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In Matthew 7:7-8(NLT), our Master Jesus tells us a little bit about effective prayer. He said, “7 Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” This is tremendous encouragement and instruction, because just about every believer has a ‘still waiting” in their prayer lives. It’s the thing we’ve prayed about the most and the longest, and we’re still waiting for the manifestation of it. And if we’re being honest, we’re not quite sure what the next move should be. You’ve been asking for this thing so long and so much that you figure God has got to be tired of hearing from you about the same prayer request. So, you’ve decided to just give it a rest. Well, we have it on good authority that this is definitely the wrong move.
God never tires of hearing from His people, and we know that prayer is one of the greatest opportunities and privileges that God has given us. It is our duty to pray for others, and it is our right to pray for ourselves in the powerful name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Knowing this should produce in us the desire to come to God with the attitude our Messiah has laid out in Matthew 7:7-8. To more define this right attitude of prayer, we need to examine the preceding verses in this same chapter.
Matthew 7 begins with Jesus warning us not to judge others, because we are going to be treated in the same way that we treat other people. That’s hard medicine for many of us to swallow. We gossip, speak negatively about folks, and sometimes think even worse about them. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:2 that this cycles back around, because the standard we use in judging folks is the same standard that will be used to judge us. There is a difference between having the good sense and wisdom to judge right from wrong and having a desire to condemn and think poorly of other individuals. As believers, we are to follow the way of Christ, which is to despise the sin not the person.
Jesus goes on to teach us that although we are not to judge others wrongly, we are to have extremely good judgement when it comes to the Gospel. We must know how incredibly important this lesson is. It’s about how we value this enormous gift of salvation that our Lord and Savior made available. The good news about Jesus Christ is the greatest treasure to humanity in all of eternity. Its value cannot be quantified, and nothing hinders our blessings more than not appreciating the preciousness of what Christ did for us on the cross, when he shed his blood to cleanse all our sins.
Our Lord and Master warns us not to waste what is holy on people that are unholy. He tells us not to give pearls to pigs, because they would only trample what is holy and precious under their feet and may even turn on you. With razor sharp clarity and precision, Jesus is warning us to be careful about people that have no regard for the truth of God’s Word. Because they are not yet at a place where they will honor it, we will bring our own commitment and obedience to be level with theirs if we do not demonstrate the care and stewardship of the gospel that God demands.
God is showing us the parallel between our regard for the Gospel, the blood of Jesus that was shed for our sin, and answers to prayer. We are to keep asking, to keep seeking, and to keep knocking as we grow in faith and recognize God’s heart is more open to us than our hearts are to Him. He loves it when we pray and will open the door of blessing for us according to His divine Will, but our growth in stewardship and maturity is a must. We must also know that Jesus Christ is knocking at the door of our hearts, and he never stops. He tells us in Revelation 3:20 (NLT), “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” The more we grow in our knowledge of him, the deeper his love is rooted in our hearts.
God will answer our prayers. On this we can depend! And we must be as diligent to pursue Him through Jesus Christ as we are eager to receive His blessings. Heavenly Father never goes bankrupt; He never runs out of treasures. The well of His blessings continuously overflow. Through Paul, He tells us in Philippians 4:19 (NLT), “And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” Our Heavenly Father is our Source of all blessings, from the smallest to the greatest, and His supply contains glorious riches. But we must continually remember and keep at the forefront of our minds that Jesus Christ is the channel by which we have access to these riches. God tells us in 2Corinthians 1:20 that through Christ, ALL His promises are fulfilled with a resounding “Yes!”■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“God Will Answer Our Prayers!” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2020. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.
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