This post begins a mini series on prayer. As I touched on in my previous post, prayer is an issue for me sometimes because I don't always know how to approach it. What I am certain of is that we are commanded to pray, Jesus prayed, and I have experienced many personal "answers" to prayer. Today we will be looking at praying in faith and what that means. We've all been to a church that has shared a story of someone's healing miracle. Someone had cancer and it disappeared, someone couldn't walk but then they could, someone was told they had 2 weeks to live and they live 12 more years. We have all been encouraged by these testimonies but I'm sure we have also been left with many questions. Why didn't God heal me? Is it God's will to heal everyone? Should I stop all outside treatment and wait for God's miraculous healing? What are we guaranteed in prayer?
My dad became a paraplegic when he was nearly 20 years old. He is now considered a quadriplegic as he has lost more and more feeling and dexterity over the years. During a time of immense sadness and hardship after my dad's accident, his family members began asking his parents if they were really praying hard enough. They challenged that if they were and if they had more faith, that my dad would be able to walk again. Turns out, after all of these years, it was actually them not praying hard enough that caused my dad not to be healed, not that it wasn't God's will for him to be. Who knew we had such power? Sarcasm aside, this is a view that is common in many churches. God desires healing for all and any lack of healing is due to lack of faith. But is this biblical? There are so many examples of God's children taking His Word out of context and placing a lot of emphasis on not praying hard enough instead of learning how to understand prayer. I certainly don't understand all about prayer yet but I do know that not everything we ask for is a "yes" even if we ask for it with "faith". Let's take a look at that verse that so many love to quote when talking about the power of prayer: "And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith." Matthew 21:22. At face value, many would be convinced that we can literally receive everything we could ask if we just believe it enough. But is it true? This post was inspired by a tremendous sermon by Alistair Begg who spoke on this exact topic: what prayer guarantees. He argues that the only things we know we are guaranteed in prayer when we ask are the promises of God and the ability to obey His commands. He goes on to explain that the mention of the word "faith" refers to believing in those promises of God. So, the meaning of Matthew 21:22 would mean something closer to "Whatever you ask for in prayer, you will receive if you are praying in accordance to God's promises in which you have faith." This understanding certainly lines up with and is clarified by another passage in 1 John 5:14 "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us." What is the will of God? For us to obey Him (love Him, love others) and to have hope and faith in His promises. So then, what are some examples of things we are guaranteed of when we pray? Here are just a few: Guaranteed a way out: "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it." 1 Corinthians 10:14 Forgiveness of sins: “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you." Matthew 6:14 Peace in anxious times: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 That all things work for good: "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 Comfort during hard times: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 Provision of our needs, of which only He is certain: "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19 Old us is gone: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17 These are just some examples and there are many more. But we can be certain that when we pray these things, they will be answered because they are part of God's will! He promised us them so we can boldly pray and receive them by faith. Other things that we can pray by faith, being certain we will receive? The ability to obey God's commands. In 1 Corinthians 10:14, we are promised a way out of sin. That means we are offered the ability to not sin, which therefore means we can be given the grace to do the opposite of sin. Just remember, when we pray for certain virtues that are promised to us (patience, humility, etc) because of grace through the Holy Spirit, it doesn't always mean that we won't have to work for those virtues. Like I mentioned in " Learning the Lesson the First Time", simply praying "God give me patience" usually isn't how we get patience. We pray that prayer and then we go into "practice" mode, where we will likely be granted many trying opportunities to rely on Christ's strength to remain patient. So, are we only allowed to pray God's promises and commands? No! We are certainly allowed to intercede and petition to the Lord other things that are on our hearts. In fact, we are told to pray about everything (see above Philippians 4:6-7)! We just may not be guaranteed our way in those requests. Those are up to God and His perfect will. This should not discourage us from asking the Lord for things, I believe He often wants to bless His children, in His perfect timing! “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 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 the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:11-13. Hopefully, this perspective on prayer is as helpful to you as it was to me. God bless!
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About Me:Hello! I'm Roxy. Enjoy reading my thoughts as I strive to understand God's character and truth and admonish it faithfully to His church. Please email at [email protected] with inquiries. Archives
September 2018
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