I came to faith in Jesus in the spring semester of my junior year in high school. Throughout that term, several colleges and universities would set up booths to promote their respective schools to the juniors and seniors. The high school hosted several of these college fairs.
They gave us a chance to learn about colleges and degree programs, but I had a problem. I didn’t know where I wanted to go and what I wanted to study.
So I did what any new Christian would do; I asked God, “Where do you want me to go to college?” Pretty simple request. And in a response that was almost audible, the Lord replied, “Oral Roberts University.” It’s a Christian university located in Tulsa, OK. (At the moment, ORU is making news because it’s enjoying a magical run in the NCAA Tournament. The men’s basketball team has advanced to the Sweet 16!)
Well, I obeyed the Holy Spirit and applied. Within a short time, I received an acceptance letter in the mail even though I was still a junior. So I spent my entire senior year knowing where I was headed after graduating. The Lord took the pressure off me!
Now, how do you react to my testimony? Does it encourage you that God can answer your prayers or do you feel overlooked? Have you heard lots of stories of breakthroughs and miracles while many of your prayers go unheard?
Most of the time, when Christians talk about what the Lord is doing in their lives, they’re trying to encourage people. True, some are grandstanding, but the majority are aiming to remind others of God’s willingness and ability to answer prayer. They seek to build up hope so that fellow believers can experience similar blessings.
Is the blessing of answered prayer transferable? Does God answering one of my prayers mean He will answer my next ones? Does His response to me assure you that He will fulfill your requests? In hope we assume that such blessings will transfer, that the God who came through for one of us will look with favor on the petition of another.
But how do we know this? What if God plays favorites? How do we get on His good side?
Is this your experience? It’s been mine. I haven’t kept tabs, but I have a bunch of unanswered prayers. I praise God for all the times He’s listened to me, comforted me, and granted my requests. But I can also list some appeals which seem to have gone unheeded. Do our experiences reveal God’s character as arbitrary? How do we discover what He’s like?
Jesus shows us. The issue of prayer–answered and unanswered–is embedded in the nature of the Lord Himself. If we want to understand the character of God, we need to discover it in Christ. He shows us the mind and the power of God.
“No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.” – John 1:18
Jesus Christ, being fully human and fully divine, communicates to us who God is. And we need His insight! Left to ourselves, we’re stuck with flawed speculations and guesswork about God’s heart, purposes, and actions. But Jesus expresses the Father in a way that surpasses even the prophets of old.
“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. 3The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” – Hebrews 1:1-3
In Jesus, we have God’s complete revelation. But we’re slow learners. If Jesus diverges from our ingrained assumptions, we get confused and ask Him for something we already have.
“Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.’ 9Jesus answered: ‘Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”?’” – John 14:8-9
We don’t have to ask Jesus to reveal God to us. He’s been doing that all along! As we continue to follow Christ, we will learn more about our God and King. In fact, this describes our salvation.
“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” – John 17:3
What does Jesus show us about God, particularly in the context of prayer? There are too many verses to cite, but here’s one from the apostle Peter that summarizes Christ’s ministry.
“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.” – Acts 10:38
Jesus shared the love and power of God with everyone. That means there’s hope for me and you! If He blessed others, He will bless us. And where do we get such assurance? Well, a few verses before verse 38, Peter said this:
“I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.” – Acts 10:34-35
In other words, God doesn’t play favorites. He loves everyone of us and the ministry of Jesus demonstrates this. So if we doubt the Father’s love, let us look upon the Son. He is God’s final, decisive Word. As Peter declares,
“You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.” – Acts 10:36
Jesus is Lord! We can make spiritual progress only by following Christ. We can grow in our grasp of prayer only by basing it on His authority. Every other avenue will be a dark alley. But the Lord will give us the light we need.
So stay encouraged and continue to pray. As you do, you’ll see Jesus change you, discipline you, and enrich you. Remember, the blessings are all in Him.
