What did Jesus mean when He said, "Ask and you shall receive"? | GotQuestions.org

Today's question is, what did Jesus mean when He said, ask and you shall receive?

In this video I'll answer that question from a biblical perspective.

Then afterwards, as always, I'll share some helpful resources, so stick around until the end.

Jesus said, ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete, in John 16

verse 24.

Is this a blanket promise with no conditions?

If we ask for 300 pounds of chocolate delivered to our door, is God obligated to give it to us?

Or are Jesus' words to be understood in light of other revelation?

If we assume that asking you will receive means ask for anything you want and I'll give it to you, then we

have turned the Lord into a cosmic genie who serves our every whim.

This is the problem of prosperity gospel and Word of Faith teachings.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says that whoever asks receives, whoever seeks

finds, and whoever knocks will find an open door, Matthew 7 verses 7

-8.

But with this and all other verses, we must examine the context.

Jesus goes on to say that God will not fail to give His children good things, verse 11.

So, this is one condition to the promise of ask and receive.

What we ask for must be good, in God's estimation.

God will give advantageous gifts to His children.

He will not give us bad or injurious things, no matter how much we clamor for them.

The best example of a good gift is the Holy Spirit, according to Luke 11, verse 13.

We begin to see a twofold purpose of prayer—to increase our understanding of what God calls good

and to cultivate a desire in us for what is good.

Our prayers to God are not unlike our requests of men.

Our prayers are based on a relationship, as Jesus points out in Matthew 7, verse 8.

If a child asks his father for something the father knows to be hurtful, the request is denied.

The child may be frustrated and unhappy when he doesn't get what he asked for, but he should trust

his father.

Conversely, when the child asks for something that the father knows is beneficial, the father will provide it

eagerly because he loves his child.

We have another condition to the promise of ask and receive in John 14, verse 14.

You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

Here, Jesus does not promise His disciples anything and everything they want.

Rather, He instructs them to ask in My name.

To pray in Jesus' name is to pray on the basis of Jesus' authority, but it also involves

praying according to the will of God, for the will of God is what Jesus always did.

This truth is stated explicitly in 1 John 5, verse 14.

If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

Our requests must be congruent with the will of God.

The promise of ask and receive, even with its conditions, can never disappoint.

There is no chance of things we need not being in God's will.

He promises to supply what we need when we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness.

Matthew 6, verse 33.

Of course, what we want is not always what we need.

If what we want is not in God's will, then we really don't want to receive it.

God knows what is good for us and is faithful and loving to say no to selfish and

foolish prayers, no matter how much we want what we're asking for.

God will always give us good things.

Our job is to understand what is good so that we know what to ask for.

The natural mind cannot understand this, but when we offer ourselves as a living sacrifice and are

transformed by the renewing of our minds, then we will be able to test and approve what

God's will is—His good, pleasing, and perfect will.

Romans 12, verses 1 and 2.

Then, asking for what we need in faith, we will have all we need for life—godliness and fullness

of joy.

The biblical instruction concerning prayer is that we pray for the good things that we truly

need, according to the will of God, in the authority of Jesus Christ, persistently,

unselfishly, and in faith.

In Matthew 21, verse 22, Jesus again emphasizes faith.

If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.

Those who truly believe God will witness the amazing, infinite power of God.

However, comparing Scripture with Scripture, we know that the asking must be done within the will

of God.

Part of having faith is acceding to God's plan as best.

If we ask for healing, and that is the best thing for us, we should not doubt that God will heal

us.

If He does not heal, then not being healed is a necessary part of a larger plan, one that is

ultimately for our good.

Consider Psalm 37, verse 4, "...delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you

the desires of your heart.".

This verse does not give us a way to manipulate God, nor does it mean that if we obey,

He will reward us with whatever treat we crave.

Rather, it means that when we delight ourselves in God, then we will find everything we want and need

in Him.

The key here is that the heart of the seeker is changed when we delight in the Lord, and God's desires

begin to become our own.

When our desires match God's, then our prayers are automatically aligned with His will.

Among the most important prayers in the life of a Christian are, teach me to love you above all

else, and cause me to want what you want.

When we truly desire God, when we are passionate to see His will accomplished in this world,

and when we ask for what brings Him glory, He is eager to give us anything we ask.

Sometimes the things that glorify God are pleasant—a marriage or a child.

Sometimes they are difficult for us—a failure that humbles us or a physical weakness that makes us

more dependent upon God.

But when we pray within His will, in the authority of Jesus, persistently, unselfishly,

and in faith, we will receive what we need.

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