinctive trait: calling on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This expression comes from the Old Testament, where “calling on the name of the Lord” (Yahweh) meant crying out to God in prayer, worship, and dependence (cf. Genesis 4:26; Joel 2:32). Paul applies this sacred language—reserved for God—to Jesus, showing that the early church recognized Him as true God, worthy of being invoked.

Praying to Jesus, therefore, was not marginal but a defining mark of Christian identity. To be a believer meant to belong to those who called upon, worshiped, and sought help directly from the risen Lord. As Larry Hurtado observes, this usage reflects the “devotion to Christ” that characterized Christianity from its very beginning. Craig Keener adds that invoking Jesus was integrated into both personal life and public liturgy, especially in baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

4. The Prayer 'Maranatha'

“If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed. Our Lord, come!” (1 Corinthians 16:22, NLT)

Maranatha is an Aramaic term (מָרַנָא תָּא or מָרַנְאֲתָא) that appears in 1 Corinthians 16:22. It can be translated in two ways, depending on how it is divided:

- “The Lord comes!” (maran atha) — a declaration of faith and hope in Christ’s second coming.
- “Come, our Lord!” (marana tha) — a prayer addressed directly to Jesus.

Both translations reflect the spirit of the early church: the first proclaims the imminence of Christ’s return as a confession of hope, while the second expresses the heartfelt prayer of believers longing for His coming (cf. Revelation 22:20: “Amen; yes, come, Lord Jesus”).

That this Aramaic phrase is preserved within a Greek text suggests it was a liturgical formula used in the worship of the early church, perhaps in the Lord’s Supper. It shows that from the beginning, Christians prayed directly to Christ, acknowledging Him as divine Lord and awaiting His glorious manifestation.

5. The Last Prayer in the Bible Is Addressed to Jesus

“He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon!’ Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20, NLT)

Revelation 22:20 contains the last prayer in the Bible, and it is directed to Jesus. After Jesus affirms His imminent return—“Yes, I am coming soon”—the church responds: “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!”

This is not merely a doctrinal statement but a petition, an invocation directed to Christ Himself. The vocative form “Come” makes clear that this is prayer.

Theologically, this verse reveals the heart of Christian hope: believers not only confess Christ’s return but also pray directly to Him, acknowledging Him as Lord, Redeemer, and the ultimate fulfillment of history.