Does God hear the prayers of unbelievers?

We posed this question at our last PLUG meeting. I thought it might be encouraging to share with everyone. So, does God hear the prayers of unbelievers the same way as he hears the prayers of believers?

The answer is one of those "yes, but..." types of answers. Here's how it starts: Yes, God "hears" all things. He is omniscient, all-knowing. It challenges his nature as deity to say otherwise. But, by "hear" we are asking, of course, if he responds to the prayers of unbelievers. And he does, from time to time.

A holy God cannot stand the sight of unbelievers tainted by sin and dirt and evil. He will not listen unless there is Jesus the mediator. Jesus is "the only way…to the Father". It is through him, we can "approach his throne of grace with confidence". Unbelievers don't have this privilege. So the reason God hears or responds to unbelievers' prayers from time to time is out of mercy and for the sake of bringing individuals to salvation.

But for those that believe, God hears prayers differently. He has promised to answer all our prayers according to His will. There is no such promise in the Bible for unbelievers. God hears our prayers with a sympathetic ear. He is with us and for us and beside us. He longs to hear our prayers.

Dave Chung - Associate Pastor, In2 EM Ministry