Praying in Aligned Faith

Mark 11:24 “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours”.

In a Bible Study of the Gospel of Mark, I found this excellent commentary on Mark 11:24, which many mistake as some personal prosperity prayer. The study states that the disciples of Jesus were blessed to see our Lord perform many miracles during His earthly ministry. In today’s passage, we see that on at least one occasion toward the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry, the miracles of Christ astonished the disciples. Mark reveals that on the day after Jesus cursed the fig tree, the disciples were amazed that Jesus’ words came true. Jesus had ordered the fig tree never to bear fruit again, and it obeyed completely, withering away to its roots. Peter took special note of that, evidently because for him it was an unexpected feat. In reality, it was a metaphorical picture of Jerusalem's Chief Priests, teachers and elders at that time that looked good but produced no fruit for the Lord and His people.

Our Savior was not surprised at all by the events. His response to Peter and the other disciples has the sense of expectedness, that Jesus was not amazed at all by what happened and that the disciples should not have been either. In one sense, what was accomplished was not that hard. It simply took belief. We might paraphrase Jesus’ response in this way: “Of course it withered. And as long as you believe when you pray, anything can happen, even the impossible. It does not take special effort; all you need is faith.”

Certainly, we should be thankful when God says yes to our prayers. However, there is a sense in which we should not be surprised, at least some of the time, when He gives us what we pray for. He promises to supply our needs according to the riches of His glory (Phil. 4:19). If we believe Him, we need not be overly astonished when we see Him keep His promises, though we must always be grateful. Inordinate surprise may reflect prayer that was tinged with doubt. But thanks be to God, in His mercy He often gives us what we ask even when we doubt that He will keep His promises.

Of course, Jesus’ teaching that we will receive what we pray for if we believe God will give it to us is no license to think that God owes us whatever we ask. Our prayers should not be for the winning Power ball Lottery numbers, a Lamborghini Reventon, magnificent mansions or to be the most powerful person in the world. This verse must be understood in light of the consistent teaching of Scripture that we must pray in accordance with the will of God. Our Creator works out all things according to the counsel of His will, not ours. If we ask for something not in His will, we cannot expect to receive it. When our will is aligned with God’s will, then God will grant the desires of our heart because they match His.

The lesson concludes that praying in faith means being willing to acquiesce to God’s will when He says no to our requests. Faith fuels prayer, but it is not faith in what we ask for but faith in the Lord. He alone knows what is best for us, and we trust Him to answer us as He sees fit, for His answer is ultimately for our good and His glory.