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Why Ask?
by
Mark Baker
Matthew 6:7 "But when you pray, do not use vain
repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard
for their many words.
8. "Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you
have need of before you ask Him.
Here Jesus was teaching on the subject of prayer. This was His lead in
to the Lords prayer.
Before He taught us what to pray He also told us how not to pray. We are
told not to pray repetitively. He said they think they will be heard for
their many words, or volume of words. He said do not be like them.
However we see that many Christians do this very thing by praying the
same thing over and over thinking that they will be heard because of
their repetition. Let’s take heed to the words of Christ and realize
this is not how we should pray.
The question I want to ask is why would we need to ask if our Father
already knows the things we need? He knows all things. He knows the
beginning from the end. Why ask?
Many Christians say that God will take care of things, but I truly don’t
know where
they get that idea or what Scripture they base that on. The word of God
has much to say about asking God in faith.
I also know that many Christians don’t know that God has asked us to ask
Him, and that He has given us instruction on how to ask, or what to ask.
The Apostle James said we do not have because we do not ask.
James 4:2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot
obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.
Throughout the Word of God we see instances where we are told to ask. We
have to ask in order to receive. Have you ever stopped to consider that
there are spiritual reasons for this?
There are reasons for everything in God’s Word. He has set things up His
way. It is not a case where God can not do something but a case where He
established things in a certain way, and He will not violate His Word
for anyone. It is up to us to get understanding into His Word and learn
to walk in it.
We may not totally understand the why and why nots, but whether we have
understanding or not, the reasons are still there and we must follow
God’s ways in orders to get God’s results. Lets look to God’s Word for
answers.
Genesis 1:26. Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to
Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the
birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every
creeping thing that creeps on the earth.''
27. So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created
him; male and female He created them.
In the beginning God gave Adam dominion over the Earth. Adam sinned and
because of this relinquished that authority. He no longer had that
authority that God gave him. Satan became the God of this world.
Adam had the legal right to do what he did. Because he had the legal
right God could not just step in and undo the mess that Adam created.
Adams dominion and authority was given to him by God Himself. Adam then
turned that legal God given authority over to Satan. Satan had legally
become the God of this world.
At this point man was lost. He lost His relationship as a child of God,
he lost his fellowship with God and he lost the authority that had been
bestowed upon him. All seemed hopeless.
We have to understand that God does not break His Word for anybody. He
would not step across that line and undo what had happened. Legally he
could not do that. He had to find a legal way.
Through a Covenant with Abraham God got his seed back into the Earth,
and established an everlasting Covenant with that seed. Everything we
have and are is by and through that seed. I’ve said all of this to make
the point that we have to follow the outline of this Covenant to legally
receive the promises of God. Part of legally receiving is to ask.
I think it would be beneficial to describe what a covenant is so that
the importance of this will be understood. A covenant is a legal binding
agreement between two parties. Both parties must agree to the terms of
the covenant before they enter into it. Both parties will agree to
uphold and fulfill their end of the covenant according to the conditions
stipulated within the terms of that covenant. Most covenants will have
several parts to it. There is the physical act of cutting the covenant,
and the actual outline of the covenant itself, or the legal binding
agreement that both parties have already agreed to. Within the framework
of this there will be blessings for keeping the covenant and curses that
will happen if either party were to break the covenant. The curse would
often be death along with the death of all of their immediate family. So
you can readily see that entering into such an agreement was not
something done lightly. It was a most serious thing to do.
You can see God’s Covenant set forth in the 28th chapter of Deuteronomy.
It would be beneficial to read this to see the true seriousness in our
Covenant with God and to know our rights and legal standing. Up until
Christ came it was impossible to keep our end of the agreement. Our
sinful nature just wouldn’t let us do it. Thank God He did come.
Galatians 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having
become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs
on a tree''), 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the
Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the
Spirit through faith.
I am so very grateful to our Lord Jesus Christ for taking the full
punishment of that curse for us so that we may receive the blessings of
Abraham. We have been blessed with the full blessing outlined in
Abraham’s Covenant. A very many Christians don’t know the terms of their
Covenant, and because of this can never receive these promises of God.
We know that God is honorable and will always uphold His end of the
Covenant He established. However in order to be partakers of it we must
know what our legal rights are. We also know that Satan is still the God
of this word, but the authority he once had has been stripped from him.
If we don’t know that we can not walk in the victory that has been
purchased for us. We have to know the promises in order to take
advantage of them.
I hope you see the importance of what is being said here. We now have
the legal right to ask God according to the promises set forth in this
awesome Covenant.
Jesus told us Himself, we could ask the Father in His name.
John 14:12-14 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the
works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will
do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I
will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask anything in My name, I will do it."
God wants us to be blessed and happy. He would not have told us to ask
if He didn’t want us to get would He? We have to take the steps He’s
telling us to take in order to receive the Covenant promises by faith.
Jesus said all authority in Heaven and in Earth has been given to Him.
He delegated that authority to us. So, because we are His legal
representatives here on the Earth we have been given the legal right to
go to God the Father in Jesus name and ask according to
His will. (His will is set forth in the New Covenant.) When we do that
God is legally obligated to fulfill His Word. Some people don’t like to
hear this, but remember that God is the one who initiated this Covenant
and also fulfilled it. Without it we would have no legal standing before
God. We would be lost and without hope.
He is the one telling us to ask Him. He loves to see us blessed. Jesus
said in Johns Gospel…
John 16:24 "Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you
will receive, that your joy may be full.
Jesus said until now because we now have the right to go to the Father
in His name and ask according to the words of Jesus, we will then
receive.
Now when we ask according to His Covenant we can legally expect to be
heard by God and receive what we asked of Him.
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.
15. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we
have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
You can't get any plainer than that. When we ask anything according to
His will He hears us. Some people say I don’t know if God heard me or
not. According to His Word He hears us when we pray according to His
will. This means He hears us whether we feel like it or not. Since we
know He hears us, we know we have the petitions or requests that we have
asked of Him. We can confidently ask. The reason we can do it is because
we have been given the legal privilege of doing so. If you are a born
again Christian you have this privilege. What an awesome privilege this
is. Remind Him of His Covenant. Ask according His Word and be confident
that He hears you, and that you have the request you have made of Him.
Glory to God. Amen
The first thing you must do is to ask Jesus to become your Lord and
Savior? Do you want to be a joint heir with Christ?
If so, I urge you to earnestly pray the following prayer.
Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus. Your word
says, “…and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.”
(Jn.6:37),
So I know You won’t cast me out, but You take me in, And I thank you for
it. You said in your Word, "whoever calls upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved.'' (Ro. 10:13).
I am calling on Your name, So I know You have saved me now, You also
said, “…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe
in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth
confession is made to salvation.” (Ro.10:9,10).
I believe in my heart that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I believe He
was raised from the dead for my justification. And I confess Him now as
my Lord, Because Your Word says, “… with the heart one believes to
righteousness…” and I do believe with my heart, I have now become the
righteousness of God in Christ. (2 Cor. 5:21),
And I am saved! Thank You, Lord!
I can now truthfully say, I see myself as a born again child of God
Glory to God!!!! Amen.
About the Author:
Mark is the webmaster of The Olive Branch,
http://www.olivebranchministries.us,
a site dedicated to helping all that are seeking to come into a deeper
understanding of what God has done for us through Christ Jesus. Please
visit his site for more free studies and resources to help you in your
search.
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