Answered Prayer

Answered Prayer


John 16:23-24

During the final days of His earthly ministry, Christ spoke to the disciples about the power of making requests in His name—and the guarantee that God will answer such prayers.
Yesterday we learned that in order to pray in Christ’s name, we must be rightly related to God through faith in Jesus. Because of the Son, we have access to the Father, the right to approach Him with confidence, and the authority to present our petitions to Him.
By using the words in Jesus’ name in prayer, we’re also making a commitment to seek God’s will. Christ withdrew from the crowds frequently so He could commune with and obey His Father (John 5:19). In a similar way, God has a plan for each of us, which He reveals through His Word; when we know what the Bible says, we can shape our prayers according to its truth. In addition, God has also given us the Holy Spirit to guide us into understanding of Scripture (John 16:13).
Finally, our petitions are to reflect our dependence on God. In our self-reliant culture, we tend not to talk to the Lord about things we have under control or think we can handle ourselves. But we are instructed to seek His guidance in all areas (Phil. 4:6) and acknowledge our need of Him.
Our petitions don’t have to be complicated, nor do our words need to be eloquent. What matters is that we have the right to pray in Jesus’ name and that what we ask is in accordance with His will. Then His power will be released, and we can be assured of answered prayer.