Based on a sermon by Chang Wei Lin—Taiwan

Each of us prays to God with the hope that He will hear us and answer. Granted requests assure us that our prayers are effective and our faith is strengthened. Unanswered prayers, on the other hand, spark doubt and make us wonder: If God loves me, why has He withheld His blessings? If God cares, why does He allow us to suffer? If God is with me, why does He feel so distant?

Prayers that seems unanswered do not indicate the withholding of God's love or His absence. The following biblical examples provide reasons why some prayers go unanswered, or appear so, and teach us how to move on in our faith and relationship with God.

INTERCEDING FOR OTHERS

Do They Meet God's Requirements?

Most churches encourage members to intercede for those in need by displaying a prayer list before prayer sessions. Seeing names that remain on the list for a long time may make us wonder why our intercession has been ineffectual, and even whether we should continue praying for them.

In Genesis 18:20–21, God shared with Abraham His plan to visit Sodom and examine the extent of its evil. After Abraham interceded six times for the city, God promised to spare Sodom if ten righteous people could be found. God heard and agreed to Abraham's prayers. Yet, despite Abraham's sincere intercession, God ultimately destroyed the city because His requirements were not met. Not even ten righteous people could be found there.

Similarly, when our continuous and loving intercessions leave circumstance unchanged, it may be that those for whom we pray have fallen short of God's grace (Heb 12:15). Though God has heard our prayer, His conditions for bestowing His grace have not been met.

Do We Have Sin?

And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. (Jas 5:15–16)

We are familiar with the requirement that intercessions be made with faith. However, we often neglect the second condition affecting the prayer's effectiveness: the intercessor must be righteous. If sin remains in us, God will not grant our request. Sin is the biggest hindrance between man and God, which is why James tells us to confess our sins and pray for one another so that we can be forgiven. Then, God will hear our prayers.

Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened,
That it cannot save;
Nor His ear heavy,
That it cannot hear.
But your iniquities have separated you from your God;
And your sins have hidden His face from you,
So that He will not hear. (Isa 59:1–2)

God is a merciful and loving Father who desires to give grace (2 Cor 9:8). But as a just God, He does not remain impervious to sin. When God appears deaf to our intercessions, we ought to examine whether sin is in us or those we pray for, or whether God's conditions for dispensing His grace have been met. We must encourage one another with the truth to remove sin from our lives and demolish the wall of separation between man and God. Only then can we receive God's grace.

PRAYING FOR OUR OWN NEEDS

Paul's Thorn in the Flesh

Some of us have the experience of praying for a long time over a personal matter with no resolution. At best, we wonder what God wants us to learn in such situations. At worst, we conclude that the cruel God who remains silent without intervening in our suffering is not worth worshipping.

Consider Paul's experience:

And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. (2 Cor 12:7)

The thorn in Paul's flesh brought great pain and inconvenience. In the original Greek text of the New Testament, this "thorn"^[1] refers to a sharpened piece of wood, such as a stake one would drive into the ground when building a fence. The image of such a thorn impaling Paul's flesh illustrates his immense suffering.

What could this thorn represent? Paul mentioned that the Galatian members, witnessing his suffering, would have plucked out their own eyes to give to him (Gal 4:15). He also wrote with large letters (Gal 6:11). These suggest that Paul may have had eye problems. If this was the case, it would have been very arduous for Paul to travel and pioneer the Gentile regions.

Regardless of what the thorn was, Paul had asked God to remove it out of a genuine need related to the critical holy work he was doing. He pleaded three times, fervently beseeching the Lord. But God's answer was a gentle—albeit unequivocal—"No"!

And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." (2 Cor 12:9)

Suffering Brings Spiritual Edification

When we are sick or suffering, we often pray as Paul did, asking God to take away the source of our pain. But similarly, God's answer to us may not be what we expect. Thus, when we encounter these challenging situations, we must consider what spiritual lessons we should learn. If we trust that God's grace is sufficient for us to overcome the challenge, it does not matter if the thorn remains.

