Trials, Doubt, and Grace

"Behold, the Lord's hand is not so short that it cannot save;

Neither is His ear so 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." 

Isa. 59: 1-2

What exactly is Isaiah speaking of in this passage?  I believe for most of my Christian life I would have answered that this is the condition of those apart from Christ.  In other words, those who do not personally know Jesus as Lord  do not have the Lord's ear.  So, what should one do if they are in this condition?  You should take heart that his hand is not too short to save!  No matter who you are.  No matter what you have done.  Jesus can and will answer if you cry out to Him in repentance and faith!  For years, I thought this passage was only for unbelievers and its message was a call to faith.

Yet, I believe there are still several questions for this interpretation of the passage.  What about those folks who are not believers and they cry out to the Lord for help with an accident or illness, and He answers their prayer?  What about the ways that God miraculously shows up bringing people to faith?  

I also have questions from another perspective.  Why is that so many Christians feel at different times in their lives that God does not hear them?  They trust in Jesus, what is going on?

Even as I spent time this morning speaking with the Lord in prayer and reading His word, I was struck by these questions.  I know there have been times and even seasons of my life where I wondered where the Lord was.  He just did not seem to hear my prayers for deliverance and my cries against evil.  Other times I did not feel peace even as I prayed for peace in the midst of life's storms.  Why?

One thing I have learned is that God's ways are not my ways.  What I feel and experience in this fallen world does not always match the ideal.  If I am God's child, why do I have such experiences?

I notice I have ended each thought with a question.  I think such questions- some would call them doubts- are helpful and good if they are handled properly.  What I mean is that we must not allow these questions to control our relationship with God.  In other words, questions are good if they lead us to  ask different questions.  

Instead of "Where are you and why have you not heard me," we should ask, "What are you trying to say?"  We must cling to and declare to our soul the promises of God.  By faith we are declared righteous.  We are His children and He loves us.  Jesus' righteousness is ours by faith.  This world is not all there is.  It is a shadow of eternal life.  We must meditate upon and believe these truths.

We also need to remember that the second verse of Isaiah 59 is also true.  "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."

The unbeliever who cries out for help often cries out for mercy.  For a brief moment they confess their inadequacies and their need.  They are vulnerable before the living God, and He answers.

The believer stuck in a situation can easily ignore the cry for mercy and instead cry out for justice.  "Lord, bring justice to this situation!  This is so wrong, fix it!"  They might even take it a step further.  "Lord I have done so much for You and been so faithful.  Hear my prayers!"

Such cries for justice demonstrate a profound lack of faith.  Yet, I have lived in this place of unbelief all too often!  Our demand for justice, against evil or for our service, puts our relationship of grace and mercy in a different spot.  In fact, the call for justice means it must begin with us.  

In my experience, The Lord often uses bad situations to help us grow.  He uses them to point out our self-righteousness, our pride, and our sin tendencies.  In other words, He takes us deeper into our need for grace and mercy instead of justice!  When we see this, we should repent and believe!  Cry out for mercy and confess your need for grace.  Such prayers the Lord does not despise.

What does all this mean when we struggle to feel God's presence and peace?  The essence of authentic faith is dependency upon God.   We look to God for forgiveness, grace, mercy, and love while  confessing our unbelief.  From the moment of first faith, by the foundation of God's grace, a believer is justified or declared righteous in the sight of God by faith.  

Also from this moment of first faith, the Lord begins to shape us and transform us by His grace toward our created good.  This process, called sanctification, is achieved through dependent faith.  So, when we depart from dependent faith, the Lord often calls us back to repentance and faith by pointing out our sin to drive us back to Jesus.  We may not want to hear about it, but such a state of repentant faith allows the Lord to hear us!

I do not know where you are in your journey of faith, but if the Lord does not seem close, I encourage you to ask different questions.  Ask the Spirit to lead you to a place of deeper repentance and dependent faith.  As you do, you will find that you draw near to God, and He will draw near to you (James 4:8).