Ask anything - Doctrine of prayer part 1 John 14:13

John 14:12 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me [the preposition “eis” shows us that this is not for salvation but post salvation faith in His word], the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to the Father.

 

“Because I go to the Father,” means the session will unlock the windows of heaven and the surpassing power of the church will be poured out to all who believe so that they might bear much fruit.

 

John 15:1 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

 

John 15:2 "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it [suffering for blessing - removes the human viewpoint = wasted energy], that it may bear more fruit.

 

John 15:3 "You are already clean [saved] because of the word which I have spoken to you.

 

John 15:4 "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide [fellowship] in Me.

 

John 15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing.

 

John 15:6 "If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch, and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned [divine discipline].

 

John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you.

 

John 15:8 "By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

 

/ “prove” - future middle indicative of ginomai [ginomai] = you shall become My disciples.\

 

I don’t like “prove” as a translation because it implies that you have to show your good works to men, and as invisible heroes in the intensified stage of the AC, that is impossible.

 

/James 2:24

You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone. This is experiential justification before God and not before men.\

 

The disciplined student of the word of God bears much fruit. This is the mark of his discipleship and his glorification of God in time.

 

Principle:

/The purpose of the royal family or body of Christ on earth is the glorification of God through the execution of the protocol plan for this dispensation. \

 

We are still in the midst of the disciples asking questions and now Christ presents the way questions should be asked after He ascends and the Church-age begins, and that is by prayer.

 

Go back to:

John 14:13 "And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

 

/Christ sits at the right hand of God as the Mediator of prayer. All prayer is processed through Him, onto God the Father. “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will process to the Father…”\

 

In My name shows that the effective believer priest is occupied with the Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore his requests are in line with the will of the Father and the mind of Christ.

 

“Father, I would like a billion dollars, in Jesus name amen,” is not an effective prayer.

 

This is because all prayer has two parts:

/Prayer includes the petition and the desire. Example: Petition = money. Desire = happiness and security.\

 

Let’s take it down from a billion to something more reasonable, not because God is low on funds, but because that much is in excess and obviously just selfish.

 

/James 4:3

You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. \

 

With wrong motivation you will receive neither the petition or the desire.

 

With proper motivation you may receive both or the desire only.

 

/God may say no to the petition [money, right man/woman, promotion, healing, etc.] and yes to the desire [happiness and security revealed in another way.\

 

This is all processed by the Lord as He sits at the right hand of God.

 

/As the Lord Mediates your prayer He may drop some aspects and add others so that when it reaches the Father it will be done. By this the Father is glorified by the Son.\

 

/1 Tim 2:5

For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, \

 

/HEB 8:6

But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises. \

 

/HEB 12:24

and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. \

 

John 14:14 "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.

 

Prayer is addressed to the Father, in the name of the Son, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it is not incorrect here that the Lord instruct them to ask Him anything, since all prayer must go through Him.

 

The Church-age has not begun yet, and it will not for another 50+ days. More instruction will be given to them concerning prayer, but here He is teaching them that once He is gone they don’t have to stop asking questions, but that He will hear them every time they pray and He, in His humanity, will mediate that prayer directly to His left - to the Father in whom there is no time or chronology, but in whom all the decree of human history is progressed. In other words, your prayer can affect the course of history because God the Father heard that prayer through the mediation of the Son long ago in eternity past.

 

John 16:23 "And in that day [Church-age] you will ask Me no question. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you shall ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My name.

 

The entire doctrine of prayer has not been given yet because the NT hasn’t even begun to be written. So we cannot take one scripture out from the rest that instruct us on the method, success, and purpose of proper prayer, and think that prayer is a blank check no matter what we ask for, how we ask for it, and the motivation behind asking for it. All of that will be revealed to the church.

 

John 16:24 "Until now you have asked for nothing in My name [to the contrary they have been asking Him questions directly]; ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full.

 

And so we begin the doctrine of prayer.

 

/Doctrine of Prayer:

 

1. Introductory principles. \

 

/a. Prayer does not make God your servant, therefore all prayer must be in accordance with God’s will and authority.\