Jesus mentioned that people would say, "Physician, heal yourself!" (Lk 4:23). Many came to Paul with ailments, and some were healed even without the laying of his hands (Acts 19:11–12). God's healing power worked mightily through him, even through his handkerchiefs and aprons. Because "God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul," many deemed him to be a god (Acts 14:11–15). But Paul's inability to remove his own thorn—to heal himself—was a reminder of his very human frailties, keeping him humble. Paul even took the pre-emptive step of boasting in his infirmities, not his flesh, so that others would not esteem him too highly (2 Cor 12:6).

In addition, Paul's theological insights were direct revelations from God (Gal 1:12). The recipient of so many revelations would surely have been in danger of becoming proud, even to the extent of expecting special treatment from others. Again, the thorn in Paul's flesh reminded him that he was a mere man, not God, lest he "be exalted above measure by the abundance of revelations" (2 Cor 12:7). He came to understand the spiritual cultivation the thorn brought him. With this heart, he could accept God's will—whether or not the thorn was taken away, God's grace sufficed.

Today, prayer is the first port of call when we experience suffering. But if the source of our suffering is not removed, we should then ask God what He wants us to learn. Edification in and through trials reinforces our faith and relationship with God.  

PRAYING FOR THE HOLY WORK

Receive Strength to Face Difficulties Ahead

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil. (Heb 2:14)

When Jesus came into the world in the flesh, He experienced the physical and emotional challenges common to all humankind. His impending suffering on the cross brought such great distress and sorrow that He offered up "prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears" (Heb 5:7; Mk 14:33–34). He prayed, "Take this cup away from Me," requesting that the hour might pass from Him—to transcend time and avoid the pain and suffering to come (Mk 14:35–36).

Since God did not remove the cup, some may infer that Jesus' prayer was denied. However, Jesus had also prayed, "[N]evertheless, not what I will, but what You will" (Mk 14:35–36). The Father indeed heard and answered Jesus' prayer (Heb 5:7).

"Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him." (Lk 22:43)

Instead of changing His will, the Father gave Jesus spiritual strength and courage, empowering Him to carry out the Father's will.

Wait for God's Time

Interceding for the holy work in church is aligned with God's will. Yet, we may see little progress in certain ministries even after many years of prayer. For example, we pray unceasingly for the evangelism work but see few souls added to the fold. We must avoid measuring the efficacy of our prayers by specific results. What is more important is for us, through prayer and intercession, to gain spiritual strength to continue to do God's work and trust in His timing. We should not think our petitions are ineffective and give up.

When Lazarus fell ill, his sisters, Mary and Martha, quickly sent word to Jesus (Jn 11:1–3). They expected Him to come and resolve this problem. At the time, Jesus was beyond the Jordan, many miles from Bethany. On receiving the message, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it" (Jn 11:4). He then waited two more days before setting off. Imagine Mary and Martha's anxiety as the hours ticked by. By the time Jesus arrived, Lazarus had been dead for four days. Martha told Jesus, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died" (Lk 11:21).

Why did Jesus not act quickly to prevent Lazarus' death and the sisters' sorrow? God's time and purpose were revealed when Jesus finally raised Lazarus from the dead. God intended to resurrect Lazarus for His own glory and give the disciples a fuller understanding of the Son of God (Jn 11:4, 15, 40, 42). Had Jesus healed Lazarus straight away, they would not have experienced the fullness of God's power and grace; their knowledge of Christ—the resurrection and the life—would have been incomplete (Jn 11:25–26).

We may not always understand God's plan and timing, but we can trust in His good will for us:

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD.
"For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts." (Isa 55:8–9)

CONCLUSION

In our faith, as in life, we are often too anxious and impatient; we desire immediate results. We pray today and expect God's answer tomorrow. If our prayers are sincere, but God appears silent or slow to respond, we should not doubt that He has heard or that He cares. Instead, we should reflect on whether God's conditions have been met or if there is sin within us or the person we are interceding for. If the situation does not change, perhaps God wants to teach us a particular lesson or provide us with spiritual edification. As we pray persistently for ourselves, others, and the church work, we can entrust all to God's good will and timing. Even in the face of seemingly insurmountable trials, God will grant us peace. In turn, we will grow in our spiritual understanding and strength to continue our work. Importantly, we will bring all glory to God.