Cool Things We Can Count On from God’s Word
#2 – The Guarantee of Answered Prayer
John 16:24
Have you ever bought anything on a “money-back, satisfaction guaranteed” deal?
Usually those are a good thing, and I’m optimistic (or maybe naïve) enough to believe that most companies honor that.
A couple years ago I asked my wife for an electric razor for Christmas. I saw one on TV that looked like it was everything I wanted, for about half the price of what I could find in the stores.
The manufacturer was well-known for other products and so I thought they would be good on this one as well.
Well, I was disappointed from the get-go. All razors say that it takes a couple weeks for your face to get used to an electric razor, so I wanted to give it some time.
But it never worked right, even after a month, so we decided to send it back, because the commercial said it came with a 60-day guarantee.
But when Debra called in to get the return authorization, they told her that it was only a 30-day guarantee. There was no way to argue, because it was all automated.
Normally I chase these kinds of things down, because we were, in essence, lied to about the guarantee. And my wife had bought this for me, because she loved me and knew I wanted it.
But I simply didn’t have the time to mess with it. I still have it, if you’re interested. Only $39.99, plus shipping and handling, and I’ll throw in a 60-minute guarantee!
My point here is that what seems to be an iron-clad guarantee isn’t all that iron-clad.
That will always be the case with guarantees made by people.
Not because all people lie about their guarantees. Some people make guarantees that they fully intend to keep, and they do keep them; and if something happens when they can’t fulfill the guarantee, it’s usually a mix-up or something, not a malicious attempt to rip someone off.
But there are times when even the best-intentioned guarantees don’t quite live up to their words.
But God never makes that mistake. When God says something, not only does He mean it, He comes through. Every single time.
The Bible says that God doesn’t lie, and that God doesn’t even change His mind. When He promises something, when He guarantees something, it’s a done deal.
He has proven throughout the recorded history of Scripture, and He’s proven it in the lives of those who follow Him.
I grew up with a really inadequate idea of what prayer was all about, and I never really thought God had much time to listen and answer my prayers.
My main memories of prayer growing up was saying so many “Our Fathers” and so many “Hail, Marys” because that’s what the priest said I needed to make for the sins that I had confessed to committing.
When my parents split up, my dad, brother, and I would get together and say a rosary every night as well as the prayer to St. Jude, who was the patron saint of hopeless causes, hoping that it would turn my mom’s heart back to my dad and allow them to get back together.
It didn’t work.
I did pray to God at other times, simply asking God for help in some areas, but I never really knew if God was listening or even had time for me.
Many people in this room have experienced the awesome reality of answered prayer.
We’ve come before God, asking Him to do His thing, and He does it. It’s a great thing to see.
But some people don’t have that experience very often, and there might be some here who have never seen God answer a prayer.
The fact of the matter is that many people wonder if God hears them when they pray.
They pray and nothing seems to happen. Or they pray and the exact opposite of what they wanted to happen happens.
Sometimes they pray for riches, sometimes they pray for the right spouse, sometimes they pray for a loved one to recover.
Most of us have prayed both types of “O God” prayers.
Sometimes we pray “O God, our Fathereth, heareth our prayereth, for we cometh humbly beforeth Thou…”
And sometimes we pray, “O GOD! I NEED YOUR HELP HERE!!!”
And we wonder if God really hears and answers prayer.
Let me assure you that He does.
Jesus gives us some hope here in a verse He gave to His disciples just before they left for the Garden of Gethsemane where He would be arrested.
It’s printed for you in your note-taking guide, and I’d like you to read this aloud with me, okay?
John 16:24 –
“Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.”
This is a great invitation from Jesus to come to the Father in prayer.
It’s not that people couldn’t pray to God directly before, but now the offer is reinforced by Jesus Himself.
What is the purpose of prayer?
I think that all of us can grasp the idea that prayer is communicating with God, especially in terms of our communicating to God. He generally communicates to us through His Word.
But why should we do that? Well, there are lots of reasons – to unburden our souls, to talk with God about whatever’s on our hearts and minds, or to ask God to take action in a certain matter.
The type of prayer that Jesus is addressing here is the type of prayer where we come to God asking Him for something specific.
We’re coming to God with a need, either for ourselves or for someone else.
The main thrust of this verse is that because of Jesus and what He’s done, we can approach God in prayer, confident that He will grant our requests.
Here’s a way to help you remember that:
Prayer through Christ makes prayer effective.
For generations, the Jews had been counting on their own personal righteousness and the animal sacrifices for sins to give them access to God in prayer.
Jesus is saying that all that is past. He’s saying now that we can count on Him to give us access to God in prayer.
He says here that –
“Until now you have not asked for anything in my name.”
No doubt you’ve heard lot’s of people pray and end their prayer with something like, “in Jesus’ name, amen.” And I usually end my prayers like that.
So what’s so special about that?
Well, it’s not the words, “In Jesus’ name.” There are plenty of people who think that unless you use those words, then your prayer isn’t valid and won’t be heard by God. They think that “In Jesus’ name” is some sort of magic formula that obligates God to move and answer, and keeps Him from answering if you don’t say it.
That’s just kinda screwed up, in my opinion, because that means God is limited by our vocal capacity or by our remembering to say just the right words.
And God’s a little bit bigger than that, my friends, and you’d better be glad!
