MONDAY – 1 John 5: 14-17, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.” Last time we were in 1 John we saw that we have assurance and certainty of eternal life when we possess Valid Faith in Jesus Christ. Verse 13 told us, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.” We know we have eternal life because of what has been written, not because we have had some experience or feeling but rather because of what has been written to us from God Himself in Sacred Scripture. John tells us that if we believe in the name of the Son of God we have eternal life. This week we come to another certainty and that is that as Christians we know that God answers our prayers. As we wait for the fullness of eternal life to be realized in the new creation we have needs, problems, issues of concern and struggles of life we have to deal with and need to bring to God in prayer. And here in our text we will be reminded that we know God answers our prayers.
(Meditate, Apply & Pray) Are you certain that God hears and answers your prayers? Why or Why not? Father, help me this week to see and understand that You in fact hear and answer my prayers as Your child.
TUESDAY – 1 John 5: 14, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” John begins this verse by using an interesting word for confidence. It is parr?sia. Originally, parr?sia meant freedom of speech, that freedom to speak boldly which exists in a true democracy. With God, we have freedom of speech. As Barclay comments, “He is always listening, more ready to hear than we are to pray. We never need to force our way into his presence or compel him to pay attention. He is waiting for us to come.” This word is also translated “boldness” (Acts 4:31), or “openness” (Acts 28:31). The phrase translated in Him has the sense of “in His presence.” We as believers, through Jesus Christ have “boldness and confident access to the very presence of God (Ephesians 3:12). As the writer of Hebrews reminds us in 4:16, we may “draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need”. The Word of God to us is that when we boldly and freely come to Him with our requests, He will hear and answer.
(Meditate, Apply & Pray) Meditate on the fact that “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry” (Psalm 34:15). Also think about and then thank and praise Him for the fact He tells us we can boldly and confidently come before Him.
WEDNESDAY – 1 John 5: 14-15, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. ” Not only can we with confidence enter God’s presence to ask Him anything we then notice the condition He adds that we are to ask anything according to His will. This is the biblical teaching on prayer. We submit and pray according to the will of God which we often do not fully understand. We ask things that align with the revealed will, character, name of God as revealed in Scripture. God answers prayers that follow His guide and submit to His Sovereign will. We see this example in the life of Jesus. When he was in the Garden of Gethsemane He prayed, “Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39). He also taught us to pray in His name, so that He may bring glory to the Father (John 14:13). In verse 15 John again reminds us who often need reminded, that God indeed hears our prayers; And if we know that He hears us. We know by past experience that not every prayer we offer receives an answer we have liked. We should be ready to accept a negative response from God as well knowing that He always gives us that which is good for our spiritual growth and well-being. Two times in verse 15 John writes the verb to know. He insists that we grab hold of this assurance that God indeed hears our prayers and responds to them. We know that if we ask anything according to His will, God grants us our request. John is definite when he writes, “we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” John does not use the future tense “we will have” but rather the present tense “we have.” Similar to the fact that we know already we have eternal life (verse 13), here we know we already possess answers to our prayers. That is, now already we possess what we asked. The certainty is that when we ask God anything in faith according to His will, we know He hears us and answers and will reveal that to us in His perfect time.
(Meditate, Apply & Pray) Father, help me to know that You answer my prayer as surely as I now I have eternal life in Jesus. Thank You for Your promises.
THURSDAY – 1 John 5: 14-15, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. ” We are going to take one more day to review something of great importance. We have said we know we have answered prayer when we pray according to His will or in Jesus name as its put elsewhere. Praying in Jesus’ name doesn’t mean at the end of your prayer you say, “In Jesus name. Amen,” It’s not a little statement put at the end. We do often say it at the end and hopefully with the understanding we are telling God we are praying if this is consistent with who You are, and consistent with what You will to do. In John 15:7, this same John records a similar statement made by our Lord Himself. “If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it shall be done for you.” This is the proverbial blank check. Jesus continues in 15:16, “You did not choose me, I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask of the Father in my name, He may give it to you.” These are just mind blowing, amazing statements. Whatever you ask as a Christian; one who believes in Christ, abides in Christ, His Word abides in you, obeying Jesus and loving others as John has defined earlier, you ask whatever you wish, and God will do it. In John 14:13, Jesus put it this way: “And whatever you ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” Incredible. John 16:23-24, “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” Earlier He said that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Now He says that your joy may be full. When we pray in the will of God, walking with Him, He is glorified and our joy is full. Remember James told us, “You do not have because you do not ask.” And furthermore when you do ask, “you do not receive because you ask amiss (with wrong motives).” You ask for you and your selfishness and therefore God is not glorified and you are not joyful. Finally, there are times when we don’t know His will so we pray, “Whatever You will, Lord, if it’s Your will…”
(Meditate, Apply & Pray) Father, thank You that Your will is revealed to me in Sacred Scripture. Teach me to pray according to it. Thank You for the promise You answer and do all that is asked of You when it’s according to Your will.
FRIDAY– 1 John 5: 16-17, “If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.” These verses have presented difficulties throughout the years but we will do our best with them this Lord’s Day. They seem random as if they were placed here without thought but they are not, they do speak to the issue of prayer John has been addressing. A few words by Spurgeon will set our minds up for this Lord’s Day sermon. “If anyone sees his brother sinning What then? He should run all over the place and tell everybody about it? No! That is not what the apostle says…when I look into the Bible, I do not see anything about talking of this sin to our fellow men. Something is said about talking of it to God, and this is what every true Christian should do…. He who has committed the sin that leads to death has no desire for forgiveness. He will never repent; he will never seek faith in Christ, but he will continue hardened and unbelieving. He will from this point on never be the subject of holy influences, for he has crossed over into that dark region of despair where hope and mercy never come. Perhaps some of you think that you have committed that unpardonable sin, and are at this moment grieving over it. If so, it is clear that you cannot have committed that sin, or else you would not grieve over it. If you have any fear concerning it, you have not committed the sin that leads to death…”, for even fear is a sign of life. There is much in this passage to make us prayerful and watchful, but there is nothing here to make a heart feel anything like despair.
(Pray) Thank You Father for the privilege of prayer and that I’m safe in Jesus.
