When Will God Not Hear Your Prayers?
May 21st 2011 13:11
I. Never -God always 'hears' our prayers, sometimes He chooses not to 'listen' to them
II. When does God Choose not to Listen to Our Prayers?
A. IPeter 3:7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
■2. The verb "hinder" is from the greek word 'ekkopto' which means to cut out, cut out or hewn down
■3. Often used in several other places in reference to trees, heresies and body parts.
■1. pretty clear, God's eyes and ears are always open for those trying to live a right life, but he turns his face away from those who persist in a wicked lifestyle
■2. in Strong's the word used for evil is one that refers to a mode of thinking, feeling or action, not just a one time act or a weakness, but a mind set, a bad nature
C. I John 5:14-15 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him.
D. Proverbs 28:9 If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable.
E. Jhn 8:47 - He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God."
1. Using religion as a means to get, instead of give
■a. to save us instead of to serve God and others
b. We aren't living for God, we are living for ourselves and wanting Him to serve us.
2. We aren't mindful of our mistakes and humble in our failings.
■a.We hold onto sin because it is pleasurable.
■b. make excuses for our sins instead of openly admitting them to Him and others
3. We are not loving others with the kind of love God shows us.
■a. while we were still sinners Christ died for us
■b. the Bible says that occasionally someone will die for (fall on a grenade or take a bullet for) someone with whom he has a relationship or someone deemed important, but very very rarely will someone die for a guilty man or someone who rejects his help. Jesus did.
A. We have all been children at one time or another and remember what it means to have 'selective hearing'. As children we may have 'heard' something we didn't want to hear and chose to ignore it. Or as parents, sometimes we do the same. God hears all, knows all, and sees all.
B.So why does it seem like He isn't listening sometimes?: this question comes up quit often when talking to people,believers and unbelievers alike.
C. I searched the Scriptures and found that there is a pattern to unanswered prayers.
B.So why does it seem like He isn't listening sometimes?: this question comes up quit often when talking to people,believers and unbelievers alike.
C. I searched the Scriptures and found that there is a pattern to unanswered prayers.
II. When does God Choose not to Listen to Our Prayers?
A. IPeter 3:7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
■1." in the SAME way"
■a. Same way refers back to the beginning of the book . Peter starts out with:
■-Submit to God, to His Rules, Will and Authority, Be Holy: rid your lives of sin, fill your head with Scriptures, be worthy of your calling
■-Submit to ALL authorities - whether just or unjust
■-Submit to the Father and authorities just as Christ did-to sufferring and death
■b. Then is says to wives IN THE SAME WAY submit to your husbands
■c. Then it says husbands IN THE SAME WAY be considerate of your wives
■
. The book of IPeter ends with teaching about submission to each other and submission to God and others by repaying evil with good
.■a. Same way refers back to the beginning of the book . Peter starts out with:
■-Submit to God, to His Rules, Will and Authority, Be Holy: rid your lives of sin, fill your head with Scriptures, be worthy of your calling
■-Submit to ALL authorities - whether just or unjust
■-Submit to the Father and authorities just as Christ did-to sufferring and death
■b. Then is says to wives IN THE SAME WAY submit to your husbands
■c. Then it says husbands IN THE SAME WAY be considerate of your wives
■
. The book of IPeter ends with teaching about submission to each other and submission to God and others by repaying evil with good■2. The verb "hinder" is from the greek word 'ekkopto' which means to cut out, cut out or hewn down
■3. Often used in several other places in reference to trees, heresies and body parts.
■a. Mat 3:10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
■b. 2 Corinthians 11:12-13 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about.13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ.
■c. Mat 5:30 - And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off,(ekkpto) and cast [it] from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not [that] thy whole body should be cast into hell.
B. I Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."■b. 2 Corinthians 11:12-13 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about.13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ.
■c. Mat 5:30 - And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off,(ekkpto) and cast [it] from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not [that] thy whole body should be cast into hell.