Jesus is saying that we can come to God on the authority of Jesus. We come to God in prayer on the merits of Jesus, because we have no merit on our own.
We don’t deserve to come to God on our own, but Jesus says, “Hey – tell the Father that Jesus sent ya…”
Jesus’ death and resurrection gives us direct access to God in prayer.
He also says that because of that access, and because God answers prayer, our joy will be complete as we put our trust in God’s ability and willingness to answer prayer. So remember…
Prayer through Christ makes prayer effective.
But we need to keep something in mind here. This is not a promise that you can ask for absolutely anything in the world and expect God to just jump to attention and make it happen.
He is not some sort of genie.
There’s a story about an auto dealer who was facing bankruptcy. He was walking along a beach when he kicked a bottle and out popped a genie. "Thanks for setting me free," said the genie. "To show my appreciation, I’ll grant you one wish."
"Okay," said the auto dealer, "I want to be the only foreign car dealer in a major metropolitan market."
"Done!" cried the genie.
Immediately, the dealer found himself in a glass-walled office looking out over a major city. "Quick," he said to his secretary, "tell me who I am."
"You’re the only Cadillac dealer in downtown Tokyo," said the secretary.
(SOURCE: The Jokesmith, Bits & Pieces, November 10, 1994, p. 4. Citation: Joel Smith in "Prayer that Gets Results" on www.sermoncentral.com. Contributed by: SermonCentral PRO)
Sometimes we pray for things and for some reason, we don’t get what we pray for. So what’s the deal?
First, if you’re asking for things from a selfish motive, forget it. When we pray in Jesus’ name, we’re basically saying that we believe the request is something Jesus would endorse.
So I don’t think the Father’s going to give you the Powerball numbers or cause some rich relative to leave you a fortune just because you prayed for it.
And don’t expect Him to make your in-law disappear.
I doubt that Jesus would endorse that kind of stuff.
But what about those times when you pray for something like a sick or injured loved one, and that loved one doesn’t make it?
Was God reneging on the guarantee? That’s an honest question.
And here’s what I can offer. As I just mentioned, this verse is not a guarantee that God will give us everything we ask for.
Scripture tells us that God always has our best interests at heart. He won’t grant requests that He knows are not the best thing for us.
In the case of a loved one who passes, it may be that while we think it may be the best thing for us or for that person, it could be that taking that person is the best thing for them, so that’s what God does.
It’s possible that remaining on earth would cause even more pain and suffering for all involved, and God, in His gracious and loving knowledge of all things past, present, and future, took merciful action by denying your request.
That’s my opinion. I don’t know if that’s the whole deal, but I do know that God loves and cares for us, and that He takes our prayers seriously.
I think it’s also important to know that God generally answers prayer in one of three ways:
Yes – where He grants your request.
No – where He denies your request.
Wait – where He says that the timing is wrong.
Or as I saw one teenager’s view of prayer: “God answers prayer four ways: yes, no, wait awhile, or, you’ve got to be kidding!” (SermonCentral.com; contributed by: Brian McCutchen)
We tend to think that when we get what we’ve asked for, then God has answered our prayers. But in reality, all three of these are answers to prayer.
So understand that Jesus isn’t saying that God will just jump to fill our every whim and wish.
When we come to the Father, on the merits of Jesus, we can know the joy of answered prayer.
Remember…
Prayer through Christ makes prayer effective.
Some things to help you get the most out of prayer:
1. Constantly remind yourself that if it wasn’t for Jesus, your prayers wouldn’t go anywhere.
2. Come to the Father humbly, presenting the credentials of Jesus as your “pass” to the Father.
When I worked in Brookings, one of my clients was 3M. There were many times I had to go to various parts of the plant, whether it was in the office areas or in the manufacturing areas.
But regardless of where I went, I was required to have an escort. Corporate espionage is a huge deal, and they simply couldn’t afford to trust anybody.
They knew who I was, and I was on a first-name basis with many of the security people there, but I was still required to have an escort.
But when they saw that I was with one of the “authorized personnel,” I could go anywhere in the plant.
I could go there, because of the credentials of someone else. My own credentials didn’t matter.
In prayer, it’s kind of like Jesus is saying, “He’s with me,” or, “She’s with me.” And the Father says, “What can I do for you?”
3. Rephrase your prayers to include something that vocalizes your dependence on Jesus and your trust that the Father will answer as He sees fit.
Again, it’s not because the words, “In Jesus name,” open magical doors to heaven.
It’s just simply a statement declaring your understanding of everything we’ve talked about today…
Prayer through Christ makes prayer effective.
I would guess that people would look at a church like this and assume that everyone prays. And they’d probably be right.
But could they see a bunch of people who pray effectively because they come to the Father, understanding that it’s only through Jesus that we can come to Him for answered prayer?
And would they see a bunch of people who not only pray, but pray expectantly, believing in the guarantee that God will answer their prayers, whether the answer is yes, no, or wait?
Would they see a bunch of people who live as though they trust the Father to come through on His guarantees?
I believe they can see that kind of people. And it’s those kind of people who not only see God answering their prayers, but also radiate with hope that the world desperately wants to see working in the lives of real people in the real world.
Let it be said of us that we’re a people who actually believe and live like those who know that God is all-powerful to move, that He is on our side, and that He hears.
Let’s pray.
