Common Biblical Misconceptions Pt.1
Over the years in ministry, we have heard many misconceptions about the Bible. There are beliefs, interpretations, and traditions that have gained popularity, yet they bear no truth. An example would be the question: “Why do we do that?” The answer is, “Because we have always done it that way.” But does that mean it’s right or that it’s Biblically sound?
I want to address one of these misconceptions, and please stay with me as I explain. It would take so much time to dive deeply into this misconception, but at least, here today, I can scratch the surface.
The fallacy I want to address is this: “When I pray, God answers: yes, no, or not now.”
There are Believers out there who think this is an accurate statement. How did this thought process gain momentum? Misconceptions circulated and repeated from generation to generation tend to stick, and God's true Word is drowned out, replaced with myths and false doctrine. My objective is to teach the truth according to the ultimate authority…God’s Word.
Here is the truth about how God answers prayers; the answer is always YES and AMEN. There is no other answer!
“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NKJV)
I could end this teaching right here because the myth has been exposed, and the truth is revealed; however, let me elaborate.
Are our traditions leading to these misconceptions? Yeshua warned us about this in Mark 7:9-13 NLT,
“Then he said, “You skillfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition. For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: ‘Honor your father and mother, and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ In this way, you let them disregard their needy parents. And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others.”
Yeshua said, “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees” in Luke 12:1. In this Scripture, He referred to their hypocrisy stemming from their faith in tradition over and above their loyalty to God. Was this a rebuke from our Lord? Absolutely. He warns us of how traditional thought (myths and misconceptions) can take us away from the Word of God. Beware - we must distinguish which traditions lead us away by elevating our ideas above His.
People don’t even realize they’re living by traditions—they presume much of what they do, believe, or say to be simply part of their Christianity. The danger is that these ideas have (in some cases) replaced the Word of God. The consequence is people are bound where they should be set free.
When we are waiting for a decision from someone significant, we wonder, how will he/she answer? Will it be yes, or will it be no, or will it be not now or later? It’s only natural for our human minds to work this way. But that doesn’t mean God works the same way. How can we possibly understand an infinite God with our finite mind? One way to get closer to God’s ways is to align with the Holy Spirit. (Ruach HaKodesh).
Isaiah 55:8, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.” ESV
So, how do we turn our thoughts into His thoughts when we pray?
Does how we pray matter? It does matter! We must base our prayers first, foremost, and always on God’s Word, seeking the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) and praying the will of God. (not our will!)
This next sentence is crucial:
If we are aligned with God, the answer is always ‘YES’ because we are praying properly.
Being in alignment with God guarantees His answer will be according to His infallible Word, which is ‘Yes and Amen.’
What are some things we can do to be in alignment with God’s will?
Seek the Holy Spirit before we pray.
1 John 5:14-15 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
We all know the popular verse that we claim for ourselves and our family. It’s Romans 8:28. But let’s look at the two verses before verse 28 - Romans 8:26-28 ESV,
“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groaning too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Submerge ourselves in faith when we pray
I say, believe it, speak it and then act on it.
Faith means action. Faith is a verb. Believe, stay immersed in the WORD, and surround yourself with people who believe! Pray His promises. Speak as if it’s already completed.
Matthew 21:22 ESV, “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."
Hebrews 11:7 "By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith."
Hebrews 11:17 "By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau." (ESV)
Don’t let fear overwhelm you.
It can be challenging to combat fear, but we have all been given weapons of warfare.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5, ESV, “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Messiah.”
Take fear or negative, unbelieving thoughts captive. You have the power to do this.
Joshua 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” ESV
If our thoughts are on the Word, we quickly recognize the thoughts we must take captive and remove.
Psalm 119:11 “I have treasured Your word in my heart, so I might not sin against You.” TLV
God testifies to us, the House of Israel and His Believers: Jeremiah 31: 31-34,
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Share with others that your prayer is answered.
Don’t wait for the answer to manifest; share and believe. Speak life, not death, no matter what you see or hear.
Revelation 12:11 ESV “And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.”
Malachi 3:16 “Then those who revere Adonai spoke with each other, and Adonai took notice and heard, and a scroll of remembrance was written before Him, for those who revere Adonai, even those who esteem His Name.” TLV
Action is necessary.
If you are praying for yourself to be healed, then get involved praying for someone else’s healing.
Luke 6:38 ESV “give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
Proverbs 10:22, “The blessing of the Lord makes you rich and he adds no sorrow with it.”
I love the Scripture In James 2:18-26 which reads,
“But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”
In other words, action IS required to prove faith.
About fifteen years ago, I went through a very difficult time. I felt like I would not survive what was happening to me. Then in the middle of my grief, the phone rang. It was a couple we had been ministering to, and the husband said, “my wife is going to commit suicide right now.” We immediately got in our car and went to pray for the couple. At that moment, Luke 6:38 came alive. With power and determination from the Lord, we went to minister to them. The Holy Spirit quickened us to go and to give of ourselves. It’s Yeshua’s will for us to be alive in our faith, and to prosper and to pray for one another. This story had a Godly outcome!
Lastly, Don’t waver—stay in faith!
James 1:8 TLV says, “he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
Unlike the double-minded man in this Scripture, if we are indeed praying the will of the Father—we stand in power, and DO NOT DOUBT the outcome.
My sincere desire for this teaching is to dispel the misconception about how God answers us. I pray that it will open up new revelation and freedom to you in your prayer life and walk with the Lord. Let’s start (5781/ 2021) off right by getting into alignment with our Lord. Oh, the joy and peace He will bring into every situation.
May your soul prosper, especially in the New Year.
Love in Yeshua,
Joyce
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Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved
Thank you Joyce for your posts they are eye opening and thought provoking.God is good and thank you for blessing .