1 John 5:14: Ask Anything According To His Will

1 John 5:14
[14] And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. (ESV)

We have a wonderful loving Heavenly Father. Because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sin we are able to come boldly to our Father and express to him our every need. This confidence to come before him is a part of the relationship that every believer has. So, what does this confidence mean? Can we demand everything that we want and expect him to give it to us?

There are many people who are trying to faithfully serve the Lord who have had confusion about what we should expect from God. This is because they have been influenced by preachers who view God as an ATM machine that has to give them all the money that they want. Below are actual quotes from preachers who are very popular on TV. The names have been withheld to protect the foolish.

"If you are struggling financially, then you have not got the victory."

"God didn't create you to be average or poor."

"Money, come to me NOW!"

"Some people say it's about peace, joy and love. NO!! It's about MONEY!"

"Some people come to me and say, well I came here to get some peace, not money, and I tell them, you NEED money otherwise you ain't gunna get no peace."

"You can't do nothing on $50,000 a month!"

Let's get back to reality. The Apostle John reminds us that we know that God will hear us when we ask according to HIS will, not according to OUR will. We need to align ourselves with what God wants. What does he want? He wants us to be like Jesus. We are to be servants. We are to live for his glory. We are not to be greedy, but rather to find our fulfillment in God.

God wants to provide for all of our needs, not our greeds. What a joy to know that we can come to him and be assured that he hears us.  Know the Lord. Know His will. Ask freely. He will hear you.