Yesterday I shared that we can bask in the reality of, and be confident, our God hears us when we pray. Let’s look at the portion of Scripture again:
“I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.” (1 John 5:11-15, NLT)
At first glance, it would seem that we can ask God for whatever we want according to our will and He will do as we please. But we do not serve a God who pleases man or indulges man his every request. He is not a vending machine by which we put our prayer in and out comes our desire.
So what are we to glean from these verses?
Hidden back in 1 John 3, are some insights into receiving from God. And they all pertain to us, those who are asking:
- Belief. We are to be a people who live believing in the name of Jesus (verse 23).
- Love. Our lives are to be such that love is on display – love of God and of each other (verse 23).
- Obedience. Our lives are to be marked by obedience to God (verse 24) and living in such a way that pleases Him.
- Abiding in Him. We are to be abiding in Him, His Words in us and us with Him (verse 24). A constant reciprocal relationship.
Kelly Minter, in her study “What Love Is” further explains prayer:
Asking in Jesus’ name doesn’t mean a carte blanche request for whatever we want. But I believe it means far more than what most of us claim it to mean.
Ask in His name. Ask according to His will. Delight Him with your obedience. Have confidence that He hears you. And see what He will do.
May we not be afraid to come with boldness and a confidence that He will hear us. May we be a people, deeply marked by a love and belief in our Lord, daring to ask Him for more.
Let’s be confident as we ask.
And see what He will do!
Today I am joining … Three Word Wednesday and Coffee For Your Heart and Tell His Story .
Love this! I think many times we are afraid to truly ask for our hearts desire. I love the charge to come with boldness in faith believing.
Micah, may we overcome our fear to ask. I want to come boldly, asking, knowing that no matter His answer – it will be for my good.
If you ask anything in My Name I will give it…
I’ve always interpreted that to mean…IF I am going to Jesus’ name to it? Why would I want anything OTHER than what He wants for me!
xo
I love that idea of delighting God with our obedience. So often we don’t receive merely because we don’t ask. He wants to hear from us, He wants to hear our hearts.
Visiting from #TellHisStory
Becky, isn’t that eye opening? We delight Him with our obedience to come boldly and ask. May we rest assured His response will always be for our good. Blessings!
So good to rub shoulders with you today, Joanne. 1 John is a favorite of all of us, isn’t it.
So much of His love spilling out and over, filling our hearts with grace and truth.
Thank you, Linda, and likewise.
Thanks for this encouragement to come boldly and confidently to God. I think it’s easy to hold back sometimes but we can always have confidence in who he is and that he hears us.
It’s true, Lesley. At times, I think I hold back in fear or worry that the answer may not be what I want to hear. Yet the truth is, no matter His answer, it will be good and right and for our good.
I love that quote from Kelly Minter. I’ve heard some about that study and it sure sounds like a good one. Thanks for linking up at #ThreeWordWednesday.
I have been working slowing through “What Love Is” and savoring each day’s lesson. I love her studies and am excited about the new one – “All Things New”.