The Confidence Is

I was looking at the two verses in 1st John 5:14-15 that says … "And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him."

Consistent with my usual study habits I wanted to see what some of my Bible commentary writers had to say about these verses. Something Albert Barnes wrote caught my attention. It didn't sound right … at first.

He said … "We cannot expect that God will work a miracle in answer to our prayers."

"What? That can't be right," I said to myself. But, having read much in the past of this man's opinion on the Scriptures, I kept on reading.

Continuing he said … "We cannot ask Him to bestow blessings in violation of any of the laws which He has ordained, or in any other way than that which He has appointed. It is better that the particular blessing should be withheld from us, than that the laws which He has appointed should be disregarded."

"Okay," I thought, "I can go along with that." But he didn't just stop there leaving my simple mind to try and figure all that out. He gave this example …

"It is better that an idle man should not have a harvest, even though he should pray for it, than that God should violate the laws by which he has determined to bestow such favors as a reward of industry, rather than work a special miracle in answer to a lazy man’s prayers."

So we see there can be and are necessary limitations in prayer. The above illustration is already covered with … "man shall work by the sweat of his brow." That is God's will for us because of sin. If you do not work, you do not eat.

God has not promised to grant anything that is contrary to His will, and it could not be right that He should do it. Nor should we ask to receive anything that is in opposition to what He judges to be best for us. No man should esteem his own will to be a better choice, (even though he has that choice) than the will of God for his life.

The limitation meant by … "according to his will" … probably implies some of the following things that are with-in His will.

The list is long and includes things like forgiveness of sins; having our basic needs met … food, shelter, health, peace; being able to endure the trials and storms of life by knowing that God is with us, etc., in accordance with what He has already declared in His Word that He is willing to grant.

Albert Barnes also states that the phrase, according to his will … "limits the answer to prayer to what God sees to be best for us. Of that we are not always good judges. We never perceive it as clearly as our Maker does, and in many things we might be wholly mistaken. Certainly we ought not to desire to be permitted to ask anything which God would judge not to be for our good."

Now back to 1st John 5:14 … "This is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us …"

Please note ... The confidence is not that we will receive what we want; the confidence is that He hears us … when we ask … according to His will.

The word confidence as it is used in this verse is "parrhēsia" in the Greek. It is a little strange in that it is a derivative of two other Greek words, and when combined means … all out spokenness or a frankness, a bluntness, which by implication means … assurance (of speech.) Like in prayer?

This confidence or assurance has to do with knowing He hears our petitions (as long as they are in His will) even those asked bluntly. A better word might be, asked boldly.

The Amplified reads this way … "And this is the confidence (the assurance, the privilege of boldness) which we have in Him: that if we ask anything (make any request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan), He listens to and hears us. And if (since) we know that He listens to us in whatever we ask, we also know that we have the requests made of Him."

Because we are asking within the bounds of His will; which includes His secret will over all things, and what He has declared as His will to be for you, (both of which are known only to Him) or His revealed will for us found in His Word … because He hears, we are therefore to know and also be assured … "we have the requests made of Him."

You may say … that doesn't give us much to go on. No, it doesn't.

That's why the Word says … "The just shall live (walk, follow and ask) by faith."

That's also His will for you.



Comments welcome.