Matthew 7:7-8 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Purpose of payer:
Too often praying to many people is simply making requests of God. Prayer should include not only petitions but also praise, thanksgiving, worship, and confession. God enjoys fellowship with His creatures and just as He came to Adam and Eve in the garden, so He desires to come and have fellowship with us as well. James says the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Effectual fervent is one word in the Greek and means active, serious and comes from the word energeo. This sounds similar to our word “energy”. James says not only efeectual and fervent but also from a righteous person. Righteous refers to our standing before God – what our life is like. Prayer is also building a relationship with the eternal God.
Factirs fir asking:
The word used for requests is aiteo and carries the idea of one who is lesser petitioning one who is superior. This differs from a word which means to simply ask from one who is on an equal standing.
Ask in right standing -- Being in right standing carries two perspectives. First we ask as children of our Heavenly Father. Since being born again we are now in His family. Then right standing also means that we are living in all the light we have and obedience. David said, “If I regard iniquity in my heart He will nothear me” Again Isaiah says Isa 59:1-2.
Ask in faith -- We must be fully convinced that God is able to provide the answer of our petition. We must also believe that He wants to answer our prayer and we must believe that he does hear us. Jam 1:6-7.
Come in total dependence -- Jesus said “blessed are the poor in spirit” – those who realize their inability to solve their dilemma. If we think we are able to provide wat we are asking of God then we are not totally dependent upon Him. When we know we are not worthy and totally unable to provide what we ask for, then we are asking in dependence.
Without selfish ,motives -- James says we have not because we ask for selfish purposes we will not receive our request from the Lord. Ask that we may help others by the answer or that we can glorify God with the answer. Jesus also said, Give and it shall be given you. .
According to His will -- Our requests must be according to His will not our own – 1 Jn 5:14. Too often we want our own way in the petitions we ask for and not what God desires.
Ask in Jesus name -- This is ot merely ending or beginning our prayer “in Jesus name”, but asking with consistence to His name and honor. His name represents: bread, water, wisdom, truth, and peace.
How to seek:
When Israel ask for food God gave them manna, but they had to go out every morning and pick it up.
Seek after God -- If we simply seek a gift and ignore the Giver we shall not receive an answer and we miss the whole reason God sent a need. Seeking the Lord means to get to know more about Him Psa 105:4. It is said of one king 2 Chron 26:5
Seek Him with the whole heart – The Lord promised Jer 29:13. Not withholding anything from Him, not trying to hide any secret sin or rebellion.
Seek Him every day -- God created us with daily needs not long runs. Jesus said to pray for daily bread. We are not like some animals that only eat once a month or every few weeks, but we were created to have daily needs – that includes seeking Him daily.
Seek Him early -- Seeking early does not always means early morning because some are morning people and others are night people. God gave the Israelites the manna and they had to collect it in the mornings before the sun was too hot. David said he would seek Him early Psa 63:1 . Jesus rose early in the morning to pray and seek the Father.
A forgiving spirit -- Jesus said if we do not forgive others neither will the Father foirgive us, so we need to have a forgiving spirit to seek God.
A generous spirit -- Jesus said to give and it shall be given to us. We seek God for help, blessings and benefits we should be willing to share with others.
Factors for knocking:
Persistently -- Jesus told of a woman who persisted after a judge to give her justice and he finally did. God does not have to hounded in order to answer prayer or give us our petitions, byut we need to be persistent to show our seriousness.
Loudly -- Knock with proper volume
Respectfully -- Doors are used to secure privacy and protection. Knocking then should be with respect. We approach and knock before God with respect of His honor, authority and Lordship.