God Listens To Us

God Listens To Us

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.

And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

1 John 5:14–15

This passage is an encouragement to Christians who have been instructed on how they should believe and love. They must remember that their godliness comes from the Word that has been proclaimed, and they must not live any other way than in faith and love. John anticipates an objection from these people: “What if my heart is cold and I feel that I lack faith?” “Here is the remedy,” says John. “Ask and pray. He will hear you.”

James says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5). Your best course of action is to rely on prayer. Paul says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6). Likewise, Augustine says, “Lord, give me what you are commanding.” So we also should pray, “Lord, give us faith.”

This verse is an encouragement to pray, and John describes how to pray in an excellent way. First, he reminds us that we can have “confidence,” which is the soul of prayer. Next, he instructs us what to ask for: “Ask anything according to his will.” Finally, we must also believe that “he hears us.” James supports this: “He [who doubts] is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does” (James 1:8). “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt” (v. 6).