As we continue on in our series on the Sermon on the Mount, we’ll look at one of the best-known sayings of Jesus: [Matt. 7:7]
“Ask, and it will be given you.
Seek, and you will find.
Knock, and it will be opened for you.”
For the past two weeks we have looked at two different verses that have the potential of being mis-interpreted and mis-applied…this verse is no different.
…First verse was [Matt. 7:1] on judging…do not judge, or you too will be judged.” a verse that has been interpreted to mean we shouldn’t judge other people…but that’s not what Jesus is implying…in fact…just the opposite…Jesus is NOT telling us that we shouldn’t judge…but rather…how to judge…this verse is suggesting there are times when we must make judgements.
The danger of being hesitant in not condemning sinful actions leads us to become morally “wishy-washy” by refusing to make a distinction between those who walk in righteousness and those who do evil.
…Secondly…last week we talked about hogs and dogs [v. 6] …this verse ties back [v. 1] and is a continuation of judging…that we are to practice good discernment in how we ‘judge’ people…and…that we are also to show discernment in who we share the precious things of Christ with.
Because some people clearly prove all they want to do is mock the things of Christ and to argue in hardened unbelief the truths of the Bible.
Therefore…we are not to expose the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who prove themselves to be nothing more than hogs or dogs…continually scoffing and ridiculing Christ…who have no other purpose than to dishonor the gospel of Christ and return to their own evil ways.
We’re not to give them the opportunity to trample the ‘pearls’ of the gospel underfoot…it’s like casting pearls before pigs…they don’t appreciate it…and then it allows them to attack us for proclaiming the truth.
Then there’s today’s verse… “Ask, and it will be given you.” …this verse leads to nothing more than a boat load of disappointments…really…all I have to do is ask and it will be given to me.
I don’t know about you all…but I’ve asked for a lot of things in my life I didn’t get…we’ve all asked for things that we didn’t get…whether it’s for Santa to bring a pony for Christmas…or…asking the boss for a promotion or a raise…or… applying for a scholarship to go to college…we all know what it’s like not to get what we asked for and be disappointed…sounds like life to me.
But…here’s the thing that makes those things a little easier to digest…as long as it has to do with people…I can deal with it…if I’m asking someone for something and don’t get it…OK…they’re only human…people let you down…
BUT…when it comes to God letting you down…well…that’s a different matter… especially after you’ve been led to believe that all you have to do is just ask for anything and expect to receive it.
When you ask God for something really important, and you ask sincerely, believing that God will come through, and he doesn’t—it’s a bitter pill to swallow.
As Christians we have the answer to that dilemma…this falls into the obscured category we like to refer to as unanswered prayer. Here’s how we explain that:
You ask God for something and you don’t get an answer:
…either God didn’t hear you…a possibility
…God chooses not to give you what you asked for…a possibility
…or the answer is, “Not now,” for all intents and purposes it’s the same as, “No.”
Unanswered prayer is one of those ambiguities of faith that’s hard to explain… why someone’s child is not healed…why someone died after being prayed for
And especially in light of our scripture this morning…it gets even more difficult to explain when you pair it with what Jesus told his disciples: (John 15:7; 16:23-24)
“If you remain in me, and my
words remain in you,
you will ask whatever you desire, and it will be done for you.
…Most certainly I tell you, whatever you may ask of the Father in my name,
He will give it to you.
Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full.”
So, we prayerfully ask for all sorts of things…we pray for rain…we pray that it won’t rain…we pray for the safety of our troops…we pray for the health and well-being of our loved ones…we pray for the future of our country…we pray for peace and prosperity for our country…we pray for our church…because scripture tells us
to. pray without ceasing [1 Thess. 5:17]. There’s nothing wrong with that.
BUT…as is often the case in interpreting Scripture there is a disconnect…and it’s always with us…we have watered down Scripture so much that it’s no wonder people are confused…upset…bewildered…about un-answered prayer for a couple reasons.
First…this verse is misunderstood and misused because on the surface, it sounds carte blanche: you can have whatever your heart desires; all you have to do is ask.
Secondly…it’s a reflection of our materialistic nature…it plays on the fantasy that we have an unlimited resource…we can have anything we want…as if, in having ‘it’ will make us happy.
Here’s the key and most Christians will go through their entire life being confused …upset…bewildered because they have never come to the realization that answered prayer is the result of three components.
