Two-minute read.
Matthew also records the withering of the fig tree we talked about in the first week. Our heart posture matters, and if we don’t believe, the Greek word pisteuo, meaning to trust, to rely upon, to have confidence in[1]; we won’t receive. Again, Jesus doesn’t teach a “name it and claim it” message, but a heart rooted in God, with confidence in Him. When I pray for the lost, asking the Lord for their salvation, I do so with conviction because I know the Lord wants that too. He makes it clear that the Creator wants no one to perish. So, I’m praying in agreement with His desires, and can do so confidently.
When we allow scripture to interpret scripture, it helps us understand this verse more deeply.
“If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us…”
1 John 5:14–15
“You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives…”
James 4:3
John and James help us understand the heart posture Jesus wants us to have. When we ask according to God’s will, we do receive it, but if we ask with the wrong motives, we don’t. And the Lord does know our motives better than we do.
So what prayer are you afraid to pray?
We should talk to the Savior about our hearts’ desires. The Lord wants us to live dependent on Him for our wants and needs. And He also wants us to trust Him to guide our paths. So when we pray for things, not sure of God’s will in the situation, we can do what Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane, submit our will to the Lord’s:
“My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Matt. 26:39
In His humanity, Jesus wanted the cup he had to bear taken from Him. And He asked His Father to take it. But then He showed His heart posture with nine words: “Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Those words give us the key to praying boldly. By submitting our requests to God and then surrendering our will to His decision, we will receive an answer, not always the one we hope for, but the one that God wills.
Don’t let fear stop you from praying. Instead, approach God’s throne with boldness, sharing your requests, then submitting them to His will. The Lord will answer according to His will.
Journal Questions:
What specific prayer am I bringing before God?
How can I check my heart’s motives?
When have you not received because of wrong motives?
Application:
Write down the bold prayer you’ve hesitated to pray.
[1] James Strong, The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville: Abingdon, 1890), G4100.
