God hears

 

Peter lays great stress upon separation from evil in its many forms. Christians are not to return evil for evil, v. 9. In speech they are to refrain from it, v. 10, and in conduct to turn away from it, v. 11. If they suffer, let it be for doing good and not for doing evil, v. 17. ‘The Lord’s eyes are upon the righteous and His ears open to their prayer’, v. 12 lit.

The Lord’s promise of ‘open ears’ can be claimed only if two conditions are met. 

First, the supplicant must be ‘righteous’. Measured by God’s standard of absolute perfection, we are ‘the unrighteous’ for whom ‘the Righteous One’ suffered to bring us to God, v. 18. Nevertheless, having been reconciled to God, we should now be characterized by righteousness in our conduct, 2:24; 3:14. Of ungodly and unrighteous men, God has said, ‘though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them’, Ezek. 8:18.

Second, our petitions must be genuine. Mere words are not enough. We must be particularly careful when praying in public. It is very easy to fall into the trap of ‘praying’ to (rather than for) other believers.

The story is told of the young lawyer who had just opened up a brand new office. He was seated behind his shiny new desk, eagerly awaiting his first client. He heard footsteps in the hall and saw the doorknob turn. Wishing to look important, he pretended to be busy, picked up the phone and carried on a fake conversation. ‘Yes, I’ll have my secretary attend to that. I have a very heavy schedule. You’ll need to call me back in a few days’. As the door opened, he motioned as if to say, ‘Come in, come in’. A stranger entered the office, listening to one end of the weighty conversation. Finally, putting the receiver down, the lawyer turned to his potential client—‘Now, what may I do for you?’. Quietly the man answered, ‘I’m from the telephone company. I’ve come to connect your phone’.

Much of our public praying is like that. We are praying to be heard by the saints, and there is no one on the other end of the line. But if we pray with sincerity, we can be sure that God’s ears are always open. We will never get an engaged tone! 

Take advantage today of your direct line to the Throne.