“On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Luke 10:25
Jesus told this parable because an expert in the law wanted to test Him. The question asked of Jesus was “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” So Jesus asked the expert a question about what his law tells him he has to do to inherit eternal life, which the expert answered correctly. At that point, the expert went looking for a way around the law, by asking a very vague question that he hoped would give him a way to avoid actually doing what his law said he was to do.
How often do we ask God a question and when the answer isn’t what we want to hear, we ask a different question hoping for a different answer. I know that my son has done this when he has not liked the answer either my husband or I have given him. As the parent, it feels argumentative when he does this. I understand that as a growing child that it is good for them to develop negotiation skills over the safe areas of life, such as chores, bedtimes, etc. so that when they are an adult they have the skill to discuss ideas and topics. However, there are times when a child simply needs to listen to their parent and follow the rule without negotiating.
I believe the same is true for us as Christians, there are sometimes when we simply need to follow the law that God has put in place for us without trying to figure a way out of it. I feel that asking God questions is very important because we need to know the answers to things in order to live the life He wants for us, but I caution myself that I truly know what my motive is for asking in the first place. Is it for knowledge or is it to try and figure out a different path through a situation.
There are many reasons that we would want to change how we are to do something, fear is typically the main one, we fear doing what is asked. Fear of failure, judgment, pain, or loss are only a few of the areas of fear that can paralyze us or send us looking for alternative ways through a solution. Our faith in God and His divine nature can help to alleviate our fear if we let it.
So as you and I go about our day today, what if we look at our motives behind the questions we ask God. When we examine the reason for the questions in the first place, we made get a clearer picture of what our prays really should be about. Have a wonderful day.