“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.” (1 John 5:14-15)
John states that the believer can know with absolute certainty that his prayers have been heard. Such assurance is a natural consequence of one’s relationship with God. When the believer’s will is aligned with the will of God by the process of abiding in Christ (John 16:25-26), then the believer can indeed pray with boldness, for it is God’s own will and purpose that he seeks to accomplish. The believer who abides in Christ and in the Father knows God’s will so that when he prays, he can be sure that his requests are efficacious. Requests made boldly in the will of God are assured of a positive answer. John mentions that God desires that the bold prayer be made in accordance to His will. This is pleasing to God for He hears prayers that He desires to answer for they bring Him glory.
The prayer that is made in God’s will is the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples to pray (Matt. 6:10), and the prayer He Himself prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:36). This prayer shows that believers should always acknowledge the infinite wisdom of God’s will and, accordingly, subordinate our desire to it. Prayer that is offered according to God’s will is not selfish. It does not seek to coerce God to bend His will to the believer’s. In the prayer prayed according to God’s will, believers acknowledge that they have a need to submit their wills to God without reservation. They know that they must totally surrender their will to align it with His.