Silence (Is not Golden)
“Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59.1, 2
If you are like me, there are times when we enter into a time of prayer – or, when we simply offer a quick prayer and we seem to sense an absence of God in our presence. Unlike those wonderful times of sweet communion when it seems that the glory of our Savior is abundantly filling our space and we sense His presence with every particle of our being; then, there are those other times.
We have all agonized over a wayward child or a fallen brother. We have all experienced the bedside agony of a loved one suffering from cancer or a newborn who is struggling for survival. We have prayed and fasted as we seek God’s will begging His mercy and grace over this loved one only to watch as they slip off into eternity. Maybe you “agreed together” with another stalwart saint and prayed “in Jesus’ name” for healing and even quoted verses of Scripture that seemed to fit the scenario.
Was God not listening? Was He not able to answer our prayer? Was God not being consistent with His promises?
As you prayed and agonized your soul cried out for help; but, your supplication seemed to never escape the ceiling of your prayer-closet.
First, we need to understand that there is nothing God cannot do; however, there are things that He may choose not to do. Isaiah says that there is nothing in which God’s ability is limited. “…The LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save….” Neither is He deaf nor hard of hearing when we pray. “…Neither {is} his ear heavy, that it cannot hear….”
Whenever our prayers are not answered, or not answered as we would like, Isaiah suggests that it is our iniquities which have created the rift. Before you become self-righteous and stop reading, please understand the meaning of the word “iniquities.” The word “iniquities” (‛āwōn) indicates our inborn sin nature – not necessarily what we have done, but who we are. Every person is born a sinner. (See Psalm 51.5) Having said that, we understand that our minds comprehend things through a filter that has been tainted by our sinful nature. Our hearts have been darkened because of prideful desires that corrupt our longings. (See Jeremiah 17.9) Our whole being is marred from purity because of our sinful birth.
Since God does not and cannot change, we must look to ourselves to discover the reason for God’s silence. Iniquity brings forth a variety of problems including misunderstandings, wrong timing, poor attitudes and misapplications of God’s Word.
It is possible that we are praying the wrong prayer. Could it be that we are praying selfishly – for something that we want personally rather than something that God wants. Praying in Jesus name means more than tacking Jesus’ name on the end of a prayer. It means to pray according to what is in line with Jesus’ desires.
It is possible that we are praying at the wrong time. For a thirteen-year-old to pray for a new Corvette would probably be a prayer out of the proper time. We often become impatient and believe God’s is not in our personal best interest.
It is possible that we are praying while harboring unconfessed sin in our lives. Sins of commission or sins of omission – bitterness and an unforgiving spirit – sinful attitudes and resentment – self-centeredness and selfishness – all these are possible reasons that God may choose not to hear and our prayer time may be deafeningly silent.
We have all agonized over a wayward child or a fallen brother. We have all experienced the bedside agony of a loved one suffering from cancer or a newborn who is struggling for survival. We have prayed and fasted as we seek God’s will begging His mercy and grace over this loved one only to watch as they slip off into eternity. Maybe you “agreed together” with another stalwart saint and prayed “in Jesus’ name” for healing and even quoted verses of Scripture that seemed to fit the scenario.
Was God not listening? Was He not able to answer our prayer? Was God not being consistent with His promises?
As you prayed and agonized your soul cried out for help; but, your supplication seemed to never escape the ceiling of your prayer-closet.
First, we need to understand that there is nothing God cannot do; however, there are things that He may choose not to do. Isaiah says that there is nothing in which God’s ability is limited. “…The LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save….” Neither is He deaf nor hard of hearing when we pray. “…Neither {is} his ear heavy, that it cannot hear….”
Whenever our prayers are not answered, or not answered as we would like, Isaiah suggests that it is our iniquities which have created the rift. Before you become self-righteous and stop reading, please understand the meaning of the word “iniquities.” The word “iniquities” (‛āwōn) indicates our inborn sin nature – not necessarily what we have done, but who we are. Every person is born a sinner. (See Psalm 51.5) Having said that, we understand that our minds comprehend things through a filter that has been tainted by our sinful nature. Our hearts have been darkened because of prideful desires that corrupt our longings. (See Jeremiah 17.9) Our whole being is marred from purity because of our sinful birth.
Since God does not and cannot change, we must look to ourselves to discover the reason for God’s silence. Iniquity brings forth a variety of problems including misunderstandings, wrong timing, poor attitudes and misapplications of God’s Word.
It is possible that we are praying the wrong prayer. Could it be that we are praying selfishly – for something that we want personally rather than something that God wants. Praying in Jesus name means more than tacking Jesus’ name on the end of a prayer. It means to pray according to what is in line with Jesus’ desires.
It is possible that we are praying at the wrong time. For a thirteen-year-old to pray for a new Corvette would probably be a prayer out of the proper time. We often become impatient and believe God’s is not in our personal best interest.
It is possible that we are praying while harboring unconfessed sin in our lives. Sins of commission or sins of omission – bitterness and an unforgiving spirit – sinful attitudes and resentment – self-centeredness and selfishness – all these are possible reasons that God may choose not to hear and our prayer time may be deafeningly silent.
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