“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11, ESV)
In the 1950’s there was a television show titled, Father Knows Best.” It featured a middle-class family and dealt with issues that the functional family would encounter in life. The title of them movie hinted at the wisdom of a father in managing the affairs of the family.
In Matthew 7 verses 7 through 11, we see the words of Jesus who gave some additional instruction on prayer. He told His audience to “ask” if they want to receive, to “seek” if they wish to find, and to “knock” to have a door opened for them. The tenses of these verbs indicate that we should continuously “ask,” “seek” and “knock.” They indicate that God will answer our prayers.
However, does this mean that God will give us anything for which we ask? This can hardly be the case. If this were so, we would never have any struggles and always be in perfect health. We would never have a toothache, fever, or cold. We would have an abundance of money to purchase anything we wanted. No, this guarantee of prayer does not mean that we will get anything we want. Jesus clarified it with this statement.
“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11, ESV)
While I was growing up, my parents gave me good things. They did not always give me what I wanted. I remember as a young man going off to college, I wanted a car. My friends had cars and one had a neat 1957 Chevy Convertible with all the bells and whistles. This was in the days of the muscle cars. I saw a Model-A Ford for $1000 and had visions of building a hot rod out of it. I indicated to my dad that I needed a car and that I saw this neat Model-A. Well, my dad was not too keen on my vision for transportation. He knew something that I did not. While I had a $1000, I could never have afforded to fix up the Model-A.
Sometime later, my dad came home from work and told me that he had found a car that he thought I should consider. It was a 1961 Chevy Impala with a six-cylinder engine. It was not the cool muscle car, but it only cost $75, leaving me plenty of money to fix it up. In the process, I had reliable transportation and learned a lot about automobile mechanics. Yes, looking back at it, my earthly father knew what was best.
This is the point. Our Heavenly Father knows what is best for us. It may not be what we want, but it is always what we need. In our prayers we must try to understand what God’s best is for us and trust that His response to our prayers will always be the best. What are those “good things” that He wants to give us. When we ask for these, we know He will answer. If we examine the Scriptures, we can better understand the nature of these “good things.” These “good things” include strength to overcome temptation, wisdom for decisions, power to be witnesses, that which we need for spiritual growth, etc.
We should take some time to consider what the “good things” are and then ask for them. Then we will have great confidence in our prayers. When we “ask” for the “good things” we certainly will receive.
Renewing the Heart 