Will God Give Me Everything I Want?
If I pray, will God give me everything I want? Stephen March shows from Scripture that God is our heavenly Father who provides what we need.
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God Answers Prayer
In a previous post, I talked about prayer and if God really hears and answers prayer. I’d like to elaborate more on that today by bringing up some often misunderstood verses in scripture and trying to add some clarification.
hopestreamradio · Will God Give Me Everything I Want?
In John 14:13-14 Jesus says to His disciples
“Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”
This is similar to what He says in Matthew 7:7-8 which was
“Ask, and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened”,
finally, in Mark 11:24 Jesus says
“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it shall be yours.”
Does this mean as long as I have faith and ask in Jesus name I will have everything I want? How do we reconcile this with the truth that sometimes God’s answer to our prayer is “no”?
The Importance of Context
On the surface, it does seem that these verses suggest that all we need is faith, and God, through Jesus will give us everything we ask for. But the context and meaning behind the verses is very important. For starters, in John 14, there are two key phrases that require attention, the first when Jesus says “In my name”. This isn’t to say that adding the words “In Jesus name” to the end of our prayer will be like inserting some supernatural formula to make all our dreams and wishes come true. The phrase carries with it the idea of Jesus being our representative before God, and perhaps more specifically, us being His representative on earth.
In Jesus’ Name
In other words, in order for our request to truly be “in Jesus name” we must be both associated with Jesus through faith, and our request lined up with His purposes. The other key phrase in this passage is, “that the Father may be glorified.” This goes along with the idea of asking properly in Jesus name. When our request is made in Jesus, with the purpose of bringing glory to God, and it is in alignment with God’s idea for His glory, it will be given. If we ask for things that are to fulfill our own wants and needs, that won’t bring glory to God, we can’t expect to receive them.
Example From Matthew 7
We can actually see this in an example that is given immediately after the verses we read in Matthew 7. If we continue reading beyond the part about everything being given to us when we ask, we find this, in verse 9-11
“Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him.”
The example here is actually quite applicable. Yes, we can look at it directly, that if we ask for good things, God will not give us bad. But the idea of a son asking for something tells us about the relationship we can have with our heavenly Father, which is a nurturing one.
Father of Four
I have four children, if one of them were to come up to me in the morning and say “Daddy, I want ice cream and lollypops for breakfast”. I, being concerned for my child’s health and well-being, am not going to grant that request. Not because I don’t love them, but on the contrary because I love them very much. I will give my children a meal that will provide proper nutrition, and the things that they need to live. God knows everything about us, and in that, He knows everything that we need, and everything that will harm us. He will always make sure to provide us with that which is good for us, and that which we actually need, meaning that he will also withhold from us requests that he knows will cause us hurt or harm in the long run, or if it is something that goes against God’s will for us.
Everything We Need
God wants to give us everything we need. He knows that what we need more than anything is a proper relationship with His son Jesus Christ. That starts when we put our trust in Jesus’ work on the cross to save us, and continues as we read his word, the Bible, and have a heart desire to know Him more, and to be more like Him. As we do this, we will learn more and more what Christ’s nature is like, and our requests in His name will be more in line with that nature.
If you would like to know more about how you can start, or grow, your relationship with Jesus, please contact us. You can do so by email to mail@fbhinternational.com, or by phone at 1-800-567-1218
Stephen March
Stephen March is the President of FBH International and HopeStreamRadio. He graduated from the Broadcasting Program at Niagara College in 2001, and has previously worked in television production and post-production. Stephen lives in St. Catharines, Ontario, with his wife Corinne and their four children. He serves as an elder at Scottlea Gospel Chapel.
Read and hear more from Stephen Marchon his contributor’s page.
Stephen currently has 3 Programs on HopeStreamRadio:
More Podcasts Below:
More Blogs
Can We Be Holy? The Process of Sanctification
Was The Resurrection of Christ Real?
How Much Does God Really Know? Is He Omniscient?
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Luxury Home – GregoryButler
BMW – Toby_Parsons
Masked Woman – Engin_Akyurt
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