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Why Does God Give Liberally to Those Who Ask? #699 · Scripture Central

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  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God that giveth to
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  all men, liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be
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  given him. Hello listeners, This is Nick
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  from Scripture Central and today's podcast addresses the
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  question. Why does God give liberally to
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  those who ask the invitation and the epistle of James?
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  For any who lack wisdom to ask God that giveth to all men,
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  liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him, holds a
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  significant place in the history of the Restoration.
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  Reflecting on when he read this verse as a confused and
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  uncertain youth, Joseph Smith said, Never did any passage of
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  Scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this
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  did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great
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  force into every feeling of my heart.
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  Reflecting on this passage ultimately compelled him to go
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  out to what would become the sacred Grove and seek God in
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  prayer, leading to the first vision.
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  Given how James focuses on prayer at the beginning of his
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  letter, one can understand why this verse had such a large
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  impact and continues to have one to believers in Christ
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  throughout the world. According to James, prayer is an
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  especially effective tool to gain wisdom.
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  While wisdom is generally understood to refer to skill at
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  life, particularly the ability to make sound judgments and
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  speak the right words, the wisdom referred to in the Bible
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  often has deeper, more significant meanings than can be
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  captured in English. In one word, particularly as
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  used by James, wisdom refers to the gift of God, which enables
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  one to be perfect, or, in James's conception, to stand the
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  test of mortality. This meaning is especially
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  prevalent in other early Jewish works such as Second Baruch,
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  Second Estrus, First Enoch, and Sirach.
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  When we receive wisdom from the Lord, then we are enabled to
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  live in a godly and righteous way.
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  Those who ask can be assured that they will receive this
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  divine gift because of the nature of God.
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  James assures us that God continually gives and is
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  universal, unequivocal and generous and all that he gives
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  to his children. By his very nature, God wants to
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  bless everyone, and all that is required of us is to come to him
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  asking sincerely in the name of Christ, with a sincere heart,
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  with real intent, having faith in Christ, so that we can then
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  receive these promised blessings.
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  In addition, according to James, it is not just enough simply to
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  ask the Lord. Rather, one must ask in faith,
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  Nothing wavering, for he that Wavereth is like a wave of the
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  sea driven with the wind and tossed.
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  This statement made by James is best understood when viewed in
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  its wider context of covenantal loyalty.
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  For example, according to Dan McCartney, James does not mean
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  that a believer may never have a measure of uncertainty regarding
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  whether something is God's will. Rather, he is condemning the
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  lack of commitment or a divided loyalty.
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  Furthermore, James teaches that a double minded man is unstable
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  in all his ways, and further explains that some of the
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  Christians he was addressing did not have all their prayers
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  answered previously, not because they doubted God, but because ye
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  ask amiss that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
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  The proper way to ask in faith, as James instructed, was to put
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  away any divided loyalties. One should not ask to satisfy
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  personal ambitions, but rather should draw nigh to God and he
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  will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners,
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  and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
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  Such a relationship between faith and loyalty to God, as
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  been noted by Brent Schmidt on several occasions, stands at the
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  core of understanding New Testament teachings regarding
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  acting in faith. Faith, far from being just a
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  passive or abstract belief in God, invites us to develop a
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  lifelong relationship with God based on mutual loyalty and
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  love. Significantly, this
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  understanding of James's instructions regarding prayer
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  and receiving wisdom can be seen clearly in Joseph Smith's prayer
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  as recorded in his Personal History.
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  According to Joseph Smith, he wanted to live in a matter
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  pleasing to God and felt to mourn for his own sins and for
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  the sins of the world, leading him to cry unto the Lord for
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  mercy. For there was none else to whom
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  I could go. And to obtain mercy, Joseph
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  wanted to establish a relationship with the Lord so
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  that he could receive forgiveness of his sins and
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  obtain salvation. Joseph Smith was also committed
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  to acting on what he learned from the Lord.
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  This is demonstrated by the fact that after God the Father and
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  Jesus Christ appeared to Him, Joseph not only asked which of
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  all the sects was right, but he also wanted to know which I
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  should join. Unlike double minded seekers,
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  Joseph was fully committed to seeking wisdom from the Lord and
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  acting on what He learned throughout his life.
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  Like Joseph Smith, we all have a need to go off into the Lord and
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  seek His wisdom in our daily lives.
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  Such requests for wisdom need to come from a desire to follow the
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  Lord and demonstrate our loyalty to Him as expressed by Jesus
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  himself. This precludes the possibility
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  that we ever serve 2 masters. No man can serve 2 masters, for
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  either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will
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  hold to the one and despise the other.
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  Ye cannot serve God and mammon. A major aspect of this important
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  invitation can be seen in James Chapter 4, as James earnestly
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  pleads for the early Christians to repent of their sins and
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  humble themselves before the Lord.
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  When we have faith in God's character as a loving Father who
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  wants to bless us, and when we act with the loyalty to God
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  requisite our petition, all things that will be for our
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  eternal good shall be made manifest and we will be blessed
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  with increased desires and even greater abilities to become more
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  fully like Him. Thank you for listening to this
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  presentation from Scripture Central.
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  For more information, please visit scripturecentral.org.