Many times we make requests to God in prayer and after a while, if we do not receive a prompt response to our request, many Christians opt to think that God does not respond for some of the following reasons…
1 That it is not God's will. 2 That we have asked to squander on our own desires. 3 That we are not worthy, or that we are not good enough. 4 That God does not want to answer because surely we are failing somewhere. 5 In the worst case: because God does not care.
Why is God not responding? What is the answer to this great question?
God's Word always has the correct answer.
1Jn 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. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.
When we are Sons of the Most High, we know that He always hears us, simply because his Word says so, in whatever we ask. Now, how to know if what we ask is according to his Will?
Mat 7:11 If you then, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father in Heaven give good things to those who ask Him?
Let us remember that we have been sanctified by the blood of Christ, and that we are clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
Col 2:13-15 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross. 15 Having stripped rulers and authorities, He made a show of them publicly, triumphing over them in it.
1Co 6:11 And such were some of you. But you are washed, but you are sanctified, but you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
2Co 5:21 For He has made Him who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
I could fill in the page with passages that assure the above, but those are enough to remind us that we can confidently come to the presence of God, as Children and ask for whatever we want, since, if we live in communion with our Heavenly Father, then Phil 2:13 For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
Going back to our question: Why isn't God responding?
The Word tells us what are the steps we must follow to always obtain an answer to our prayers;
Heb 10:19-23 Therefore, brothers, having boldness to enter into the Holy of Holies by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He has consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies having been washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the profession(our confession) of our faith without wavering (for He is faithful who promised),
That is ... to come with confidence before the very same Most Holy Presence of God, since we are clothed with the same Justice of God, since... Heb 11:6 without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek him.
It is important to understand that God blesses us not because we are good or obedient, He blesses us because He is good and because we are clothed His Justice in Christ Jesus. It is He in us who makes us righteous.
1Jn 4:10 This is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
Rom 3:23-26 for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God; 24 being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; 25 whom God sent to be an atoning sacrifice, through faith in his blood, for a demonstration of his righteousness through the passing over of prior sins, in God’s forbearance; 26 to demonstrate his righteousness at this present time; that He might himself be just, and the justifier of him who has faith in Jesus.
Coming without faith before God, we can compare it to a son who approaches a loving father to ask for something, but believes that his father does not love him, or does not love him enough to give him what he asks for. That is why Scripture also tells us...
James 1:6-7 But let him ask in faith, without any doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed. 7 For that man shouldn’t think that he will receive anything from the Lord.
That's pretty clear right? Now, “let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering” means to affirm and profess that we believe that what we have asked for is already ours, simply because the one who has given us his word that He will respond is none other than God who does not lie.
There are many scriptures with which we can strengthen our faith, since faith comes from hearing the Word of God, Rom 10:17
Mar 11:22-23 Jesus said to them, Have faith of God. 23 For truly I say to you that whoever shall say to this mountain, Be moved and be cast into the sea, and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that what he said shall occur, he shall have whatever he said.
Okay, let's say we're full of faith, and we're doing everything right.
Phil 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
So once we have asked, now we give thanksgiving. And we keep our minds occupied with...
Phil 4:8 Finally, my brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are right, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there is any virtue and if there is any praise, think on these things.
- We must always pray in the name of Jesus.
Jn 14:13-14 And whatever you may ask in My name, that I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.
Jn 16:23-24 And in that day you shall ask Me nothing. Truly, truly, I say to you, Whatever you shall ask the Father in My name, He will give you. 24 Before now you have asked nothing in My name; ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be full.
In the book of Acts, when the disciples prayed for the sick, or cast out demons, they simply commanded the sick to heal, or the demon to come out in the name of Jesus. That is our example to follow.
Acts 3:6 But Peter said, Silver and gold have I none, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!
Acts 16:18 But being distressed, and turning to the demonic spirit, Paul said, I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her! And it came out in that hour.
So, Jesus gave us his name and the authority that comes from his name to ensure the answer, and that in this way we glorify our Heavenly Father. Praying in the name of Jesus is vital.
Phil 2:9 Therefore God has highly exalted Him, and has given Him a name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of heavenly ones, and of earthly ones, and of ones under the earth; 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Now I am going to introduce one more ingredient, which is also indispensable when we have asked for something in prayer.
Heb 6:11-18 And we desire that each one of you show the same eagerness to the full assurance of hope to the end, 12 that you be not slothful, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. 13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater, He swore by Himself, 14 saying, "Surely in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply you." 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16 For men truly swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. 17 In this way desiring to declare more fully to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, God interposed by an oath, 18 so that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us.
