"God does say He will graciously entertain our prayers. He says that if we exercise faith, and if our request is in accordance with His will, He will hear us"
About this Quote
Walter Martin points to a paradox that sits at the heart of Christian prayer: radical access paired with holy constraint. God invites prayers and welcomes them with grace, yet His response is shaped by faith and by His own will. The phrase "graciously entertain" evokes hospitality more than bureaucracy; God is not a distant official processing requests but a host who receives His guests with kindness. Still, reception is not capitulation. To be heard is to be taken up into a living relationship, not to receive a blank check.
The conditions Martin names are not hurdles for earning answers; they are the shape of real communion. Faith is not mental leverage but trust in the character of God, a refusal to treat prayer as magic or manipulation. Asking according to God’s will aligns desire with purpose, echoing 1 John’s assurance that when petitions fit His will, they are heard. That alignment is learned through Scripture, the Spirit’s guidance, and a life formed by obedience. It fosters humility, since the petitioner yields outcomes to wisdom greater than his own.
Martin’s apologetic legacy lends context. He often warned against credulity and spiritual shortcuts, and this framing pushes back against prosperity formulas that turn prayer into technique. Jesus’ own prayer in Gethsemane, "not my will, but yours", and Paul’s unanswered plea about the thorn both show that hearing does not always mean granting in the way we expect. Sometimes "no" or "not yet" is itself a gracious answer that advances a better good.
The promise remains profoundly consoling. God is not indifferent; He invites approach and promises attention. Prayer then becomes participation in divine work. As faith seeks God’s will, the act of praying reshapes the heart, aligning it with the One who hears, and turning desires into instruments of His purposes.
The conditions Martin names are not hurdles for earning answers; they are the shape of real communion. Faith is not mental leverage but trust in the character of God, a refusal to treat prayer as magic or manipulation. Asking according to God’s will aligns desire with purpose, echoing 1 John’s assurance that when petitions fit His will, they are heard. That alignment is learned through Scripture, the Spirit’s guidance, and a life formed by obedience. It fosters humility, since the petitioner yields outcomes to wisdom greater than his own.
Martin’s apologetic legacy lends context. He often warned against credulity and spiritual shortcuts, and this framing pushes back against prosperity formulas that turn prayer into technique. Jesus’ own prayer in Gethsemane, "not my will, but yours", and Paul’s unanswered plea about the thorn both show that hearing does not always mean granting in the way we expect. Sometimes "no" or "not yet" is itself a gracious answer that advances a better good.
The promise remains profoundly consoling. God is not indifferent; He invites approach and promises attention. Prayer then becomes participation in divine work. As faith seeks God’s will, the act of praying reshapes the heart, aligning it with the One who hears, and turning desires into instruments of His purposes.
Quote Details
| Topic | Prayer |
|---|
More Quotes by Walter
Add to List
