HE Knows What We Want...and Need

Yesterday’s post, entitled “We Know What We Want”, put forth the idea that unspoken expectations can wreak havoc in our relationships, especially as they are often unreasonable.  In that post, I mostly focused on expectations between people.

One commenter to that post gave this input.

“Aren't we glad God knows what we want and need? He gives us our needs, and if we are following Him it will also cover our wants.”

OK.  This comment sums up in a nutshell everything I wanted to say in today’s post.  Enough said.  Catch you tomorrow.

No, seriously, let’s unpack that comment and see what the Bible has to say about God’s provision.  I’d like to focus on four verses today.  The first two have the same context, so let’s look at them together.

And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive. 
(Matthew 21:22)

Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you. (Mark 11:24)

Believe What?  Believe Who?
These verses appear to suggest that if we want something, all we need to do is believe strongly enough that our request will be granted, and it will happen, no matter what it is that we are asking.  If we don’t receive what we want, it must be because we have not managed to muster enough faith.

There is something to that statement.  I can’t read Jesus’ words in Matthew and Mark without seeing that the solidness of our faith has much to do with whether or not our prayer is answered as we asked. Seriously now, Jesus was talking about prayer that moves mountains.  God does the seemingly impossible through prayer when His people believe and don't doubt.  But believe in what?  Or Whom?

If we look at Mark 11:22, though, we see that Jesus prefaced His statement with, “Have faith in God.”  With these words, Jesus gave us a different focus for our faith.  He did not tell us that we are to work hard to muster up belief that we will be given this or that.  We are to simply have faith in God, the One who is able to grant the request.  That faith needs to be unshakeable.  We cannot muster up that kind of faith on our own. 

Generosity Presumed

The previous passages appear to leave room for us to think that each and every thing we ask for will be granted if we have enough faith.  Well, I believe it is vital to interpret Scripture in the light of other Scripture rather than taking an individual passage and drawing conclusions from it.  The next two verses will shed a bit of light onto this question of asking and receiving. 

“My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 4:19) 

If we look at the context of this verse, we see another important point.  Paul gave this promise from God to the Philippian believers as he was commending them for their generosity.  Even though they were not considered all that wealthy themselves, they still gave out of hearts of love.  I can only conclude that this particular promise of provision comes with the assumption that the ones claiming the promise live a lifestyle of generosity.  If we are stingy with the blessings God has already given us, whatever the size of that blessing, we cannot claim this particular promise.

This reminds me of a story I heard many years ago of a man who complained that a wealthy businessman was blessed with millions of dollars while he didn’t seem to ever receive any monetary blessing from God.  (Incidentally, the businessman was known for his generous contributions to charities while living a simple lifestyle.) When the complainer was asked what he would do if he was given a million dollars, he answered, “I’d buy a new house, a new car, maybe a boat…”  Perhaps that is why the businessman was blessed with…or I might say entrusted with…millions of dollars. 

This is something to think about.  No, we don’t give so that we will receive, but when we give freely with the right heart attitude, God’s blessings can flow our way. 

 Wants?  Needs?

Next, we see in this passage a promise of provision for all needs.  Notice, this verse does not say that God will grant all wants.  There is a difference.  We want many things that we do not necessarily need.  God did not promise to give us everything we want, just like good parents do not give their child everything he wants.  Why not?  Because sometimes, what he wants is not good for him. God will do the same with us.  

Abide in Me

Now, let’s look at one final verse.

“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you.”  (John 15:7) 

In context, Jesus had been teaching about the vine and the branches.  He told his followers that they needed to remain connected to the vine in order to live, grow, and be fruitful.  An intimate connection with Jesus, the true vine, was vital. 

Jesus promised that his followers could “ask whatever they wish, and it shall be done for you.”  This promise, however, has a condition, both for Jesus’ disciples and for us.  We need to abide in Jesus, walking with Him daily. We need to allow His words to abide in us, spending time meditating on His Word. 

The wonderful thing is that as we draw closer to Jesus by spending time with Him and reflecting on His Word, the more we become like Him.  The more we become like Him, the more our wishes and wants become like His.  When our wishes and wants become like His, we can ask absolutely anything we wish with full confidence that He will answer with a resounding YES!

This brings us back to the first two verses we looked at.

And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive. 
(Matthew 21:22)

Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you. (Mark 11:24)

When we interpret these verses in the light of John 15:7, we see clearly, that the confidence needed to ask for, believe, and receive seemingly impossible things from God flows from the vital, intimate relationship with Jesus.  This relationship transforms our wants and desires to be like His, and allows us to pray in full confidence that whatever we ask has already been received from the hand of our Almighty Father who loves us.