© 21 Colin Melbourne
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
Jn. 15:7-8 KJV
And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
Jn. 16:23-24 KJV
Undeniable Evidence
Here we have two plain and emphatic promises to believers from our Teacher and Lord, so we need to embrace them with a believing heart, in order that we bear much fruit, proving we are His disciples. Witnesses with proof of His resurrection.
Asking and Demanding
There’s a subtle difference between John chapters 15 and 16 regarding the use of the word ask.
It is stated in John 16, that Christ is speaking of believers praying, asking Father to do something in Jesus’ Name.
Ask in the John 15 passage is used in a quite different context; though still relying on the Name of Christ and Holy Ghost power to endorse it.
Ask here is used in the sense of requiring, demanding, insisting: It is actually giving a command in Jesus’ Name. This type of “asking” is directed not to Father, but to a situation confronting us.
Believers need to do this when, for example, facing disease, demonic powers, and demons.
We are not pleading with diseases and demons to depart, we are requiring, demanding they do so, on the basis of our authority won for us through Christ’s perfect eternal redemption.
Study how Jesus healed people, drove out demons, and raised the dead.
His prayer fellowship was the source of understanding of Father’s will, what He wanted Christ to do, but to accomplish it Christ commanded demons to leave, and diseases to be healed. He didn’t ask Father to do it, and He certainly didn’t beg demons and diseases to submit to His words.
That is what asking in Jn. 15:7 is referring to.
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
The Greek word used for ask in John 15:7 is defined in Strong’s Greek concordance;
aiteo (ahee-teh’-o) :- ask, beg, call for, crave, desire, require, which is strictly a demand for something due.
Whereas the asking in John 16 explicitly refers to prayer to Father in Jesus’ Name.
Father expects believers to believe Christ’s Promises, and act on them boldly.
What Jesus said disciples can do… they can do, they can do it because He said so.
Try to grasp that thought and attitude to the words of God, especially the rhema words spoken by God’s Spirit to our hearts.
Walking on Water
This was the point of Christ walking across Lake Galilee.
It wasn’t His idea, Father told Him in his prayer fellowship to walk on water, Christ believed that word, and did so. He didn’t need to ask for the ability, “Please Father, teach and enable me how to do the impossible!”
No, no, the Son of God simply believed Father’s word, and knew obeying it would supernaturally equip Him to walk over the stormy Sea of Tiberias.
That is how Jesus walked with Father God: What He said: Jesus did, and it worked every time.
Therefore it makes perfect sense that He chided Peter, drowning as he attempted the same, Mtt. 14:28-31 KJV;
And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
Doubting God’s words is sin: Believing them is victory assured. 1 Jn. 5:14-15 KJV;
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
Believers need no further evidence to act, other than; God commanded me, so I can do what He said. Disciples begin acting in faith, and then the Spirit of God provides the anointing power to complete it.
Dare to act boldly on God’s words. Fear not: Only Believe!
AMEN
© 21 Colin Melbourne
You may wish to read;