Why is God Silent?

WHY DOES GOD DECLINE OR DELAY SOME PETITIONS?

By Ezekiel Kimosop

INTRODUCTION

Prayer is no doubt an essential ingredient in the life of every child of God. It is the means of communing with God and building our intimacy with Christ.

The Bible exhorts in several passages of Scripture that we ought to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We should pray by faith expecting from God (Hebrews 11:6).

That said and done, the question then begs: are we guaranteed a positive answer from God, having prayed by faith and without any known spiritual obstacle standing between us and God?

Why does God delay or decline our prayers in certain circumstances?

While God often answers our prayers, we know from experience and from the illustrations in Scripture that there are people who sought the face of God over certain petitions and God either expressly rejected their prayer or delayed in providing the relief that was sought at the time.

How can we explain God's response under these circumstances? The answers to these questions lie in the holistic study of the word of God.

This article seeks to examine these difficult questions in the context of the teaching of Scripture.

BIBLICAL FOUNDATION

The Bible contains principles that reveal the nature and working of God and why prayer may be declined by God in certain circumstances 

It is instructive that Scripture speaks of God's ways as being above our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). We may therefore not fully or conclusively understand the mind of God in His divine fullness. God never operates in a template manner. He however acts in ways that are consistent with the revelation of Himself in the Bible.

There can be no better way to understand the mind of God than by consulting the written Scriptures through which God speaks to us.

I wish to outline below four biblical principles collated from the study of Scripture which, in my view, may inform the delay or declination of petitions or prayers presented to God.

These are by no means exhaustive.

1) PETITIONS MAY BE DECLINED IN ACCORDANCE WITH GOD'S WILL FOR US.

Some charismatic teachers cannot fathom or comprehend the fact that God can and does decline petitions in the exercise of His divine will. This is perhaps because of their mistaken view that God's love is always demonstrated through positive responses to prayer.

Thankfully Scripture carries a number of illustrations that affirm this truth.

For instance, we learn from the Letter of 2 Corinthians that Paul thrice prayed for the removal of the "thorn in the flesh" that afflicted him but Christ declined to grant his petition.

The Bible does not disclose the nature of the affliction in question but the reason for the declination is given. This has left room for speculation as to what the thorn in the flesh truly was.

This "thorn" was definitely intended to serve God's divine purposes and this explains why God choose to grant Paul the grace to bear the affliction instead of removing it altogether (Read 2 Cor. 12:1-10). We learn from Paul's statement that the thorn in the flesh was meant to keep him from being puffed up with pride!

In the Old Testament Scripture, we learn that David earnestly petitioned God for the healing of his son by Bathsheba who was born from his illicit affair (2 Samuel 12:1-25). David was reacting to the judgement of God given through Nathan the prophet. The boy however died on the seventh day of David's prayer.

We learn from this incident that God had declined David's petition and took away the life of the child as part of His judgment on David's house for his disobedience. We should also bear in mind that David himself deserved to die for the murder of Uriah the Hittite but God graciously preserved him.

David accepted that God's will had been done and moved on. He demonstrated deep spiritual maturity during this incident. Bible scholars say that David's testimony is later conveyed in Psalm 51.

God may therefore choose to decline a petition in line with His higher purposes.

Have you ever wondered why a faithful saint who suffered illness ended up in death despite intense prayer by his Christian community?

In such situations, we should accept that God took the life of His saint for His own purposes and that the servant of God had finished his works (1 Timothy 4:7-8).

2) A PETITION MAY BE DECLINED IF THE OBJECT OF PRAYER DOES NOT GLORIFY GOD.

James 4:1-10 teaches that we pray amiss when our prayers are motivated by lust and greed rather than serving God's purposes.

For example, God will not grant prayers for things that are intended for gratifying our ego or settling scores with others. Such petitions contradict the teaching of Scripture in Romans 12:19-20 which says "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 Therefore
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

If my petitions are motivated by greed, God will definitely not grant them.

If, for argument sake, my neighbor buys a V8 Prado series and I start feeling disadvantaged with my Toyota Corolla 110 and I ask God for a fuel guzzler to match my prosperous neighbor, God will definitely decline the petition because it is not motivated by my real need but by sheer jealously and covetousness.

3) PETITIONS MAY BE DELAYED BY GOD FOR HIS DIVINE PURPOSES

When Jesus was informed about the sickness of Lazarus, He deliberately delayed for two more days, knowing that Lazarus would die. The disciples later learnt from Jesus that Lazarus had died (John 11:11-14) and by the time Jesus arrived at Lazarus' home the man had been buried four days (John 11:1-16). His sister's reaction spoke it all. Martha's argument was that if only Jesus was there earlier, things would possibly have been different! (John 11:21).

Jesus however stated that Lazarus' death was for the glory of God. The disciples could not immediately understand His statement. Jesus finally raised Lazarus from death, to the amazement of the Jewish mourners and onlookers (John 11:38-44). The moral here is that God never comes late. His time is the best time because His divine purposes will be served in the end.

Jesus chose to delay His response yet He had no intention of abandoning His friend to the grave!

God can do the same in certain  circumstances and this is the reason why we need God's peace and patience as we wait upon  Him (Philippians 4:6-7).

Saul was impatient with God and chose to offer sacrifices in disobedience. Sacrifices could only be offered by priests. This imprudence cost Saul the throne (1 Samuel 13:1-15).

We therefore need to seek to understand the mind of God in such circumstances and open our spiritual ears to Him. Again, we should bear in mind that His ways are above our ways.

4) PETITIONS MAY BE DECLINED IF THEY ARE PRESENTED IN CIRCUMSTANCES OF KNOWN SINFUL DISOBEDIENCE

The Bible teaches in Psalm 66:18 that "if I regard inequity in my heart, the LORD will not hear me."

This Scripture indicates that God can turn away His face from a person who knowingly persists in sinful disobedience (cf. Jeremiah 17:9).

If we petition God in circumstances in which we are aware of certain spiritual obstacles standing between us and God, we should not expect any positive results unless we first make amends with God.

This requires that we sanctify our hearts and confess any known and unknown acts of sinful disobedience.

This is not to suggest that God deals with us on account of our moral perfection or standing in His presence! It is instructive to note that no believer can satisfy God's divine standards.

CONCLUSION

Answered prayers are a blessing to every child of God. The fact that God answered our prayers is purely by His divine grace. It is not by reason of any goodness we have done or any innate condition in our lives. The Bible declares in Isaiah 64:6 "But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags..."

Whether or not our petitions are instantly, granted, delayed or declined, our relationship with God is not lost. This is what makes us what we are in Christ (John 1:12; Romans 8:28-30).

When God chooses to withhold answers to our prayers or flatly declines them, it is our obligation to seek to discover His divine will for us in those circumstances so that we may have His peace in Christ (Philippians 4:6-7).

Shalom


© Ezekiel Kimosop 2019


For more articles visit my teaching blog at www.ezekielkimosop.blogspot.com