WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT PRAYER !

WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT PRAYER (PART 3). In studying the Bible, it is good to compare the different gospel writer accounts of the same incidents in Jesus life. In this way we get different viewpoints. One writer may give us details that the other left out. In Matthew's account of the above story, Jesus said, "And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive" (v. 22). Mark puts it a little differently: ". . . What things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them" (v. 24). Both writers gave the basic formula for faith: remember now, faith in God only comes by hearing and by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). It doesn't come by praying, it doesn't come by reading silently ! Pray, believe, receive. Someone has asked, "but what if you don't receive ?" Then you didn't ask believing, believe what ? Believe the Words of God ! Did you ? The Scripture says if you pray and believe, you shall receive. "Yes, but maybe it isn't the will of God," people will reply. The Scriptures didn't say anything about that. We are too quick to use this as an excuse for our unbelief. Jesus said if you ask in prayer, asked what ? Ask God for what he has promised in the Word of God, believing, you shall receive ! "But what if someone asked for 10 million or well ?" Someone might ask. Well, if you have faith for 10 million always, you will get them. But I doubt seriously you could believe that. Because there is no scriptural basis for such a thing. Don't ask me to agree with you in prayer for them, because I don't think I could. However, if you can believe that you will receive 10 million all wells, you will get them. If you can find a scriptural basis where God has promised them ! Sometimes I have believed for things that seemed almost as possible and have received them. Jesus said it, and I believe it: "What things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them." THE WORD OF FAITH: in John's account of what Jesus said about prayer, not one time does he used the words "faith" or "believe." Let us look at one example: (John 15:7-8). "If you live in ME [abide vitally united to ME] and MY WORDS remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. When you bear (produce) much fruit, MY FATHER is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine." The amplified Bible. Why was it unnecessary to use the words "faith" or "believe" in this passage of Scripture about prayer ? It is because there is no problem with faith if His Words abides in you. There is only a lack of faith when the Word doesn't abides or lives in you, because if the Word doesn't abide, something else does. If the Word abides in you, faith abides in you: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 10:17). A person may be given mental assent to belief in the Word of God. His he could stand up, shake their fists, and the cloud with fervor that he or she believes in the verbal inspiration of the Bible, that he is she believe it from cover to cover -- from Genesis to Revelation -- yet never have the word abiding in him or her. Notice that Jesus didn't say, "if you abide in me. . ." If He had stopped there, we would automatically have it made as born-again Believer because with the New Birth we do abide in Christ, but the Scripture goes on to say, ". . . And my words abide in you. . ." The Word is called "the word of faith" but what saith it ? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is the word of faith, which we preach" (Romans 10:8). If This Word abides in you, it will cause faith to show up in man hearts and out of thier mouth !