Ask And Receive
Jesus made it clear that if we will ask Him for what we want then we will receive it. This is a very simple principle that is twisted and abused today by false teachers. To be able to ask God for things and receive them, we have to meet the following requirements.
When we ask, we must ask in faith, believing that God can and will provide for us. Otherwise, we will not receive anything from Him.
If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer. (Matt 21:22)
But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. (James 1:6, 7)
We must ask in Jesus’ name. This does not mean that we add “In Jesus’ name we pray” to the end of our prayers. To ask in someone else’s name is to act as their representative. As a result, we have to ask for what they would ask for themselves. To pray in Jesus’ name means to ask what He would ask Himself.
Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy. (John 16:24)
We must live our lives in total dependence on Jesus, filling our hearts and minds with His teaching. Only when we live this way will we know how to ask in His name.
But if you stay joined to me and my words remain in you, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted! (John 15:7)
We actually have to ask. If we don’t ask, God is not going to give us many things He wants us to have. (James 4:2)
We have to ask unselfishly. God is under no obligation to give us our sinful, self-centered desires.
What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Isn’t it the whole army of evil desires at war within you? You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous for what others have, and you can’t possess it, so you fight and quarrel to take it away from them. And yet the reason you don’t have what you want is that you don’t ask God for it. And even when you do ask, you don’t get it because your whole motive is wrong–you want only what will give you pleasure. You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with this world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again, that if your aim is to enjoy this world, you can’t be a friend of God. What do you think the Scriptures mean when they say that the Holy Spirit, whom God has placed within us, jealously longs for us to be faithful? He gives us more and more strength to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say, “God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favor to the humble.” So humble yourselves before God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you. Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. (James 4:1-8a, NLT)
