EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/28/2025 6:41 PM
My Worship Time Focus: “Boldness in Prayer”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: 1 John
3:21-22a
Message of the verses: “21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have
confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from Him,”
It is my belief that this section will be something
that all of us will benefit with as it has to do with our boldness in our
prayer life. Truth is that doubt ceases
when believers are walking in faithfulness and obedience, because the heart
does not condemn so that insecurity and fear give way to confidence before
God. I know that this is true but I can
also say that there are far too many times in my life with I have to battle
with this as at times it is because of fear, and dealing with an overacting
conscience. This is the kind of things that
I need to help me with these problems and maybe for some who read this too, and
that is why I write these Spiritual Diaries each day. MacArthur writes “Such assurance causes
believers to enter God’s presence with certainty (Eph. 3:12; Heb. 10:19; cf. 2
Cor. 3:4; 1 Tim. 3:13).” Perhaps it is
best for me to copy these verses in this SD, and they will be in the order that
are listed above.
12 in whom we have boldness and confident access through
faith in Him.
19 Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter
the holy place by the blood of Jesus,
4 Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.
13 For those who have served well as deacons obtain for
themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ
Jesus.
I don’t always quote the verses that MacArthur has
in his commentaries, but there are times when I think that they will be very
helpful.
MacArthur
continues right after the last verse reverence by writing “so that whatever
they ask in prayer they will receive from Him.
The word rendered confidence (parresia)
means ‘boldness’ and ‘freedom of speech.’
It describes the privilege of coming before someone of importance,
power, and authority and feeling free to express whatever is on one’s
mind. For believers it means coming into
the presence of our loving heavenly Father without fear (cf. 2:28; 4:17) and
with full assurance that whatever we ask we receive from Him (cf. 5:14; John
14:13-14; 15:7, 16, 16:23-24). The
writer to the Hebrews used a form of parresia
in 4:16: ‘Therefore let us draw near
with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find
grace to help in time of need.’”
Now because some might consider that approach presumptuous,
however obviously, any requests believers make to God must be in accordance
with His will as seen in Matt. 26:39, 42.
MacArthur writes “John R. W. Stott provides insight in this regard.” I will now quote those comments that Stott
writes as I finish up this SD.
“John does not mean ti imply
that God hears and answers our prayers merely for the subjective reason that we
have a clear conscience and an uncondemning heart. There is an objective, moral reason, namely because we keep his commandments and,
more generally, do those things that are pleasing in his sight. Obedience is the indispensable condition, not
the meritorious cause, of answered prayer.
Whatsoever we ask, we receive
describes the Christian’s habitual experience (the verbs are in the present tense),
and Candish is right to point to the incarnate Son as the supreme example of
pleasing God and so being heard by God (Jn. Viii. 29, xi. 41, 42). The
statement echoes our Lord’s promise, where the same two verbs occur: “Ask and it shall be given you …for every one
that asketh receiveth” (Matt. Vii. 7, 8).
(The Epistles of John, They Tyndale
New Testament Commentaries [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964], 149; emphases in
orginial)
MacArthur
concludes this rather short section: “Boldness
in prayer is therefore clear evidence of a changed heart. Because they know God as ‘Abba Father!’ (Rom.
8:15; Gal. 4:6), believers realize that anything they ask within His will (cf.
John 14:113-14) He is going to hear because He has promised to meet all their
needs (Phil. 4:19; cf. Ps. 23:1; 2 Cor. 9:8).”
1/28/2025 7:21 PM
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