Today, we’re going to discuss what it means to pray using God’s Word and how reminding Him of His promises isn’t for His sake, but for ours. We will explore how reading, meditating, and living in His Word aligns our hearts with His will, and when that happens, He delivers on His promises.
[00:00:37] [SPEAKER_00]: The Bible Speaks
[00:00:38] [SPEAKER_00]: Welcome to The Bible Speaks with your host, Elgin Carelock.
[00:00:42] [SPEAKER_00]: The Bible Speaks is a daily podcast dedicated to sharing the good news of Jesus Christ,
[00:00:49] [SPEAKER_00]: rightly dividing the word of truth and learning how to apply it to our daily lives.
[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_00]: You may contact Elgin at the address given at the end of the broadcast,
[00:01:00] [SPEAKER_00]: and now here's Elgin.
[00:01:02] [SPEAKER_01]: Brothers and sisters, I welcome you, whoever you are, wherever you are, and when you're listening.
[00:01:10] [SPEAKER_01]: To another edition of The Bible Speaks, where we explode the power of God's Word
[00:01:18] [SPEAKER_01]: and how it's applied to our everyday lives.
[00:01:22] [SPEAKER_01]: And today, we're going to have a discussion on a phrase that introduces a mind of many of us,
[00:01:28] [SPEAKER_01]: but we're sometimes afraid to say something.
[00:01:33] [SPEAKER_01]: Today's episode is titled, But God, You Said...,
[00:01:40] [SPEAKER_01]: Our inspiration comes from John Chapter 15, Verse 7, and reading from the New International Version it reads,
[00:01:50] [SPEAKER_01]: If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.
[00:02:01] [SPEAKER_01]: This verse reveals a powerful truth.
[00:02:05] [SPEAKER_01]: When we pray according to God's Word, aligning our needs with His will, He promises to hear and respond.
[00:02:15] [SPEAKER_01]: So we're going to dive deep into what it means to pray using God's Word, and how reminding Him of His promises isn't for His sake, but for ours.
[00:02:28] [SPEAKER_01]: We will explore how reading, meditating, and living in His Word aligns your heart with His will.
[00:02:36] [SPEAKER_01]: And when we do that, He delivers on His promises.
[00:02:42] [SPEAKER_01]: Prayer is not just about speaking words. It's about communicating with God in a way that reflects His will.
[00:02:50] [SPEAKER_01]: Jesus said in John 15 and 7, that if we remain in Him and His Word remains in us, then we can ask for whatever we wish and it will be done for us.
[00:03:05] [SPEAKER_01]: But what does it mean to remain in Him and have His Word remain in us?
[00:03:13] [SPEAKER_01]: It means that prayer should be rooted in God's Word.
[00:03:17] [SPEAKER_01]: When we pray using Scripture, we are aligning our desires with God's promises.
[00:03:25] [SPEAKER_01]: Isaiah 55 and 11, reading from the New International Version says,
[00:03:31] [SPEAKER_01]: So is my Word that goes out from my mouth.
[00:03:35] [SPEAKER_01]: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
[00:03:45] [SPEAKER_01]: God's Words are powerful, and when we pray according to His Word, we're tapping into that power.
[00:03:52] [SPEAKER_01]: For example, if you're praying for peace, you might remind God of Philippians 4 verses 6 through 7 which says,
[00:04:05] [SPEAKER_01]: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation by prayer and petition with thanksgiving present your request to God.
[00:04:15] [SPEAKER_01]: And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
[00:04:26] [SPEAKER_01]: By praying this promise, you're aligning your request for peace with God's assurance that He will provide it.
[00:04:35] [SPEAKER_01]: You might be thinking, why do we need to remind God of His promises? Doesn't He already know? Absolutely.
[00:04:44] [SPEAKER_01]: God hasn't forgotten what He said, but when we remind Him of His promises in prayer, it's not for His benefit, it's for ours.
[00:04:56] [SPEAKER_01]: By praying His promises back to Him, we are demonstrating our faith in His Word.
[00:05:01] [SPEAKER_01]: It shows that we've taken the time to know what He's promised and that we trust Him to fulfill those promises.
[00:05:10] [SPEAKER_01]: This practice strengthens our relationship with Him and deepens our understanding of His will and shows that we believe His Word is true.