You cannot have one without the other…the failure of any one of the three will result in your prayers not being heard…or answered…this goes back to the fact that 99% of all promises in the Bible are conditional.
The idea…by itself…that you can ‘ask whatever you desire and it will be done for you’ …that statement by itself…is not Scriptural.
If all you’re going to do is run with that piece of Scripture and claim it as a promise from God that He’s going to answer your prayer…you are going to be sorely disappointed…that’s the importance in understanding / applying these components.
The First Component: you cannot expect God to answer your prayers…or even listen to them if you are out of God’s will…Can’t say that any plainer.
John 15:7 is critical in understanding this statement about being in God’s will, ask whatever you wish…and it shall be done for you” …sounds remotely similar to today’s verse…BUT…John 15:7 actually helps explain Matt. 7:7 here’s how…key to bible translating.
This verse clearly spells out the condition for answered prayer…if you abide in me, and my words abide in you… this is why you can’t take Matt 7:7 by itself and run with…John 15:7 clarifies Matt. 7:7.
When two or more passages are similar but not exactly alike…the clearer one explains the other…the more explicit clarifies the less explicit…comparing Scripture with Scripture we see that John’s account is the more explicit…it give us the reason God answers our prayers.
John’s text has two halves…the first half…is the condition for the second half…there’s an “if-then” connection.
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you then ask…and it shall be done for you” … the condition for successful praying is that we abide in Jesus and His words abide in us.
If you’ve never accepted Jesus as your Savior…asking God for anything…except for forgiveness of sin…is like catching water in a strainer.
If you’re a Christian and you’re living a life in disobedience to God…living in deliberate willful sin…asking God for anything…except for forgiveness of sin… is like catching water in a strainer —do you understand those two conditions–
If you are deficient in either one of these…any verse about asking and receiving does not apply to you.
To be effective in prayer you first need to confess and be cleansed of sins….to have faith…to hold on to God’s promises…live a life that is in God’s will…that’s all part of the first component…that’s living a life that is in God’s will.
But gradually you realize that even this doesn’t always work…I’m doing all these things…but still not seeing results.
You’ve confessed your sins but that didn’t bring what your prayed for to happen …you were full of faith yet God didn’t bring what you prayed for to come to pass …you held firmly on to God’s promise yet the promise also failed to bring what you prayed for to happen.
The problem may not be a matter of dealing with sins or confessing sin…or a lack of faith…or that God’s promises failed you…although those do influence how God deals with our prayers…what may be the issue is the second component to prayer…The Second Component is a matter of asking in accordance with God’s Will.
Man’s highest aim in everything we do should be for one purpose…to bring glory to God [1 Cor. 10:31] …and this includes praying according to His will.
Saying, “God I’m praying for this matter” …OR… “God I’m holding on to Your promises” and no answer comes is maybe because you have missed the entire purpose of what praying is supposed to accomplish.
Need to ask…am I praying according to the will of God? …OK…how can I be sure I am praying according to the will of God?
Here’s what praying in the will of God means…it’s coming to the understanding that your words are the expression of God’s intentions.
True prayer doesn’t express our intention…rather…it’s knowing and expressing God’s intentions about a particular situation through what we say…that’s praying according to the will of God… Confusing??? Here’s how it’s done:
Knowing God’s intentions allows us to participate in God’s Works…does God need our help? No He’s all powerful and in control of everything in His creation.
So why do we need to pray? …because prayer is the means God has ordained for some things to happen…some ‘things’ -deep theological term-happen regardless of our prayers…BUT…some things happen as a result of our prayers.
BUT…for those somethings that happen as a result of prayers…for our prayers to be effectual they must be in accordance with God’s will…in other words…God will not hear any prayer that is outside or contrary to His will.
Example…the prophet Nathan told David “Your son is going to die” [2 Samuel 12:14] …David fasted…and earnestly prayed for seven days for the child to live …the child died…God did not respond to David’s prayer because it was contrary to His will…which had already been revealed through Nathan.
People think that prayer is persuading God to do our will…or trying to make God change his mind…that’s not what prayer is…prayer means asking God’s will to become our will…it is aligning our will with God’s will.
When we make God’s will to be our will…our will…which is actually God’s will…will be done because it is God’s will…and His will is always done…if we can understand this truth, we can avoid a lot of confusion.
Therefore, we can say that prayer is God speaking to us regarding a certain intention…coming out of God passing through us it then becomes our intention after receiving His intention…we convert it into words and utter them back to God in the form of prayer…then God acts on it.