■1. pretty clear, God's eyes and ears are always open for those trying to live a right life, but he turns his face away from those who persist in a wicked lifestyle
■2. in Strong's the word used for evil is one that refers to a mode of thinking, feeling or action, not just a one time act or a weakness, but a mind set, a bad nature
C. I John 5:14-15 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him.
■1. This verse doesn't specifically say anything about NOT hearing us, but if I say my child can be confident when asking to use the car IF something, that would by default mean that that they should not be confident IF that something else condition isn't met.
■2. Greek dictionary entries:
■According to-down from, according to, toward. It is a prepositions denoting motion or direction from the higher to the lower.
■Will-what one wishes or has determined should be done
■He hears-akouo- to attend to, consider what has been said, to comprehend, understand
■we have - echo- have, hold, own, possess, to be in such condition, to lay hold of
■2. Greek dictionary entries:
■According to-down from, according to, toward. It is a prepositions denoting motion or direction from the higher to the lower.
■Will-what one wishes or has determined should be done
■He hears-akouo- to attend to, consider what has been said, to comprehend, understand
■we have - echo- have, hold, own, possess, to be in such condition, to lay hold of
■3. Makes more sense to me as: This is how we can have confidence in our prayers. If we are living to please God then anything we ask would be pleasing to God, it would be what He wants as well. As such, we can know that He hears us and that He also wants that very same thing, so we can be confident that He will give or do it for us. (remember though, he won't take someone's free will away)
D. Proverbs 28:9 If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable.
■1. I looked the Hebrew up and it says exactly what it seems to say. If anyone ignores the way God wants them to live, then has the audacity to pray and ask for something, it really disgusts him.
■2. Abomination/detestable is the same word as used for abomination of desolation that will signal the end times. It's mentioned in Daniel,Matthew and several other places. Praying to God when you don't serve Him makes Him feel just as He does when someone sets up a false God in His place, because you are making yourself your own God. You are saying that you expect Him to do what you want not because you love Him or serve Him but because He is expected to serve you.
■If you expect God to bow down to your requests what does that make you?
■2. Abomination/detestable is the same word as used for abomination of desolation that will signal the end times. It's mentioned in Daniel,Matthew and several other places. Praying to God when you don't serve Him makes Him feel just as He does when someone sets up a false God in His place, because you are making yourself your own God. You are saying that you expect Him to do what you want not because you love Him or serve Him but because He is expected to serve you.
■If you expect God to bow down to your requests what does that make you?
E. Jhn 8:47 - He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God."
■1. this one is a bit different. It kind of goes along with the last two verses we covered. the Pharisees could not understand the things Jesus was saying. it wasn't because they weren't religioous, they were the most learned biblical scholars of their day, it was because their lives, their hearts, their desires, were not given over to God. they had religion so it could save them, not so they could serve God.
■2. The Greek word used for 'belong to God' is actually 'theos' and it means 'resemble God'. It has in mind the idea of being similar, kind of like when we say 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree' and mean that the son is just like the father. If we are Godly, we will understand when we hear the things of God. If we are not of His family, we won't understand Him like family
Well, I don't think we have time for too much more, but there are many verses and chapters that clearly explain why we often feel that we can't hear God, or isn't listening to us or answering our prayers. Most of them seem to fit into one of the following three categories:■2. The Greek word used for 'belong to God' is actually 'theos' and it means 'resemble God'. It has in mind the idea of being similar, kind of like when we say 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree' and mean that the son is just like the father. If we are Godly, we will understand when we hear the things of God. If we are not of His family, we won't understand Him like family
1. Using religion as a means to get, instead of give
■a. to save us instead of to serve God and others
b. We aren't living for God, we are living for ourselves and wanting Him to serve us.
2. We aren't mindful of our mistakes and humble in our failings.
■a.We hold onto sin because it is pleasurable.
■b. make excuses for our sins instead of openly admitting them to Him and others
3. We are not loving others with the kind of love God shows us.
■a. while we were still sinners Christ died for us
■b. the Bible says that occasionally someone will die for (fall on a grenade or take a bullet for) someone with whom he has a relationship or someone deemed important, but very very rarely will someone die for a guilty man or someone who rejects his help. Jesus did.
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