The idea of the immediacy of God did not begin with me. I had not heard of it before I said it, as I analyzed the book of Judges as my favorite Old Testament book at this moment in life. One of the differences between how I am using it and what I infer from those I got some insight from is that I’m not talking about results happening quickly. Most of those seemed to talk about how quickly God worked in the lives of many in the books of the Gospel and others. My conclusion on this theological observation of the immediacy of God is how quickly He answers, even if the results are not seen right away.
I just finished studying the book of Judges, and the Immediacy of God was all that came to mind through the pattern of Israel over the years of this era. The rhythm of this book is sin, repent, rescue, rest, repeat. What I call the Immediacy of God was as soon as the people repented, God raised up a Judge. This judge was tasked with fighting against Israel’s enemies. When God assigned this judge, the enemy did not go away immediately, but God answered immediately. These enemies took years for the judges to defeat before there was rest in the land. We cannot resent the fight. We find hope in the reality that God answered right away.
All of us would love the conclusions of those who speak of this same theological reality of the immediacy of God: we pray, God answers, and the problem is gone. I do not deny this could happen, but how do we grow if it always happens? Our faith grows when we know we can pray according to His will or repent of sin that has brought severe consequences, and God responds immediately. We may need to wait to see the results come to fruition. You can read Judges and Praise God for this truth through those pages. The wait, the continued need for prayer, is not for God to answer but the faith that we are partnering with Him to bring the results into the earthly realm. It is a continued spiritual fight, as with Daniel.
Here is another place in Scripture where we see the immediacy of God so we can wrap our minds around this truth and rest in the power of prayer and the spiritual battle he allows us to join him in. Not only do we get to pray or repent of sin and be assured that God hears us and answers immediately, but the reality is that he answers and allows us to wait sometimes, much of the time. This is meant to grow our walk in the Spirit to refine our faith. This is a good thing. We may never like it, but it suits God’s children. The wait is a trial in itself, and remember what James 1:12 says about the benefit of trials, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”
I see this characteristic of God everywhere in Scripture, and I’m not looking for it. It simply jumps off the pages as I read. In 1 Chronicles 5, where the page is full of genealogy and nothing exciting for most of us, I see it while reading about the three East of the Jordan tribes. First, they are in a part of the land that was not part of the promised land. That was not considered when they cried out to God when they were in battle over the land. The war grew fierce in verses 18-22: "They cried out to God during the battle and (God) answered their prayer because they trusted him.” God answered immediately. Did the war end because God answered? Yes and no! It was over for these tribes' enemies. Yet, the war had to be fought until the victory God gave them was accomplished physically. God answered, but there was work to be done from a human standpoint. We see the immediacy of God in this historical event. We also see the persistence in God's children to act.
One of the most comforting aspects of the immediacy of God is beautifully illustrated in the words of an angel speaking to Daniel in response to his prayer. “Do not be afraid. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard…” Daniel 10:12-13. The power of this knowledge that God heard Daniel's prayer from the very first day and sent help is a source of immense comfort that we, as God’s children, should never overlook. I pray you truly grasp this reality for your own prayer life.
Let’s not miss the qualifiers from each historical event and God hearing and responding immediately. In the Chronicle story, “they trusted him.” In Daniel, it says he “set your mind to gain understand and humble yourself before your God…” Why does that matter? Faith matters, and humility is necessary before God. He has a lot to say about both.
Faith is the lifeline of the Christian relationship with God. The opposite of faith is doubt. God rebukes doubt. James1:6a-7 says “For the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” God does not act immediately for this one. This is how the Bible defines faith and why God acts immediately towards those with it. The words of Hebrews 11:1-3 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old received their commendation. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” The three tribes in Chronicles and Daniel were assured that their God would act towards them favorably. How do we know? Each passage tells us this. Remember, they did not see the answer immediately, but by their actions, they trusted that God had answered.
They responded in humility before God. How do we know this? Again, their actions revealed this. There was so much in their history that they understood what is said in Proverbs 3:34: “God resists those who are arrogant and self-reliant (proud), and do not trust in Him.” Humility is the opposite of pride. It is the attitude of dependence on God and acknowledges His grace in times of need. James 4:6 says, “God gives grace to the humble, but opposes the proud.”
What is your attitude toward God in your prayer life? Do you know what you should pray for to be assured of God's immediate actions toward those things? Are your prayers full of self-reliance and greed? Do you indeed seek the things God wants? Is there humility and setting your heart towards God?
Don’t get me wrong, I know there are times when our prayers are full of selfish motives, and we want comfort over the delay of not seeing immediate answers. God wants us to change these things: the sanctification and repentance process. We read His Word to understand the things of God’s heart. Then, as we pray for those things, we can rest in the understanding that God will answer immediately while building our patience while we wait to see the answers come to fruition.
Let me end with this from Psalm 6:8 "Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. 9 The Lord has heard my plea; the Lord accepts my prayer." Take this and TRUST in the Immediacy of God!
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