LESSON #1: WHY WE DO NOT RECEIVE FROM GOD
“You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” (James 4:2-3)
There are two main reasons why we do not receive from God:
1) We rely on ourselves to get what we want. We do not rely on God and ask from Him.2) We ask amiss that we may spend it on our pleasures. We ask with the wrong motives.
LESSON #2: HOW MUCH WE CAN RECEIVE FROM GOD?
“For with God nothing will be impossible.” (Luke 1:37)
There is no limit to how much God can give to us. However, how much we will receive from God is determined by the way we ask from Him.
There are three ways of asking from God:
1) Asking like a beggar.2) Asking like a son.
3) Asking like a king.
LESSON #3: ASKING LIKE A BEGGAR
(Desperate prayer)
“For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.” (1 John 3:20)
A beggar asks from a stranger. He has no relationship with the person whom he asks from. A beggar is usually desperate. He asks for things for his survival and only thinks about himself. A beggar feels ashamed of himself. He does not feel worthy to receive what he asks. Therefore, he usually receives less than what he asks.
If we ask from God like a beggar, we shall receive less than what we ask.
LESSON #4: ASKING LIKE A SON
(Faith prayer)
“If you then, being 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)
A son asks from his father. He has a close relationship with the person whom he asks from. A son asks as a response to his father’s goodness and generosity. He asks because his father always wants to give good things to him. When a son asks for things, he does not only think about his own needs or desires, but he also thinks about his father’s good pleasure. Therefore, he usually receives according to what he asks.
If we ask from God like a son, we shall receive according to what we ask.
LESSON #5: ASKING LIKE A KING
(Kingdom prayer)
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,” (Ephesian 3:20)
A king asks from another king who is more honorable than himself. He has a special relationship with the person whom he asks from. A king never thinks about himself. He always thinks about the well being of his people and the prosperity of their land. A king bows down, surrenders himself, and offers gifts before he asks. Therefore, he usually receives more than what he asks.
If we ask from God like a king, we shall receive more than what we ask.
