What does it mean to believe that you have received it (Mark 11:24)?

But this led to the further word as to prayer, in which emphasis is again laid upon faith. "Whosoever shall say … and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe … he shall have whatsoever he saith." The whosoever and the whatsoever make this a very sweeping statement; so sweeping as almost to take our breath away. But this is connected with the prayer contemplated in the next verse, where we have, " What things soever ye desire … believe … and ye shall have them." In both these verses everything evidently hinges on the believing.

Now belief is faith, and faith is not just a human product, a kind of make-believe or imagination. Verse 24. for instance is not that if only I can work myself up to imagine I receive my request, I do receive it. My prayers according to verse 24, and my words, according to verse 23, must be the product of genuine faith; and faith is the spiritual faculty in me which receives the divine Word. Faith is the eye of the soul, which receives and appreciates Divine light. If my prayer is based on intelligent faith, I shall believe that I receive, and I shall actually receive the desired thing. And so also with what I may say, as in verse 23.

1910 43 The promises to prayer, of which the following are some of the more prominent, are, in general, dependent on specified conditions: — (1) "All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matt. 21:22). (2) "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you" (John 15:7). (3) "Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight" (1 John 3:21-22). (4) "If we ask anything 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" (1 John 5:14-15). (5) "If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt. 18:19-20). (6) "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him" (James 5:14-15). (7) "Verily, verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you" (John 14:13-14; John 15:16; John 16:23).

The condition attached to the first of the foregoing is believing. It will be said that believing, or faith, is necessary to all prayer. Though this is true, Scripture recognises specific faith about a specific thing. Thus one of the subjects of the miracles had faith to be healed (Acts 14:9); and it is expressly taught in 1 Cor. 12:9 that there is a distinct spiritual gift of faith which some have, and some have not — a gift alluded to in chap. 13 where Paul corrects the tendency to glory in gifts. "Though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing" (1 Cor. 13:2). It is perhaps to this special character of faith that the Lord refers when He says, "What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" (Mark 11:24). Genuine, divinely-given faith, not mystical or fancied faith, is what is here meant. Probably many have experimented upon this promise, only to be disappointed. Mahomet, it is said, audaciously commanded a mountain to come to him, and when his folly was manifest to all, tried to evade humiliation by saying, "If the mountain will not come to Mahomet, Mahomet will go to the mountain." But the promises of God, and the power of His Spirit, are not bestowed to be the subject of curious experiment, or the means of subserving private ends.

In the gospel of Matthew another aspect of prayer is presented - "All things, whatsoever ye ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." (Matt. 21:22; see also Mark 11:24.) James too speaks of the necessity of faith in asking, and adds that a waverer must not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Now faith can only spring from confidence in God about the thing sought, and this confidence in God will only follow upon the conviction that what is prayed for is according to God's will; and, it may be added, the assurance that we have the mind of God can only be produced by the Holy Spirit, and by the Holy Spirit, speaking generally, through the written Word. Once having this assurance, we await with the certainty of expectation the answer, according to that word of the apostle John: "This is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything 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." (1 John 5:14-15.) This passage is important as showing that faith finds its sure foundation in the knowledge of God's will - a will that is unfolded to us in the Scriptures.

In the gospel of Matthew another aspect of prayer is presented — "All things, whatsoever ye ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." (Matt. 21:22; see also Mark 11:24.) James too speaks of the necessity of faith in asking, and adds that a waverer must not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Now faith can only spring from confidence in God about the thing sought, and this confidence in God will only follow upon the conviction that what is prayed for is according to God's will; and, it may be added, the assurance that we have the mind of God can only be produced by the Holy Spirit, and by the Holy Spirit, speaking generally, through the written Word. Once having this assurance, we await with the certainty of expectation the answer, according to that word of the apostle John: "This is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything 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." (1 John 5:14-15.) This passage is important as showing that faith finds its sure foundation in the knowledge of God's will — a will that is unfolded to us in the Scriptures.

The disciples are in amazement when they see the fig-tree withered; but the Lord uses the miracle to assure them of the power which was ready to manifest itself for them in response to faith. Not only should they do what was done to the fig-tree, but if they had faith and doubted not, even a mountain standing in their way should be removed and cast into the sea, and whatsoever they asked in prayer, believing, would be done. We may well see in this a veiled assurance of how Israel, now nothing but an obstacle in the path of faith would disappear politically in the sea of the nations. But the promise here is of course, of very various application, and it would be entirely wrong in any way to limit it, save as the Lord Himself does; who distinctly makes His last assurance as full as possible. To faith nothing shall be denied; but it is not limitation to insist that faith must be faith.

