And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive. Matt 21:22 NKJV
The great indictment within the Church against God is unanswered prayer. I’ve even heard preachers say, ‘If God doesn’t answer prayer, its because He has a plan.’ But that is not what the Word says. That is rationalized unbelief. These are Jesus’ own words in Matthew 21:22. The problem is that we have not been taught to believe God. Then we surround ourselves with people who would rather make excuses for God than hold Him to His Word. But common logic tells us that if we cannot trust God in Matthew 21:22 then how can we believe Him in John 3:16? The problem is not with people who pray. The problem is with those of us who are called to teach the Word, that we have not taught it thoroughly on this great subject of answered prayer, that the dear saints can experience the living God, and vindicate the God of the Bible.
I want to teach this so clearly and thoroughly that you can start immediately to get prayers answered specifically, that the promises of God become real to you, and you glorify the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel.
My first experience with specifically answered prayer came shortly after I was filled with the spirit as a sixteen-year-old. I needed to know the address of a church I wanted to send a donation to, so I closed my eyes and asked the Holy Spirit to show me the address. I saw an envelope with the church’s name and address in a nearby city. I wrote that on a real envelope, sent the donation and received a thank you note from them some days later.
“What is man, that You should exalt him, that You should set Your heart on him, 18 That You should visit him every morning, and test him every moment? Job 7:17-18 NKJV
Do you realize that we are being tested every moment? This is why Corinthians says to lead every thought to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). Israels great king David was a murderer and an adulterer yet in the millennial reign of Christ he will be king over Israel (Ez.37:24,25). Why? David sought forgiveness for his sins, and was forgiven, and David was never swayed from his passionate love and worship of the God of Israel. Passionate loyalty, love, and worship of ABBA, and passionate love for and loyalty to His people, are the major criteria of the moment-by-moment tests that we face.
Have you ever asked yourself, ‘What do I get out of Sunday morning worship – that twenty or sometimes up to an hour of praise, dance and worship?’ It’s only one hour out of 168 in the week. It serves to remind me that my great purpose in life, greater even than being a father, a husband, an employer, a citizen or even a minister, is to be a worshipper of the one true God. I am a created being, a son by birth in family of God, and my God so loves me that He draws worship out of me effortlessly when I have my head on straight. Passionate, purposeful personal worship releases mercy and trumps every mistake!
Before we break down Mt. 21:22 for our edification and understanding, let’s understand that there are two ways to pray – with our souls and with our spirits. I’ve taught much about praying in the spirit, praying in tongues, but here we want to develop our understanding and application of prayer with our understanding, and then integrating both forms of prayer.
For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. 15 What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. 1 Cor 14:14-16 NKJV
It was three weeks before I was to go to Kenya and I didn’t have the money. So, I sat on my couch at 7pm and asked the Lord about this need. I said, “I have two questions for You – do you want me to go to Kenya, and secondly, where is the money?” We have a commonsense rule in our ministry that trips must be paid for in advance. I asked that question and then began to pray in tongues as I awaited the answer. After four hours of praying in tongues, the Lord spoke. He said, “I want you go to Kenya, and I’ll give you the money tomorrow at 830am.” He did exactly that! I went to Kenya, and through an extraordinary set of circumstances got to minister healing to a breast cancer victim who was healed instantly. This story embodies the principles of specific answers to prayer.
And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive. Matt 21:22 NKJV
‘And’ – The ‘and’ ties verse twenty-two with verse twenty-one, Jesus’ great teaching on the gift of faith.
So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. Matt 21:21 NKJV
The gift of faith works through commands or decrees and is governed by the revelation gifts. In other words, you must seek revelation or passively receive revelation in order to command or decree the will of God to come to pass, by the gift of faith. If a new babe in Christ sixteen-year-old can receive revelation and get specific answers to prayer, you can too! Jesus also said, “Have faith and do not doubt.” One of the great functions of speaking in tongues is to burn up carnality in your life and replace it with faith.
I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” Matt 3:11-12 NKJV
For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Rom 8:13-14 NKJV
But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. Jude 20-21 NKJV
…whatever things you ask in prayer…
‘Whatever’ is governed by what is in your heart. Why do we always doubt ourselves? Why do we question what is in our hearts? Why don’t we believe that God works in our hearts (Phil. 2:13)? It’s because we live under a spirit of condemnation rather than a spirit of revelation. The world and religion are always condemning you and you are believing their lies rather than the Word. To hell with the world…I believe God. Trust that God is working in your heart when you ask ‘whatever’!
…believing…
One of the great statements that I love in the NT, made from tremendous courage and self-control, came from Paul amid impending panic and disaster, with a rolling ship and rain pouring down sideways, and it saved the lives of hundreds of people. During a great hurricane at sea, on the wheat ship, Paul said…
And now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. 23 For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, 24 saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ 25 Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me. Acts 27:22-26 NKJV
Faith requires revelation, and then it requires courage to believe the revelation. Here is the key to answered prayer – getting quiet enough to truly hear from God. Your soul will try to imitate the HS and spit out some pat answer. Don’t accept that answer. Get specific answers that impart faith. Many times, you know it is God when you get a unique answer that fills you with understanding and faith and gives you peace (Gen. 41:16). Speaking in tongues brings rest to your soul and will help you to get quiet to hear God.
For with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people, 12 To whom He said, “This is the rest with which You may cause the weary to rest,” And, “This is the refreshing”; Yet they would not hear. Isa 28:11-12 NKJV
…you will receive…
The Christian God, our God, is the only God that promises answers to prayer. All the other gods and their followers say, I hope so! Our God says, “You will receive!” Some situations are time-sensitive, so you must approach them with the desperate effort that is time sensitive.
It was the Saturday before a big week of ministry, and I didn’t feel spiritually like I was locked in to be successful. So, I started at six thirty in the morning to pray in tongues and read the Bible concurrently. Seven AM was breakfast time at the place I was staying, a Catholic mission guesthouse – the AMANI Center – in Nairobi, so I stopped from 7-730am. At 730 am I started again to pray and read and kept going until noontime, which again was a half hour lunch break. At 1230 I picked up again until 330pm when the HS spoke in my spirit and said, “You are ready…” I stopped because I was ready. The next day one of my favorite healing incidents occurred where a young boy with polio got healed, and we sent him running home to his mother!
Some promises and prayer situations are long term and require patient perseverance rather than desperate, cancel-everything-else prayer focus. I knew when I got involved with our friends that had not had children in twenty years of marriage that I had a specific RHEMA promise from God that we would have to walk out by faith over several years. Yes, after hundreds of hours of prayer, including our prayer team, the twins were born twenty-three months after the revelation promise. So, God promises, YOU WILL RECEIVE!
In summary:
1). Make a clear, specific request of the Lord, believing that your heart is right.
2). Sit in His presence, quietly worshipping and praying in tongues, until you get a clear, specific word from Him regarding your request.
3). Have the courage to believe Him and follow His instructions specifically until you have the thing you requested.
Prayers answered!
I marvel at how awesome our God is! He has perfect knowledge of everything, perfect power in every situation, and has perfect patience in waiting for us to believe Him. He will not compromise His Word, because in His love He is testing us, challenging us to believe Him and love Him with our whole hearts. His safety net for us is eternal life! He loves us so tenderly and personally like we were an ‘only child,’ the focus of all His love, and we are! Go to Him joyfully with expectation. Lay all your hurt down at the foot of the Cross and joyfully walk that yellow brick road with Him to the Throne. All your hearts desires will be met because He is the God of answered prayer! Amen? Love you!
Remember dear ones, we must be about our Father’s business…