Do you want to preach a sermon on why prayers are not answered? The topic is a very interesting one. Maybe because you have a prayer conference or you just want to teach people about prayers and why they might be having unanswered prayers. There are several reasons why prayers are not answered and we will be focusing on five of them.
Sermon on Why Prayers Are Not Answered Outline
Introduction: Prayer is one of the pillars of the Christian faith. Several scriptures employ us to engage in prayers. We have seen from the scriptures why we are expected to pray. In Luke 18:1, the parable Jesus gave was for us to always pray. Another verse that encourages prayer is in Jeremiah 33:3 and there are many more like these ones.
There is no disputing the fact that prayer is key and its importance cannot be overemphasized. However, we have seen cases where our prayers are not answered. It can be worrying to see that despite our prayer engagements, we are not getting the answers we want to see.
It is even worrying when we read scriptures like Psalms 65:2, Jer 33:3, and Matthew 7:7. These scriptures do not just ask us to pray but tell us that when we pray God answers. So, why do we have our prayers unanswered?
In this sermon, I am going to talk about 5 reasons why our prayers are not answered. These reasons are largely connected with unanswered prayers and they are often the problem many believers face when it comes to prayer.
5 Reasons Why Prayers Are Not Answered
- A lack of faith
- A wrong motive for prayers
- A life of sin
- Wrong speaking and doubt
- A lack of desperation
A Lack of Faith
The first and most prevalent reason for unanswered prayers is a lack of faith. As ridiculous as it may sound, a lack of faith is going to keep you from getting the answers to the prayers you are seeking.
See what the Bible says in Hebrews 11:6;
Anything we do in our interaction with God without faith is an effort in futility. You cannot get the best from God when we do not believe that God is and He is capable of doing the things we ask Him for.
Another scripture that shows us how a lack of faith robs us of the blessings of receiving in prayers is in James 1:5-7;
Even though it talks about asking for wisdom from God, there is a valuable lesson for all forms of asking.
Verse 6 of that text says that let the man who is asking God for wisdom ask in faith and he must not waver or doubt. When you read verse 7, there is something profound. The Bible says that if you will not ask and have faith that you have received then forget about receiving.
Faith in God is the foremost requirement for receiving anything from God. It does not matter how long you pray. You could cry, confess, say words of affirmation, and all the many other gymnastics we do in prayer. If you do not have faith that what you have asked God is done, then it won’t be done.
How Do You Get Faith to Believe in God
It is important to know how we can turn our lack of faith into an immovable belief in the ability of God to do what we ask. These are some of the ways to do so:
- Be an ardent student of the word: Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing and hearing God’s word. It means if you must have faith in God you must be a student of the word either by personal studying or listening to sermons. Let no day go by that you do not feed on the word.
- Listen to testimonies: Testimonies are the best part of service for me because it allows me to hear of the things God is doing in the lives of other people and helps me to grow my faith. When you see how God came through for someone who has a similar issue to yours or something lesser than yours, you are going to trust Him to do yours for you.
- Shut down negative thoughts: 2 Corinthians 10:5 says we should bring every thought to the obedience of Christ. There are times when negative thoughts projected by the devil will come to disrupt your faith in God. Do not give it a chance. When they come, open your mouth and speak of the ability of God. confess His healing over you, how He has made you rich and not poor, how you are His possession and He loves you jealousy, use your words over these thoughts.
- Speak God’s word about your situation: This is just a continuation of the previous point. You build your faith in God when you choose to say what the Bible says about you rather than what your circumstances say about you. Look for a word from God in the Bible and use that to grow your faith in God.
A Wrong Motive for Prayers
The second reason why prayers are not answered is because what we ask for most of the time is wrong or for the wrong reasons.
James 4:3 is clear on this;
You are not going to receive anything from God if you are asking for it because you want to prove a point or you want to show your colleague that you can do it too.
