We have been discussing in the blog series “I Want Answers Now” the four answers God can give for our prayers when there appears to be no answer.
- Yes, but not now.
- Yes, but there is a need for obedience.
- Yes, but here is a better option.
- No.
One thing we may ponder when we haven’t received our answer from God is: maybe there is some unknown sin in our lives that is blocking the favor of God. Perhaps prayerlessness or some other moral issue is stopping the answer.
We can gain insight into this potential barrier by asking God to reveal it to us.
It is my experience that God is particularly diligent to answer our questions about our sin problems rather quickly. He will make issues of obedience clear to us by conviction of the Holy Spirit; during our Bible reading, through a pastoral message at church, through a colleague at work or just about anyone, anywhere and at anytime.
Let me be clear that sin is not the most common reason that we haven’t received our answer to prayer because we have been made completely righteous in Christ before God. Our past, present and future sins HAVE BEEN DEALT WITH by the blood of Jesus. God loves to give His children good things.
Yet there are certainly times where God needs us to do something differently, change an attitude or begin serving in a new area in order to receive a blessing that he has planned for us.
We looked at Luke chapter 1:6-23 earlier where an angel is speaking to Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father, when he was priest on duty offering incense in the temple. The angel announces the birth of John the Baptist with three stipulations requiring obedience: 1. Be Joyful 2. No alcohol 3. Name the boy John. God expects us to be obedient before we receive an answer and, more importantly, he expects obedience after we receive our answer.
Our obedience before our answer to prayer prepares us for obedience after we receive our answer.
Jesus says in Luke 16:10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.” It is so important to see our obedience today prepares us for obedience in the future. Obedience and blessing are always progressive to ensure that we are ready. We often make promises about our obedience to convince God to give us our blessing (I promise I will be a faithful to my future spouse, I promise I will be diligent in my new job, I promise I will be generous with my new wealth) but God is seeking new levels of obedience with what we currently have so we will be prepared when the answer comes.
After all these years of praying for a son, Zechariah is not buying it. He says to the angel in verse 18, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” Zechariah was doubtful that he would have a son because they were old and it was past the time to be bearing and raising a son.
The angel’s response is direct and to the point in verses 19-20, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”
A paraphrase of the angel’s message might give us “My name is Gabriel (God is my strength) and I have continual access to the mercy seat where God sits. This is the Holy of Holies where you need a rope around your waist to pull you out in case you do something wrong in here and die. I’m on a mission from God and it’s very important that you listen up because there is zero margin for error. I will give you a little sign that I’m for real, and so you do exactly as I say. You will be on mute for nine months until your son is born. This may seem bad at first but this sign will help you zip your lip from any faithless words. It will help you get out the good word about this child to hundreds of thousands of people in Jerusalem to celebrate the day of atonement.”
Nuance perfume had a commercial years ago that said “If you want to capture someone’s attention, Whisper”. I think being unexpectedly mute when you are a public figure on a big stage is even more effective. News about Zechariah’s dramatic exit from the Holy of Holies and Elizabeth’s pregnancy spread like wildfire.
God has a way of encouraging our obedience and catapulting us to our calling. He does this while keeping us humble, even though it can be a little uncomfortable at times.
God is sovereign over our lives and His story.
The Lord’s answer to Zechariah’s prayer for a son was, “Yes, but there is a need for obedience”. The obedience was not a precondition for an answer but it was a postcondition—both are important. Our obedience before the answer prepares us for higher levels of obedience after.
God is able to deal with our sin problems more easily than we may think. God is sovereign. He has a brick wall of light on the road to Damascus to stop our overzealous-Saul moments when we are trying to live our callings in our own way. And he has gentle moments with Ananias (which means grace) to restore our vision for the future.
It is still good for us to follow God’s plan for our lives as closely as possible or carry some really good life and health insurance until we do.
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