COV LIFE BLOG

1 John 5:14-15 – The Father Hears Us!

God loves to give us what we pray for. “And this is the confidence which we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him.” The clear implication of v. 15 is that God loves to answer our prayers. God is a cheerful giver when it comes to answering prayer. John says that if we know that he hears us, then we know we have the answer.
 
God is like Eric Liddell, the great Olympic runner of Chariots of Fire, with his feet planted waiting the gun. Our prayers are the gun. When the gun goes off, Eric Liddell explodes from the starting line. When God hears our prayers, he explodes into action. And our happiness in him is his prize at the end of the race.
 
Or let me say it another way. God is like a kindly grandfather with wax in his ears. Now this is a very limited analogy. Listen to the scenario. A little girl comes up to her grandfather who is sitting in his chair looking at the birds through the picture window. The little girl is carrying a box of band-aids and her knee is scratched. She says to her grandfather, “Gramps, will you put a band-aid on my knee?” Grandpa keeps watching the birds eating at the birdfeeder and after no response the little girl runs to Grandma in the next room brokenhearted because Grandpa wouldn’t help her. Grandma kind of smiled because she knew Gramps had a heart of gold, and loved his little granddaughter, and would even die for her. Grandma knew that the problem was that Gramps has wax in his ears. She knew that all Gramps had to do was hear his little granddaughter’s voice and his eyes would twinkle and he would do whatever the little girl asked—provided he was convinced that it was best for her. So she sends the granddaughter back to him, saying, “Make sure he hears you. If he hears you, I know he will fix your knee.” So the granddaughter goes back. She makes her request directly into his ear. Grandpa’s eyes twinkle, the corners of his mouth turn into a beautiful smile, he takes his little granddaughter into his lap and tenderly bandages her knee.
 
Well, God is not hard of hearing. He has no wax in his ears. But he is the prototype of the grandfather’s kind and benevolent heart. If we know that God hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the request.
 
Jesus paints the same picture in Mt. 6:31 where he tells the disciples not to fret about food and drink and clothing. Why? “For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” If God knows your need; if he hears your prayer, he is of such an eager disposition to do good for you that the need is as good as met and the prayer is as good as answered. God is like a thoroughbred at the Kentucky Derby, champing at the bit, fidgeting, waiting for the gate to open. He has ordained that our prayers be the gate-opener. Or God is like the father with the prodigal son, who when he sees his long-lost son far off in the distance, he just can’t wait, so he runs out to meet him and gives him a bear hug. It’s as though God were on his tip-toes in anticipation of doing us good. Our heavenly Father is sitting on the edge of his throne of grace eager to hear our prayers and do us good. 2 Chronicles 16:9 shows this same anticipation on God’s part. “The eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that he may strongly support those whose heart is completely his.” Our prayers are like smoke signals spelling out, “SOS.” God loves to answer the cry for help.
 
I want to close with an admonition to all of us to become more regular and more expectant in prayer; and to urge all of us to become more sensitive to the spiritual welfare of the brothers and sisters around us. Let us be diligent in interceding for each other’s spiritual and emotional and physical well-being. God has much he wants to accomplish through us in answer to prayer. I can’t help but feel we are on the verge of a new breakthrough in power and fruitfulness…. And it will come through a new surge in prayer.

John Piper

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SCRIPTURES FOR THIS SUNDAY
Read the following passages and marvel in the reality that God HEARS us.

Psalm 18:6
Psalm 34:4
Matthew 7:7-11
1 Peter 3:12
1 John 5:14-15

What differences does this make in your relationship with God? And if this is true of how God relates to you, what difference does it make in your relationship with others?

SONG FOR THIS WEEK
O God Of Mercy, Hear My Plea by Sovereign Grace