sleeplessinpool
May 18th 2003, 08:14 PM
Ask and Receive
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" (Matthew 7:7)
Well its been one of those weeks, in accordance with Murphy Law, "if it could go wrong it did ............" However all aside, I thought I might add some further thoughts to my previous posting. Thomas a Kempis said on one occasion that it is a great art to commune with God. Must confess I get the impression that few of us, myself included seem to have learned and applied the principles of effective prayer.
Yet as church of God we all have a open invitation to the throne of grace, not only for the privilege of "waiting" in His presence and worshipping the Lord, but also that we might ask for our needs to be met (Philippians 4:19 And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.) and for desires to be granted (Psalm 37:4 Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.) and for the purposes of God to be worked out in our lives after the council of His will. (Ephesians 1:11 In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will.)
Real prayer/praying can be expressed in the terms of "ask", "seek", and "knock", simple words but words of great importance. They represent the threefold action needed on our part to obtain the things we need from God. But, when we put them in action we have a threefold assurance from God that He will grant, that which is desired.
Remember the promise was that if we ask, then it shall be given. At first glance this might seem an over simplification to gain answers to out prayers. But, we must understand what is meant by asking, other wise there might well be disappointment with regard to our receiving.
It is reasonably self-evident that many Christians do not enter into their full spiritual inheritance for one simple reason, they do not beseech God to meet their need on a specific line! James tells us that "Ye have not, because ye ask not". There are others that do not "receive" because, as James points out in 4:3 they "ask amiss", or as the NEB puts it, "Your requests are not granted because you pray from the wrong motives". Therefore the key is that we need to be ridding ourselves of all selfish desires if we wish for our prayer life to become all the more fruitful. It is essential also that we pray in faith! Jesus told us "Mark 11:24 So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
When we look closely at the word "seek" we can also see another important spiritual truth in operation, it means we need to be serious, keen and ardent in our supplications. True prayer will always be an intense, heartfelt operation that involves solid commitment. every promise is attached to a duty, but it is not enough that we just do it, but we must do it scriptural. The promise is not made good to those "who only seek" but to those "who seek God with all their heart".
Then, thirdly, the knocking represents "perseverance" and "regularity!" It means our keeping on praying until the answer comes, just like the man in the gospels who wanted loaves of bread for his friend we are to keep on knocking.
(NRS Luke 11:5-10 "And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs. "So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.)
and like Elijah in 1st Kings 18:44 who prayed and prayed until the rain finally came. In both cases it required great determination. How often to we fail to make the promises good in our lives simply because we are not constant, in short, we give up to easily!!
Its a wonderful and happy coincidence that in our English Bible the first letters of each word currently under our spotlight spell out the significant syllable "Ask"! What an incredible encouragement that this promise is open to all Gods people who are feeling down and or frustrated. The Almighty can make the valley of Achar become a door of hope, the wilderness a pool and the desert to blossom as a rose! Nothing is ever to hard for the Lord and the invitation is open to all to come to the One who can do the impossible. He is ready to give "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61:3)
One final point, remember we are not to ask as beggars and vagabonds but rather as Children who are heirs to the wealth of Gods boundless resources! What we must constantly keep in mind is how these things are only for those whose prayer life combines this three fold form of asking, seeking earnestly and knocking persistently!.........
Thanks for reading folk..........tune in next week.....or pop by my site at www.biblicalthoughts.org.uk
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" (Matthew 7:7)
Well its been one of those weeks, in accordance with Murphy Law, "if it could go wrong it did ............" However all aside, I thought I might add some further thoughts to my previous posting. Thomas a Kempis said on one occasion that it is a great art to commune with God. Must confess I get the impression that few of us, myself included seem to have learned and applied the principles of effective prayer.
Yet as church of God we all have a open invitation to the throne of grace, not only for the privilege of "waiting" in His presence and worshipping the Lord, but also that we might ask for our needs to be met (Philippians 4:19 And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.) and for desires to be granted (Psalm 37:4 Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.) and for the purposes of God to be worked out in our lives after the council of His will. (Ephesians 1:11 In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will.)
Real prayer/praying can be expressed in the terms of "ask", "seek", and "knock", simple words but words of great importance. They represent the threefold action needed on our part to obtain the things we need from God. But, when we put them in action we have a threefold assurance from God that He will grant, that which is desired.
Remember the promise was that if we ask, then it shall be given. At first glance this might seem an over simplification to gain answers to out prayers. But, we must understand what is meant by asking, other wise there might well be disappointment with regard to our receiving.
It is reasonably self-evident that many Christians do not enter into their full spiritual inheritance for one simple reason, they do not beseech God to meet their need on a specific line! James tells us that "Ye have not, because ye ask not". There are others that do not "receive" because, as James points out in 4:3 they "ask amiss", or as the NEB puts it, "Your requests are not granted because you pray from the wrong motives". Therefore the key is that we need to be ridding ourselves of all selfish desires if we wish for our prayer life to become all the more fruitful. It is essential also that we pray in faith! Jesus told us "Mark 11:24 So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
When we look closely at the word "seek" we can also see another important spiritual truth in operation, it means we need to be serious, keen and ardent in our supplications. True prayer will always be an intense, heartfelt operation that involves solid commitment. every promise is attached to a duty, but it is not enough that we just do it, but we must do it scriptural. The promise is not made good to those "who only seek" but to those "who seek God with all their heart".
Then, thirdly, the knocking represents "perseverance" and "regularity!" It means our keeping on praying until the answer comes, just like the man in the gospels who wanted loaves of bread for his friend we are to keep on knocking.
(NRS Luke 11:5-10 "And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs. "So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.)
and like Elijah in 1st Kings 18:44 who prayed and prayed until the rain finally came. In both cases it required great determination. How often to we fail to make the promises good in our lives simply because we are not constant, in short, we give up to easily!!
Its a wonderful and happy coincidence that in our English Bible the first letters of each word currently under our spotlight spell out the significant syllable "Ask"! What an incredible encouragement that this promise is open to all Gods people who are feeling down and or frustrated. The Almighty can make the valley of Achar become a door of hope, the wilderness a pool and the desert to blossom as a rose! Nothing is ever to hard for the Lord and the invitation is open to all to come to the One who can do the impossible. He is ready to give "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61:3)
One final point, remember we are not to ask as beggars and vagabonds but rather as Children who are heirs to the wealth of Gods boundless resources! What we must constantly keep in mind is how these things are only for those whose prayer life combines this three fold form of asking, seeking earnestly and knocking persistently!.........
Thanks for reading folk..........tune in next week.....or pop by my site at www.biblicalthoughts.org.uk