[00:05:23] [SPEAKER_01]: 2 Timothy 2 verse 15 says, Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the Word of truth.
[00:05:39] [SPEAKER_01]: Knowing and praying God's Word shows that we are serious about our faith. It is a way of handling the Word of truth correctly.
[00:05:50] [SPEAKER_01]: It's like telling God, Lord I know your Word and I believe it. I trust you to fulfill what you have spoken.
[00:05:59] [SPEAKER_01]: 1 John 15 and 7 is the condition Jesus places on His promise. If you remain in me, and my words remain in you.
[00:06:14] [SPEAKER_01]: This shows that the promise of the answered prayer is contingent upon our alignment with His Word.
[00:06:21] [SPEAKER_01]: When we pray, it's not just about asking about what we want. It's about making sure our desires are in line with God's will.
[00:06:32] [SPEAKER_01]: As we immerse ourselves in Scripture, our hearts and minds begin to reflect God's priorities.
[00:06:40] [SPEAKER_01]: The more time we spend meditating on His Word, the more we understand His desires for our lives.
[00:06:48] [SPEAKER_01]: This doesn't mean that we won't have personal requests, but it does mean that our requests will be filtered through the lens of God's will.
[00:06:58] [SPEAKER_01]: 1 John 5 verses 14 through 15, again reading from the New International Version says,
[00:07:06] [SPEAKER_01]: This is the confidence we have in approaching God, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
[00:07:17] [SPEAKER_01]: And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know we have what we ask of Him.
[00:07:26] [SPEAKER_01]: The key is praying according to God's will, and we find His will by spending time in His Word.
[00:07:35] [SPEAKER_01]: It's one thing to pray God's Word, but it's another thing to live it out.
[00:07:42] [SPEAKER_01]: In order to see the fulfillment of God's promises, we need to be walking in obedience to His Word.
[00:07:49] [SPEAKER_01]: James 1 verse 22 reminds us, don't merely listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.
[00:08:01] [SPEAKER_01]: We can't simply read or recite scripture, we must live by it.
[00:08:07] [SPEAKER_01]: If we're praying for provision, we also need to live with a mindset of trust and obedience.
[00:08:14] [SPEAKER_01]: If we're praying for healing, we need to walk in faith, believing that God is at work.
[00:08:21] [SPEAKER_01]: God honors our faith when it is backed up by our actions.
[00:08:26] [SPEAKER_01]: Living according to God's Word also means staying patient.
[00:08:31] [SPEAKER_01]: Just because God hasn't answered your prayer immediately doesn't mean He's not working.
[00:08:38] [SPEAKER_01]: Hebrews 10 and 36 says, you need to persevere so that when you have done all the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.
[00:08:49] [SPEAKER_01]: There's a process involved in receiving God's promises, and part of that process is staying faithful and obedient, even when the answer hasn't arrived yet.
[00:09:03] [SPEAKER_01]: So let's revisit the promise of John 15 and 7.
[00:09:08] [SPEAKER_01]: If you remain in me and my Word remains in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.
[00:09:16] [SPEAKER_01]: When we pray God's Word and remind Him of His promises, we're not only expressing faith, we're aligning our hearts with His will.
[00:09:27] [SPEAKER_01]: God's Word will never return void.
[00:09:31] [SPEAKER_01]: When I request a line with His will and we're living according to His Word, we can pray with boldness saying,
[00:09:39] [SPEAKER_01]: but God, you said, and when we pray this, we can trust that it will be done for us just as Jesus promised.
[00:09:50] [SPEAKER_01]: I thank you for spending time with me on today and I look forward to our conversation on tomorrow.
[00:09:57] [SPEAKER_01]: Until then, God bless.
[00:10:14] [SPEAKER_00]: I ask God to give us the gospel to the corners of the earth.
[00:10:17] [SPEAKER_00]: If anything you've heard poured into your life, please share it with someone.
[00:10:23] [SPEAKER_00]: You can find the Bible Speaks on Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer and many more.
[00:10:32] [SPEAKER_00]: Follow us on YouTube at the Bible Speaks online.
[00:10:37] [SPEAKER_00]: You may contact Elgin at PO Box 5582 or Calla, Florida 34478
[00:10:47] [SPEAKER_00]: or by email at thebiblespeaksonline at gmail.com