Imagine praying for a car because you want to drive around town so you can get back on the ex-girlfriend who left you because you didn’t have one.
There may be legitimate reasons why you need a car, don’t get me wrong but when God sees that your reason for asking is because you want to “consume it on your lusts,” then He won’t answer your prayers.
We cannot tell what is in our hearts. I cannot tell what is in yours and you can’t tell what is in mine but like Proverbs 21:2 says
Check your motive for asking. If it is wrong, then no matter how long you ask or how much faith you have, God will not be committed to doing it.
Wrong Speaking and Doubt
Speaking negative words and having doubt in your heart is one of the reasons why prayers are not answered. One of the most beautiful scriptures about God’s ability is in Ephesians 3:20;
Even the things you think about are prayers to God because He wants to do them too. Imagine you finish asking God to heal you and you start doubting Him in your heart. What a conflict of interest.
You cannot say something with your lips to God and say another thing in your heart and expect that God will answer you.
Neither can you say something to God in prayers and say a different thing when you are done praying.
Your prayers, your thoughts, and your confessions must be in synchrony. Not only does God want to do what you pray (Matthew 7:7) but He will do what you think (Ephesians 3:20) and what you say (Numbers 14:28).
A Lack of Desperation
Finally, for this study, a lack of desperation is one of the undoings that keeps us from getting answers to our prayers. We do not ask with desperation. Some of us just pray about something once and forget about it because it didn’t happen.
Let us read the parable in Luke 18 and see what Jesus says.
In verses 6 and 7, see what Jesus says;
He is saying that will God not answer us even though it seems He is “wasting” time or “delaying.” The key point in this text is that the woman was desperate to get justice and she didn’t care if the judge had a reputation for not doing what people wanted him to do. She only wanted justice and every day she came, desperate, without fail.
In verse 8, Jesus also asked;
What this question implies is that our desperation in asking God is a show of faith and in that arrangement, God will be compelled to do what we ask of Him.
Do not give up easily when your prayers are not answered. Tell yourself it doesn’t matter how long it will take, you are going to wait.
Elijah prayed seven times for rain even when God promised him rain already.
Jesus prayed three times when he was in the garden of Gethsemane.
The woman in Luke 18 kept coming until the judge decided to avenge her.
Desperation is a needed ingredient for answered prayers. Keep praying until God does it.
A Life of Sin
This is often the bane for many people when it comes to unanswered prayers – sin. Living a life of sin is the reason many of us do not get our prayers answered. God hates sin and He cannot look at iniquity because He is holy (Habakkuk 1:13).
Someone who lives in sin or has made a habit of sinning is not a favorite to God and God has no business answering their prayers except their prayer of repentance and cry for mercy.
On asking God for things in prayer, see what Isaiah 59 says about when we have sin in our life. We are reading verses 1 to 2.
God is able to answer us when we pray but sin makes it look like He is incapable of doing so. Our iniquity as Isaiah puts it has caused God’s hands to feel short, it has made His ears heavy to our cry and has put a block between us that prevents us from receiving from Him.
When we do away with sin, God considers us fit for answers to prayers. The moment we give to sin, we lose touch with God and that loss makes asking and receiving difficult.
Several times through the scriptures we see how God decided to punish the children of Israel because of their sin and only when they choose to turn to Him that He answer their prayers. It is no different for us today. We can’t expect to live in sin and think God will happily say yes when we ask Him for stuff.
Counsel
The life of sin doesn’t just prevent you from getting answers to prayers but keeps you from having sweet fellowship with God. it is important to make a decision for Jesus today and drop sin and its load.
If you need to make a decision for Jesus, come to the altar. You want to say God I am tired of this life of sin, not because I want you to answer my prayers but because I need to make things right with you.
Come.
Final Thoughts
I believe that this sermon on why prayers are not answered has blessed you and given you a concise insight into the reasons most believers are struggling to get answers to their prayers from God.