HOW CAN I BE SURE MY PRAYERS WILL BE ANSWERED?
QUESTIONS ABOUT PRAYER
NATURE OF GOD
Luke 11:9-10 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
We love a guarantee. We buy things that are guaranteed and ease others’ minds by letting them know that a product or service we provide is guaranteed. But when it comes to prayer, are answers to prayer guaranteed? Today’s passage would seem to suggest that, but we need to take a closer look and put some context to this.
Before we can determine a correct interpretation of Jesus’ words in this passage, we first need to understand and internalize what the passage is not saying. These words, spoken by Jesus in the gospel of Luke, are not saying that whatever you ask for will be given to you, no matter what. That would be ridiculous and paradoxical to the heart of a loving father. Think about a parent who simply gives their child whatever they ask for. What if the child asked for a mountain of candy? Or a dangerous weapon? Or a pet tiger? A loving father would recognize that it is not loving and not wise to simply give a child whatever they request. The loving thing to do would be to reject any petition that didn’t line up with Godly wisdom, or direct those requests towards a better option.
So what is this passage telling us? It’s important to remember to read scripture through a logical and reasonable lens. We should always consider the most likely purpose of a passage or parable, given the nature of the speaker and the larger view of that person’s views and motivations. What are they trying to communicate and get across to the listener (or reader)? Let’s stick with the metaphor of a loving parent interacting with their child. What would a parent want? First, they would want a relationship with the child above all else. They would want the child to approach them, and tell them what their hopes, dreams, desires, and needs are. The parent would then determine how they could best respond to what was communicated. They would work diligently to read between the lines, get to the heart of the matter, and respond in the most wise and loving way. The key to this passage is that Jesus wants people to approach him and lay out their needs, wants, desires, and requests. There is nothing he can do to answer a prayer that is never offered. There are those who expect, but will never ask, desire to find, but will never seek, and expect entrance, but will never knock. Jesus urges those who follow him to ask, seek, and knock. Why? Because if you never seek you will never find. If you never ask you will never receive. And if you never knock the door will never be opened to you. Each of those verbs spoken by Jesus was written in the present tense with an active voice, meaning they could be translated as “keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking.” The point of this passage is not to unpack why some prayers are answered and why some are not, how we can determine what is in line with God’s will, or even how we can get a guarantee stamp on our prayers.
The point of this passage is to explain that none of that matters if a person refuses to ask, seek and knock. Let’s start there. The first key to answering the question of “How can I be sure my prayers will be answered?” is to begin by making sure that the asking, seeking, and knocking are actually happening. In many cases, James 4:2 is correct when it says, “You have not because you ask not.”
Psalm 37:4 tells us to, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart”. When you desire God and his desires, you will get the results you truly want because they emanate from delighting yourself in the Lord. Alignment with the father means you receive fruit in the things that your loving father already wants for you. We’ll discuss more on this topic of answering prayer in upcoming sections, but for now just think about your own heart and what it looks like to be a person who asks, seeks, and knocks.
Before we can determine a correct interpretation of Jesus’ words in this passage, we first need to understand and internalize what the passage is not saying. These words, spoken by Jesus in the gospel of Luke, are not saying that whatever you ask for will be given to you, no matter what. That would be ridiculous and paradoxical to the heart of a loving father. Think about a parent who simply gives their child whatever they ask for. What if the child asked for a mountain of candy? Or a dangerous weapon? Or a pet tiger? A loving father would recognize that it is not loving and not wise to simply give a child whatever they request. The loving thing to do would be to reject any petition that didn’t line up with Godly wisdom, or direct those requests towards a better option.
So what is this passage telling us? It’s important to remember to read scripture through a logical and reasonable lens. We should always consider the most likely purpose of a passage or parable, given the nature of the speaker and the larger view of that person’s views and motivations. What are they trying to communicate and get across to the listener (or reader)? Let’s stick with the metaphor of a loving parent interacting with their child. What would a parent want? First, they would want a relationship with the child above all else. They would want the child to approach them, and tell them what their hopes, dreams, desires, and needs are. The parent would then determine how they could best respond to what was communicated. They would work diligently to read between the lines, get to the heart of the matter, and respond in the most wise and loving way. The key to this passage is that Jesus wants people to approach him and lay out their needs, wants, desires, and requests. There is nothing he can do to answer a prayer that is never offered. There are those who expect, but will never ask, desire to find, but will never seek, and expect entrance, but will never knock. Jesus urges those who follow him to ask, seek, and knock. Why? Because if you never seek you will never find. If you never ask you will never receive. And if you never knock the door will never be opened to you. Each of those verbs spoken by Jesus was written in the present tense with an active voice, meaning they could be translated as “keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking.” The point of this passage is not to unpack why some prayers are answered and why some are not, how we can determine what is in line with God’s will, or even how we can get a guarantee stamp on our prayers.
The point of this passage is to explain that none of that matters if a person refuses to ask, seek and knock. Let’s start there. The first key to answering the question of “How can I be sure my prayers will be answered?” is to begin by making sure that the asking, seeking, and knocking are actually happening. In many cases, James 4:2 is correct when it says, “You have not because you ask not.”
Psalm 37:4 tells us to, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart”. When you desire God and his desires, you will get the results you truly want because they emanate from delighting yourself in the Lord. Alignment with the father means you receive fruit in the things that your loving father already wants for you. We’ll discuss more on this topic of answering prayer in upcoming sections, but for now just think about your own heart and what it looks like to be a person who asks, seeks, and knocks.