Isaiah 1-2, Galatians 5 • Key Verse: Isaiah 1:15
It seems inconceivable to think that God would not listen to our prayers, yet there are times when
that is exactly the case. Our concept of God is that He always hears, always listens, but that is an
incomplete concept. It may be the one that we like, but it is not what the Bible teaches.
What makes the difference between God hearing or not hearing our prayers is a matter of our
heart. Some think, If I have the right form” if I pray with the right words, in the right place, at
the right time, then it is a done deal. I prayed. God will answer. That is the way it is supposed to
be.
That attitude toward prayer is very man-centered, one that views God as the cosmic servant
rather than the holy, sovereign Creator.
His view differs drastically. Isaiah 1 makes that apparent. God looks at the heart of the one
praying. Even His view of the raised hands is penetrating as He sometimes sees the uncleanness
of. the supplicant’s life (1:15). In this chapter Isaiah also condemns strongly the sacrifices and
festivals of the people, making the point that it is not a matter of art but of heart that makes what
we do acceptable to God.
Flowing out of these rebukes are the gentle words, “‘Come now, let us reason together”’ (v. 18).
Notice, though, that between rebuke and reconciliation is repentance (vv. 16-17). When there is
wrong in our life it must be made right, a process that starts in the heart.
Perhaps you go through all the right motions, but is there wrong in your life? Don’t just trust
your routines to indicate all is right in your relationship with God. Look at your heart.
Woodrow Kroll & Tony Beckett
www.backtothebible.in