I’m sure there are many Christians who are asking this question. We pray, we ask, we come in faith, we claim…but there are times that God does not grant what we ask from Him. Sadly this has lead to a lack of faith, a wrong understanding of faith, or even backsliding.
Why don’t we receive everything that we ask for, when there are verses in the Bible that tell us that we will, as long as we believe?
Mark 11:23-24 "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
1 John 3:21-22 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.
There are many who have prayed and have not received from the Lord. Their usual question is “did I not pray hard enough?”. “Did I not show or have enough faith for God to answer my prayer?”.
Now, lest we turn our God into a “genie” in a magic lamp, it is important for us to understand Scripture, like those above, and also other Scripture that compliment what God is telling us. Sadly, many have diluted God into a “genie” without realizing it – that if we just say the right prayer, use the right words, the Lord will come and grant us what we wish. There is more to prayer, more to faith, than just claiming a verse of Scripture.
FAITH IN GOD, NOT FAITH FOR THINGS
"I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him”. Many have misapplied this verse and have recklessly gone out and tried to do something impossible without seeking God’s wisdom. Our Lord here is talking about our approach to God. We must come to God with faith. Yes, faith is important. But it is not faith FOR something, but faith IN Someone that is important. We must believe that God can move mountains, and not just God will let us move a mountain. Those are two different things.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
BELIEVING HE EXISTS…BELIEVING HE REWARDS
Here faith is defined, explained, so that we may know how to approach God. First, we must believe THAT HE EXISTS. We cannot come to God with a “I’m not sure if you’re really there…” attitude, or “My parents said, or my pastor said…” belief. God answers prayer because we, personally, from our heart, truly believe that He is alive, real, and that He does answer prayer. So faith is important. We should have faith, but it is faith in Him that is our foundation, and not just faith for something to be given or done in our life.
Many Christians exercise their faith simply to get things, or to get things done. Faith is more than that. Faith is a lifestyle. It is like our heart that is connected to every part of our body through the veins. Faith is connected to everything we are, everything we do, everything we desire. Because we believe He exists, it is He who give us life. In Him we live, we move and have our being. That’s the faith God looks for.
And look at the second part: “…and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him”. Notice, God rewards those who EARNESTLY SEEK HIM, not those who earnestly seek THINGS.
Now why is this essential? Because a Christian who earnestly seeks Him, and not what He gives, is someone who has the right foundation, the right inspiration for life and for prayer. A Christian should not be consumed with how he lives, with what he has or doesn’t have, in his riches on earth, in material things, or in relationships. What should consume a Christian is his relationship with God in Jesus Christ. He earnestly seeks Him.
Now, someone who seeks only God can be assured that he will receive what he asks. Why? Because his heart is right. It is set on the right foundation, it is focused on the right goal, it seeks the right treasure. No wonder Jesus Himself will assure us that whatever we ask we will receive, as long as we come with the right heart.
When a Christian is only concerned about what he will get, what he will receive, there is a strong tendency to ask for the wrong things. Why? Because he is not seeking God, he is seeking what he wants from God. And when that happens our hearts may deceive us. This is why there are some things that we may be asking for that God may not be granting. It could be His way of telling us that it will not be right for us.
But when our hearts are right with the Lord, earnestly seeking Him, we ask for what is His will. This is when the Lord grants anything that we ask!
We put our faith in God, not only that He answers prayer, but we also put our faith in His wisdom, that He knows better than us, that He knows what is good for us.
Matthew 7:9-11 "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
Our Father in heaven gives GOOD gifts to those who ask Him. If we seek Him and walk with Him earnestly we have a guard, a check in our hearts, whether we are asking for bread or stone, a fish or a snake. Sometimes we don’t realize that we’re asking for something wrong, bad for us. A right walk and relationship with God is essential to discern those things that are either useless or dangerous for us.
And sometimes we just ask for something that is opposite His will. When we pray for the healing of a loved one who is sick, and God doesn’t answer, and he/she passes away, does this mean that God did not answer our prayer? No. It was just God’s way of telling us that His desire for us to live with Him eternally is greater than our desire to live longer in this earth. It’s His way of reminding us of Eternity, and that this life is not THE life we are to live for. Many times God’s will, His plans, will overrule ours. And we have to trust Him for that.
When we pray for riches, for prosperity, and God doesn’t answer, and just provides what we need day by day, God is just confirming what He taught us in His Word – that we are to seek for our DAILY bread, not “yearly” bread that we can invest so we can have more. He reminds us of the life of contentment, of living not beyond our means, but according to our means, according to what He provides for us day by day.
(to be continued in the next blog)
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