In the process you are the one cooperating with God…this is real prayer…people being united with God and cooperating with Him on earth…allowing Him to express Himself and accomplish His purpose through us…for His glory.
It is then that we can claim
the promise Ask, and it will be given you.
Having established that asking is not just gimme gimme gimme…if we expect to be given what we ask for.
it’s a combination of two of the three conditions 1) living a lifestyle according to God’s will and 2) praying that what occurs will be in God’s will…for God’s glory.
Simply asking for something to be accomplished is not a guarantee it will happen. …this brings us to today’s verse and the third necessary component for prayer.
Wish Bible translators would, where possible…translate the Bible the way it was originally written…it would help us to better understand what Jesus is saying… and cut down on confusion.
Matthew 7:6 does not accurately communicate the third component necessary that Jesus is attempting to convey for answered prayer which is praying with persistence and determination.
First of all…all the verbs… ‘ask’ … ‘seek’ … ‘knock’ are all in the imperative voice…it is a command…Jesus is saying… ‘I’m telling you’ I want you praying… and because it is in the present tense…Jesus is saying it’s something I want you doing every day.
The more correct (abbreviated) translation of Matt. 7:7 is…keep on asking …keep on seeking…keep on knocking…and do it every day.
We should persevere in prayer and not quit or be dejected because we’ve not received an immediate answer…part of praying in God’s will is believing that, whether His answer is “yes,” “no,” or “wait,” we accept His judgment…submit to His will…and continue to pray.
Here’s the problem…many times with our prayers…they’re offered in such a general way that there could never be a discernable answer given…they’re too vague …but if we are praying in the will of God and moved by the Spirit to specifically state our petition, we can expect an answer.
In the Bible we read what happens when these three components are applied: God’s people…in God’s will…praying in God’s will…and praying with persistence and determination.
Paul in prison [Philippians 1:19] “ For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer”
Paul writing from prison expecting release because of the prayers of the Philippian church.
Peter in prison [Acts 12] “prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God [5] …his chains fell off…and he went out [9].
Can we hypothetically say that if both Peter and Paul had not been prayed for that God’s deliverance would have been hindered…based on Paul’s comments it would certainly seem that Paul thought that way.
Paul identifies that his needs were met by the provision of the Spirit of Christ [19].
Real quick…what does that mean…the provision of the Spirit of Christ …it’s important that you know what the provisions are…the provisions of the Spirit are a promise from God that He is aware of every need…circumstance…and situation in your life… and it’s His intention to be the provider to meet those needs.
In Paul’s case…even though God was aware of his situation…the provision…of meeting Paul’s needs was brought about by the prayers of the Philippians…this shows what a serious matter prayer is.
Knowing then that God accomplishes His purpose in the world through our prayers should emphasize the vital necessity for Christians to pray.
It’s not that God can’t work without our prayers but that He has established prayer as part of His plan for accomplishing His will in this world.
Where we go wrong is assuming that we know God’s will because a certain thing makes sense to us…we assume that there is only one right “answer” it’s so logical that we assume with certainty THAT it is God’s will.
And this is where it gets tough…we live within the limits of time and limits of knowledge…we have only limited information about a situation and the implications of how it will affect any future actions regarding that situation.
God’s understanding is unlimited…how an event will play out in the course of a life…or history is only something He knows and He may have purposes far beyond what we could even imagine.
So, God is not going to do something simply because we determine that it must be His will…or because it seems to be the best course of action for God to take.
It is God who initiates His intention to us…it’s not initiated by us…but by God based on this intention and burden which we sense within us…every prayer is the result of a particular burden within us…where does that burden come from?
It comes from God’s intervention into us through His Spirit.
Look again at what Paul writes “for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance…(HOW) through your prayers (prayers of the Philippians who were
Asking…seeking…and knocking…with persistence and determination) …and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus to meet those needs.
“Ask, and it will be given you…Seek, and you will find…Knock, and it will be opened for you.” is more involved than just asking.
Answered prayer is the combination of being in God’s will, praying in God’s will, and praying with persistence and determination.
SO…when it comes to prayer…do you really know God and does He know you? Do you have a relationship with Him that warrants God hearing your prayers?
Are you praying for the same thing God wants?
A person who prays this way must be one who regularly draws near to God, allows God to live in them.