When You Are Praying for Someone Who Is Defiant
Episode description
God has given us a fascinating insight into the heart of a wicked person, who constantly tells himself or herself that there is no God. This is an active pattern of thought.
We sometimes talk about preaching the gospel to yourself, telling yourself what God has done for you in Christ. But the wicked person keeps telling him or herself that there is no God. In order to live the way he wants to, the wicked person has to tell himself that there is no God.
There is another strand of thought running in this person’s mind: “He says in his heart, ‘God has forgotten’” (10:11). Notice the contradiction that lies in the heart of the wicked person: “All his thoughts are, ‘There is no God...’” but notice: “He says in his heart, ‘God has forgotten, he has hidden his face... [God] will not call to account’” (10:4, 11, 13).
The wicked person cannot quite convince himself that there is no God. Derek Kidner describes this as the “inner dialogue” of a wicked person. No matter how often he tells himself that there is no God, he can’t escape the sense of a divine being, so he resorts to an alternative argument. This is what lawyers do in the courtroom when they’re failing.
Take courage from this when you are praying for people who are defiant toward God. There is an inner dialogue in the soul of the wicked. The Bible says, “There is no peace... for the wicked” (Isa. 48:22), and here is the reason: There is an inner battle going on over God.
Have you been praying for someone who is defiant toward God?
Written by Colin Smith
Read by Sue McLeish