Can God hear everyone’s prayers?
Answer:
God is omnipotent and omniscient – He is able to do all things (Jeremiah 32:17) and He knows all things (1 John 3:20). He is a spirit (John 4:24) and does not have a physical form like we do. Therefore to say that He “hears” is not to say that he audibly hears prayers, but that He knows everything that everyone prays about. He also knows everything that is in our thoughts (Psalm 44:21, 94:11).
However, from a human perspective it may seem that sometimes God does not hear our prayers. This is because God, in His power and sovereignty, chooses to respond to those whom He loves. God also has His own timing (2 Peter 3:8-9) for answering prayer.
God is far away from the wicked and only responds to the prayers of the righteous (Psalm 66:18-19). The righteous are those who repent from their sins and believe in the good news of reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all (Acts 10).
1 Praise awaits you, our God, in Zion;
to you our vows will be fulfilled.
2 You who answer prayer,
to you all people will come.
3 When we were overwhelmed by sins,
you forgave our transgressions. (Psalm 65:1-3)
but God has surely listened and has heard my prayer. (Psalm 66:19)
The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer. (Psalm 6:9)
The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous. (Proverbs 15:29)
34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. 36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.
39 “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name. (Acts 10:34-43)
Please see http://www.askanything.sg/tag/prayer/ for more information about prayer.
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