|
|
Bible Study Questions
1 John 5:14-15
1) What are the three main tests around which the Book of 1 John is designed? How do they differ from each other?
2) Where does the main body of 1 John end? How many postscripts does John include at the end of his epistle (letter)?
3) Why are postscripts important?
4) Look carefully at 1 John 5:14, “And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” (1 John 5:14, NASB). What word does the verse begin with? (The NIV does not have this word because it does not carefully trace the original Greek text like the NASB). What does the use of this word show?
5) The context of verse 5:13 then becomes important. What does 1 John 5:13 say? How does this thought found here connect to 5:14? Or put in other words, how does our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ affect our ability to pray? Share about non-Christians that you know of that pray. Are their prayers really ineffective?
6) What does Isaiah 59:2 say about the effectiveness of prayer? What about James 4:3?
Ask for anything! (1 John 5:14)
The first key to effective prayer is simply asking. The passage 1 John 5:14-15 has two ‘ifs.’ We have separated the first ‘if’ clause into two parts.
"And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us" (1 John 2:14).
7) How does John’s first key to effective prayer “Ask anything” relate to what Jesus said in the Gospels. Check John 14:13, 15:7, and 16:24.
8) Does Jesus and John really mean anything? Why do you think John stresses this so much? (You might think whether everyone is equally able to talk and bring up their wishes to their natural father when growing up).
9) Application: Do you ask God for things are more like the person Jesus refers to in John 16:24? What are some things you have asked for from God in the last week or so?
Seek according to God's Will (1 John 5:14)
The second key to effective prayer is asking God of His will.
"And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us" (1 John 2:14).
10) What does ‘according to His will’ mean? (1 John 5:14)
11) How do you seek God’s will? How do you know something is God’s will? Go through the article above and see on the section on buying a house and trying to excel in your field often lead to compromise.
12) What is the process of seeking God’s will. Explain what a ‘burden’ is (this is Christian jargon). Why is it important to get from the ‘burden’ stage to the ‘desire’ stage?
13) What does ‘hear your prayer’ mean? How do you know that the Lord hears your prayer?
Knock until He hears (1 John 5:15)
The confidence that we know God has heard our prayer is the third key to effective prayer.
"And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him" (1 John 5:15).
14) What happens when we are not sure He wants something, and we do not know it is His will or not?
15) What happens when we really think God wants something, but we don’t see an answer to prayer?
16) What happens when what He puts on our hearts seems so much greater than you would ever think of?
17) Why is this confidence or ‘faith’ in God’s answering prayer so important? How important is it if the answers to your prayer request is not seen right away (or ever)? See Daniel 10:13 and 1 Kings 18:41-45).
18) Review the three major steps in having effective prayer.
19) Identify one or two things that you right now need to go through this process with. Make sure they are things that God wants to do.
Reflective questions:
If God has given each of His children the ability to pray for anything, it only follows that He expects us to rightly use this power of prayer to accomplish His great and glorious will. What practical steps can you make to make your life count for Him? How important is prayer to a Christian or to the church overall? What happens if the prayers we could make are not made? Is there a situation so bad that we could not in true humility bring to God in prayer and not find a breakthrough?
Suggestion: Commit yourself to prayer. Ask the Lord to train you to pray and get ready for the adventure of your life!
BFF Homepage | Top | Back | Bible Topics | Summary for 1 John 4:1-5:21 | John intro| 1 John summary
Biblical Foundations for Freedom
Rev. Paul J. Bucknell
NASB used unless noted