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Does God Choose Not to Hear You?

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O Lord, I call upon you; hasten to me! Give ear to my voice when I call to you! Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! Psalm 141:1-2

God continually calls His people to pray. In our opening scripture, David calls upon God to respond.

I love his candor with the God who loves him. Hasten to me!

I want to have that kind of faith when I approach His throne. Don’t you? David confidently asked God to come near, full of expectation that he would be heard. Then he asked Him to open His ear to his voice.

Why is that significant?

John 9:31 reveals an important truth.

We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.

David confidently asked God to respond to him because he knew he had God’s ear. Do you, dear one?

If you’re not certain, we just read the qualifications describing one God listens to: anyone who worships God and does His will.

You and I want God to hear our prayers, beloved. More than that, we desperately need Him to—far more than we realize. But John 9:31 brings up an important point we often overlook.

God doesn’t listen to every prayer.

I know. Making a statement like that seems scandalous. It doesn’t sit well with our cozy view of grace. But God’s word remains true—all of it, not just portions of it. And scripture undeniably declares, God does not hear us all.

Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear. Isaiah 59:1-2

You’ll notice the problem is not that God can’t hear. But there are times when He chooses not to.

So why would God choose not to hear His own children? 2 Timothy 2:11-13 offers some insight.

The saying is trustworthy, for:

If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself.

Beloved, if you and I live our lives denying Jesus, His word declares that He will also deny us.

Perhaps I’ve lost your attention because you feel those words don’t apply to you. But I’m not talking about denying that Jesus is the Son of God. I’m talking about the decisions we make every day that either deny or acknowledge Him.

Let’s be honest. Many of us cheerfully associate ourselves with Jesus’ name. But when He calls us to actually live our faith through obedience, we deny Him.

• When His Spirit prompts us to forgive, we deny Him by embracing bitterness.
• When He invites us to walk in holiness, we deny Him by choosing the ways of the world.
• When He calls us into His presence, we deny Him the time.

Then we wonder why He doesn’t seem to bless our prayers.

If we deny Him, He will also deny us.

Beloved, God will never empower disobedience and idolatry. We cannot expect Him to unleash heaven’s blessing upon us while our choices deny His leadership over us.

And that, dear one, is why David had God’s ear. Listen to God’s description of him.

“I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.”
Acts 13:22

God’s ear tunes to the sounds of the godly. Let’s put it another way.

God listens to those who listen to Him.

God listens to those who listen to Him. Click To Tweet

Do you want God to hear you, dear one? Listen to Him. Choose to live in agreement with His Word. Seek Him in the secret place to discern what He is speaking. And then follow where He leads—in every area of your life.

You and I can’t expect God to listen to us while we refuse to listen to Him. But when we seek to live according to His will, His promises abound.

But know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. Psalm 4:3

Proven and True

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If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself. 2 Timothy 2:11-13 ESV

Our human nature seeks the quick fix. We want the path of least resistance, the easy way out. So we’ve convinced ourselves that walking an aisle or praying a magic prayer ensures our salvation.

But what if there’s more? What if 1 Corinthians 4:2 actually means what it says?

Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. (NIV)

Beloved, what if professing faith in Jesus Christ is more than just a simple, one-time commitment? What if what matters most isn’t how we begin but how we finish?

Consider Paul’s words to Timothy, found in our opening scripture.

If we endure, we will also reign with him.

Jesus also declared on two separate occasions while describing the difficulties that will come in the world,

“But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:22, 24:13

The writer of Hebrews agreed.

For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. Hebrews 10:36

Do you notice the consistent theme popping up in these verses, beloved? You and I need to endure. It doesn’t matter how sincere we thought we were when we started. Even Judas appeared sincere to the other disciples. What matters is how we finish the race.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7

Paul didn’t write those words for his own benefit, dear one. The Holy Spirit inspired them. God sent a message through Paul to penetrate our hearts with truth. Finishing well matters.

I used to wonder at the meaning of Philippians 2:12-13.

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (emphasis mine)

What does it mean to work out our salvation—especially with fear and trembling? Doesn’t God Himself do the work when we believe?

The answer, of course, is yes. Jesus completed the work of salvation through the cross. And we can only access that salvation through faith. We can’t earn it.

But what you and I need to work out, dear one, is whether the faith we claim to have in Jesus is real, biblical faith. We must ask ourselves: Is God obviously at work within us?

1 John 2:19 reveals an important truth.

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

True believers—held in the hand of our Savior—will not depart from Him. We can’t, because God Himself is at work in our hearts directing our wills to align with His pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

What proves the sincerity of our faith, beloved, is whether we endure when things get hard. Our challenges reveal the true condition of our hearts—and who really governs them.

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:6-7

The next verse reveals the key to genuine faith.

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. 1 Peter 1:8

True faith can't exist without love. Click To Tweet

Authentic biblical faith will endure because it’s grounded in love. It doesn’t come from duty or a desire to earn grace. Love returned to Jesus for the great sacrifice He made will keep us from falling away.

We may falter at times. We may stumble. But Jesus will always remain faithful to keep us because we are His. He holds us, calls to us, instructs us, and guards us, enabling us to endure.

That’s what 2 Timothy 2:13 means when it says,

If we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself.

When our faith is grounded in love, we don’t just belong to Him. We’re a part of Him. And Jesus will never deny Himself.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. James 1:12