Does God hear and answer every prayer? You may already know of the oft-quoted divine responses as YES, NO, and WAIT. But sometimes, when we pray, we tend to oversimplify things. We even cite Scripture to back up our prayers.
13 You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. 14 Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it! - John 14:13-14, NLT
John 14:13-14 is one especially-misunderstood text. I, for one,
interpreted it as most people do--that God will do ANYTHING I ask. But does He?
Context of the Verse
The Gospel of John was written during a time when false prophets were
becoming mainstream, and many of the Christians at the time were leaving the
faith. The author intended this Gospel to persuade his audience, who is
primarily Jewish, that Jesus is indeed the Messiah they are hoping for.
In Chapter 14, John is narrating the scenes in the Last Supper. Verses
13-14 are part of Jesus' charge to the disciples as he turns over his earthly
ministry to them. In the context of this atmosphere, we see Jesus teaching the
disciples—as well as us modern-day followers—a different meaning to “ask for
anything” than that we are more familiar with.
Ask for anything--in His name.
Oftentimes we make the mistake of stopping at the word
"anything." To ask in Jesus’ name is to seek the things that honor Him.
It's not like the padrino system we
are so familiar with, where Filipinos tend to name-drop so they can get things
done their way. To ask in Jesus’ name is to recognize His sovereignty and
authority over everything, and that our requests are subject to His power.
Ask for Jesus to do it--in His terms
As the Last Supper unfolded and stretched into the upcoming events of
Good Friday, Jesus here is challenging the disciples not to fear as he turns
over the ministry to them. He is telling them that they can do things He did,
or even greater, because He is sending the Holy Spirit. What did Jesus do? He
healed the sick, loved the unlovable, encouraged the weary, preached freedom to
the oppressed. Just as Jesus did these, if we ask Him, he will enable us to do
as well.
Ask--that God may be glorified
When we recognize that Jesus is sovereign and that everything He does
is towards God's glory, we realize that He is not obligated at all to obey our
every request. Rather, what matters most is that Jesus honors the Father more
than getting what we ask. In this view, we must also consider verse 15: If we
love Jesus, we must obey His commands. When we do His ministry, we must be
willing to obey—not so that we can get His favor, but for God to be glorified.
We need to stop interpreting Jesus’ words as a license to ask for
anything we want, especially the material desires that so often creep up on us.
To “ask for anything in My name” was an encouragement meant primarily for the
disciples who were finally confronted with the impending reality of Christ’s
inevitable death. To look at it any other way is contrary to what Jesus really
intended for His disciples and for us modern-day followers who may need
encouragement as we fight through life’s battles.
