DID JESUS GIVE US A BLANK CHECK WHEN IT COMES TO PRAYER?

Many insist that Jesus literally promised that we'd receive whatever we'd request in prayer. Let's look at an example of one of His "whatever" promises:

·       “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask WHATEVER you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.” (John 15:7-10)

While this might seem like a "whatever" promise, it certainly isn't. The promise contains many conditions. First of all, His disciples must “abide in me, and my words abide in you.”

What does this mean? Jesus subsequently explained: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love.” This means that we will only reap if we sow by keeping His commandments.

In fact, Jesus taught this in many ways. Look at this example:

·       “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)

This teaching suggests that if we don’t honor Him above all else, God will not honor us by meeting our needs. Why not? Well, one purpose of God honoring our requests is that these provisions will bring glory to our Lord:

·       “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

Consequently, God’s gracious provisions must glorify Him. But isn’t this “work theology,” and won’t this lead to boasting? It shouldn’t! Why not? Because we have to give God the credit for even our obedience, our sowing, as Paul confessed:

·       But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. (1 Corinthians 15:10)

(If you have questions about this, ask!)