Mark 11:24 gives the principle on which we are to pray in all cases. Had the disciples asked God then, and we Christ in His lordship and power, or the Father now, all prayer should be with faith. Praying in the Holy Ghost is now connected, in our present state, with Christ's words abiding in us, though there be the distinct element of the energy of the Holy Ghost in us, not merely the words of Christ forming our desires and mind. But, then, as a general principle, the Holy Ghost will, if our hearts be right, keep these words in our mind.

But there are other statements which cast us more generally on the goodness of God, His interest in us, and show that, where faith is in exercise, the answer will be there: "All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing ye shall receive." This supposes faith and intimacy, so to speak, with God. The heart is supposed to be in His interests, and then, if there is faith as a grain of mustard seed, a mountain goes. I do not doubt this kind of faith was much more when any, as the apostles, felt themselves interested in God's cause, identified with Him and it on the earth; but there is no limit to it. Where such faith is, such answer will be; and God is as much occupied now with the details of blessing for us as for the great deeds of those days. It might be more palpable, more concentrated too then, but not more true. Not a sparrow falls now without Him more than then; and the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availing much is ever true: only we must, so to speak, put ourselves with God, for those to whom these things were said were identified with Him in His interests on the earth. This gave their prayers of course a peculiar place; but then if faith (that is, the operation of His Spirit and grace) brings me into His interest now even in details, the promise is there, and we can reckon on God and His power exercised in love now as then. There is no limit: only it is the working of His Spirit in us, and hence faith that reckons on the answer.

Presenting our requests, subject to His will, is always right. Of this we have an example even in Gethsemane; so Paul for his thorn in the flesh. And the answer will be more glorious and blessed than the request, even when it does not as asked answer it. See John 12 and Ps. 132: so Psalm 21, and even Paul's request about the thorn. Let us trust His love, and this will not come short, and if He has given us faith to expect a specific answer, bless God for it. Only our will must not come in; even if it was answered (this was the case of the quails), but as a rule not, as James teaches. But where there is earnest faith, God will surely hear, though He may give us safeguards against our own will in it.

p236 * I do not think that the promises refer to prayers offered up one for another only, though this is a large part of the cases put forward in scripture: "pray one for another," "for me also," "labouring earnestly for you in prayers," and many others; but the prayer of faith is not confined to this. There are prayers for opening the door for the gospel and for all men. If it be not the prayer of positive faith, we are told in all things to present our requests to God, but then the answer is, or may be only, that God's peace which passes all understanding shall keep our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. For the prayer of faith, or rather the promise to it, there are certain limits as to the certainty of answer, such as "in my name," "according to his will," "if ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will," "if two of you shall agree"; besides what stops prayer, as a sin unto death. But then I see no limits put to the expectation of faith if God gives it. If it be my will asking amiss to consume it on my lusts, I cannot expect an answer. But the Lord contemplates the giving of faith and certainty of answer for drying up of the fig tree or removing a mountain, and whatever I can ask believing, I receive it. This is a very important principle.

But first, as to the limits on which formal promise of answer rests besides special faith. The first passage I may refer to is "If we ask anything according to his will he hears us … and we know that we have the petitions." This supposes the demand according to His will, and then we can reckon on His power accomplishing it. This is the general christian confidence, a great boon to be assured of the acting of Him who is Almighty in the way of His will. Next it is said, "If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will." Here I do not doubt there was special reference to the twelve, but in principle it applies to all Christians. Where the mind is formed by the words of Christ, when they abide in one who lives in dependence on and confidence in Him - one thus abiding in Him, having Him in spirit, and his mind guided by Christ's word, his will is (so to speak) Christ's - he asks what he will, and it will come.

Mark 11:24. 'All things that ye perseveringly pray (pres.) and ask for (pres.), keep believing that ye received (aor.) and ye shall have them.'

I am very glad to try and answer your questions. I think any command of the Lord must be rightly turned into a matter of prayer by us, for the carrying out of it can only be in dependence, and prayer is the expression of this. Hence surely it is right to pray to be filled with the Spirit: nor can the verse as to believing "that ye receive them" militate against this, for it especially says "when ye pray" as the condition of thus having them. I fully believe that this is true of every spiritual blessing we need, nor is it even limited to the spiritual — "what things ye desire" lays down no limit, and I refuse to introduce one where Scripture does not. Look at Matthew 21:22: "All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive," and this is in direct connection with activity in power in faith, even to the removal of the mountain into the sea. The Lord so often uses temporal needs and the faith that expresses itself in prayer to Him about them, to encourage us to pray and trust Him about the deeper spiritual needs.