It's a bumper sticker I've seen. It's a billboard I've seen. It's a common proverb I've heard. And, I have to agree, it's a truth. Prayer changes things. The sovereign God of the Universe has, amazingly, ordained that He would use the prayers of His people to bring about change. Using our requests as a key or an enabling of some sort, He chooses to answer prayers offered according to His will to bring about change.
What does prayer change? Prayer changes landscape. We know this from Jesus's comments about mustard seed of faith moving mountains. Prayer changes circumstances. We all have heard or even experienced divine healings, immediate rescue from painful events, or protection in hard times. One thing that prayer changes of which we are less aware is the person praying. When we participate in God's work by obeying the command to pray at all times and get the blessing of seeing those prayers answered, we are changed. When we pound the throne of God as we are commanded, whether or not the request is granted, we are changed. Prayer teaches us a more careful dependence on God. So, there is no doubt that prayer changes things.
I was recently reminded that there is one thing that prayer does not change, and, oddly enough, a whole lot of Christians don't seem to know this. Prayer does not change the mind of God. Now, lots of people will argue with that. It seems rational that if I ask and God answers it is because my request changed His mind. There are scriptural events where it appears that God changes His mind when His people ask. To be fair, there are even explicit scriptural statements like "the Lord repented" when someone begs something of Him. One of the prime examples is in Exodus 32. God told Moses about Aaron's golden calf. He was going to destroy Israel for her sin (Exo. 32:7-10). Moses begged God not to do it (Exo. 32:11-13). And the Scriptures report, "And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people" (Exo. 32:14). "Come on," you say, "can it be any clearer than that?"
Here's the problem. If, indeed, our prayers can actually change the mind of God, then we have no God. Here's why. God is declared by Scripture to be immutable (unchanging) and omniscient (all-knowing). Scripture states clearly, "I am the LORD, I change not" (Mal. 3:6). First, if He knows everything, what do you suppose we finite beings can tell Him that might alter His perspective? "Oh, thanks for telling Me that," you can imagine Him saying, "I hadn't considered it." Did the omniscient God not know that Moses would say, "Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth'?" (Exo. 32:12)? Had He not already considered His promises to Abraham (Exo. 32:13)? Did Moses actually tell God something God didn't know or had forgotten? Is that even remotely conceivable? If so, then we don't have an omniscient God. And if our prayers actually change God's mind, God lies when He makes the claim, "I change not." Further, if our requests change His mind, what about the times we don't ask? What did He miss then? If our prayers are capable of changing God's mind, then God is not omniscient, not immutable, and not faithful. He is an incompetent liar.
What alternative would I offer? I see these passages about God "repenting" as simple human language. It is simply a reference to human perception. God appears to be going in this direction ... and now He appears to have changed directions. It's not that He didn't plan the change of directions; it's that He appears to have changed directions. We use this type of language often, especially in regards to God. We speak of the eyes of God looking to and fro, although a spirit being has no optical sensors. We speak of the hand of God being on someone even though a spirit being has no hands. So when God changes directions, even if it was His plan to turn at Point X, we would speak of it in terms of "repenting". Newer translations use terms like "relenting". He removed the pressure He was applying.
You may wish to argue that prayer can change God's mind. You may like the idea. You may even insist that it's biblical. If it is, however, I think you'll end up without a God you can trust. Prayer does indeed change lots of things. It changes things around us. It changes us. But if it changes God, He is undone, and so are we. We ought to think carefully before insisting on that hazy-minded, changing god.
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