So through faith and patience we inherit the promises. In that passage from Hebrews we see that God swore, although just saying it is enough for God, but He did it to show the heirs of the promise, who are us “Christians”, that we have very strong consolation, and we are to cling to the hope set before us .
So we ask for what we want. If it is healing that we need, we know that Jesus paid for the healing of our bodies with his scourging.
Isa 53:4-5 Surely he has borne our sickness, and carried our suffering; yet we considered him plagued, struck by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought our peace was on him; and by his wounds we are healed.
1Pe 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness; by whose stripes you were healed.
Jesus paid for us the Children of the Most High to have good health. Would almighty God send Jesus to shed his blood for us just to forgive our sins and heal our souls, and leave us physically sick? Jesus did a complete job.
So why do we get sick? Well, we live in a fallen world full of evil spirits that attack us. Eph 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world's rulers, of the darkness of this age, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
However, if we are clear that we have authority over all those evil spirits, then we can send them out and they have to obey.
Luke 10:19 Behold, I give to you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Mar 16:17-18 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Once we have prayed, we now confidently and patiently wait and set our minds on God's promises, and profess words of affirmation with our mouths, declaring that we have what we have asked by faith.
2Co 5:7(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
2Co 4:13 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
Speaking about Abraham the apostle Paul explains that God called him...
Rom 4:17 As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.” This is in the presence of him whom he believed: God, who gives life to the dead, and calls the things that are not, as though they were.
There we see that God called Abraham father of nations, many years before he had children, and God waited until both he and Sarah could not have children, but...
Rom 4:19-25 19 Without being weakened in faith, he didn’t consider his own body, already having been worn out, (he being about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 Yet, looking to the promise of God, he didn’t waver through unbelief, but grew strong through faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully assured that what He had promised, He was also able to perform. 22 Therefore it also was “credited to him for righteousness.” 23 Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone, 24 but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.
So Abraham instead of looking at his conditions, he set his sights on God's promises. We must do the same, not look at the giants in our promised land, but… 1Jn 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world.
I have received healing in this way many times. I ask God for physical strength, then I rebuke the enemy, I command him to leave and then I confess that I am healed by the wounds of Christ who paid for me, and I declare myself constantly healed, even though the pain might not have left yet, I keep declaring my healing & it always comes.
If it is liberation due to some weakness, or some bad habit, or some vice, well:
Heb 12:1 Therefore let’s also, seeing we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with perseverance the race that is set before us,
And how do we get rid of the sin that besets us? 2 looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising its shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
We do not put off sin by trying to do so with our carnal efforts, but by always keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, who is not only the author of our faith, but also the finisher of it. In other words… Phil 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
We declare ourselves free from any enemy force that wants to imprison us, and why?...
Jn 8:34 Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Whoever practices sin is the slave of sin. 35 And the slave does not abide in the house forever, but the Son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.
If we have a lack of finances, well... Mat 6:33 But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow; for tomorrow shall be anxious for its own things. Sufficient to the day is the evil of it.
Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
We ask and we receive, because everyone who asks receives. Mat 7:8
Now in the area of finances it is good to remember that when we give we receive... 2Co 9:6-11 But I say this, He who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully. 7 Each one, as he purposes in his heart, let him give; not of grief, or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that in everything, always having all self-sufficiency, you may abound to every good work; 9 As it is written, "He scattered; he has given to the poor; his righteousness remains forever." 10 Now He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for eating, may He supply and multiply your seed, and increase the fruits of your righteousness 11 you being enriched in everything to all generosity, which works out thanksgiving to God through us.
Sow your seed, that is, your offerings of money or goods in the work of God, helping missionaries, helping Churches that preach the Word and win souls for the Kingdom, giving to the needy that surround you. Ask God to guide you so that your donations go to the best place, and when you give it ...Mat 6:1 Take heed that you do not do your merciful deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward with your Father in Heaven. 2 Therefore when you give your gifts, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may have glory from men. Truly I say to you, They have their reward. 3 But when you give your offerings, do not let your left hand know what your right hand does, 4 so that your offerings may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret Himself shall reward you openly.
Finally, the answer to the initial question… If we wait patiently, faithfully and professing with our words without hesitation that we have received what we ask for, the answer is firm and sure, it always comes at the best moment: in God's time.
Jn 15:7-8 If you abide in Me, and My Words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done to you. 8 In this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, so you shall be My disciples.
God is glorified in answering our prayers. If He would not answer, then He would pass for a liar. Let us also remember that many times we ask for something, but God gives us something different but better than what we ask for. Like a son with his father. Perhaps the son asks for a motorcycle, but his father gives him a car. Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
Heb 4:14-16 Since then we have a great High Priest who has passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted just as we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore let us come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Blessings… Alejandro
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