“The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.” (Pro. 15:29 NKJV)
Over the years, I have heard lost people say that they pray and that the Lord hears their prayers. While I do not doubt that sometimes the lost do find themselves in difficult situations and will on those occasions offer up a desperate cry to the Lord, it by no means implies that God has a relationship with them or that they have a relationship with God. They don’t! The only reason God will answer their prayer (and there are times when He does) is for the purpose of revealing Himself to them and to help draw them to Himself. He answers their prayer only out of mercy; not because of relationship. To think otherwise is to be deceived. It simply is not true (Isaiah 1:15, & 1 John 1:6).
The unredeemed do not have ready access to the Lord. They have no basis of such access. It is only the Blood of Jesus, applied to heart of the redeemed, that gives anyone access to the Throne of God (John 14:6)! For the wicked, the lost, the unredeemed, those who have no regard or interest in the Lord, the scripture is clear; the Lord is far from them. He does not hear their prayer.
But the inheritance and privilege of a Child of God and being a part of His Kingdom, is the reality of knowing that we always have access to Throne of God! Christ alone has made that possible for us (Eph. 2:13-16). Christ alone has brought us into a right relationship with God. Christ alone has made us righteous by His own blood (2 Cor. 5:21 & Rev. 5:9). And the scripture is clear that the Lord always hears the prayers of His redeemed! (Psalm 37:4, John 14: 13-14).
One of the differences between the lost and the saved is this. The unredeemed cannot pray with confidence. They have no basis by which they can. But the redeemed do! It is our relationship that gives us confidence (Heb. 4:16). Therefore let us be joyful in the relationship that Jesus has made possible for us. And let us pray often (1 Thess. 5:17) Our Heavenly Father always hears us!
James W. Black
