Do you believe God answers prayer? Does He always answer the way you expect Him to – or do His answers take you by surprise? These are questions the early church faced, just as we do today, and the Bible gives us some very telling insights into God’s unexpected responses to His people’s prayers.
One account in particular, in Acts Chapter 12, comes across in such vivid detail, it could have been written as a news bulletin this week – perhaps even including a scene from a sitcom! We read how, very early on in the life of the church, King Herod had arrested some of the believers, and executed James, brother of John and one of Jesus’ close inner circle of friends. He then arrested Peter, from the outset a clear leader of the new movement. The plan was that Peter should be brought to trial publicly after the Passover, and no doubt executed too when (inevitably) found guilty; but, while Peter was being held in prison awaiting trial, ‘the church was earnestly praying to God for him’ (v. 5). The authorities were certainly expecting trouble because Peter was bound with two chains, between two soldiers, with sentries posted at the entrance to the prison. They were taking extra precautions to make sure no attempts would be made to break him loose. That was their expectation – that Peter’s ‘followers’ would try to set him free.
What about the expectation of the church as they prayed earnestly for him? What precisely were they asking God to do? How did they frame their prayers and what kind of answer were they looking for? Perhaps they were thinking back to the time when Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin following the healing of the lame beggar and were simply released, with threats, because ‘they could not decide how to punish them’ (Acts 4:1–22). That would seem to be a very obvious prayer in the circumstances: that Herod would change his mind, and not be able to find enough evidence against Peter, so have no choice but to release him. Whatever they prayed (and we don’t know exactly what they asked God), they clearly did not expect the answer that not only came much sooner than they had anticipated, but was also worked out in a way that took them completely by surprise.
That same night, at the very time when the believers were all praying so fervently, an angel came into Peter’s cell and woke him up (even though he thought he was dreaming). His chains fell off and none of the guards assigned to him woke up or realised what was happening as the angel led him out of the prison, through the gate leading into the city and along a street. There the angel left him and Peter realised he most certainly wasn’t dreaming and went straight to a house where he knew there would be believers. Many people were there praying and when the servant girl, Rhoda, came to see who was knocking at the outer door she recognised who it was – the very man they were praying would escape Herod’s clutches! So what did she do? Joyfully open the door and let him in? Ask how he had managed to escape? No. She left him outside in the open and ran off to tell the others ‘Peter is at the door!’ And what did they do? Rush out and let him in? Tick Rhoda off for leaving him in the street where he could be at risk of being recognised and re-arrested? No. They told her she was out of her mind. They could not believe that Peter was actually free from prison, even though they had been praying for him. It took repeated knocking on the door before they went to see for themselves, and when they discovered it really was Peter ‘they were astonished’ (v. 16). Only then did they let him in, and Peter could tell them how ‘the Lord had brought him out of prison’ (v. 17), before moving off to another place where the believers were very likely just as astonished.
So what is this account telling us about prayer and our expectations – our faith – in the actions God will take by way of answering our requests? It’s all too easy to bring our own suggested solutions to God when we pray, whether for individuals or situations, because these seem the most obvious way of solving whatever problem we are presenting to Him. Our solutions may appear to us the best way forward, but our limited, finite vision runs the risk of our missing God’s awesome best. Thankfully, He is not limited by our understanding of what’s needed, and in this particular instance God acted in a way that totally surprised all those who were praying for Peter. No waiting for the trial, no hoping Herod would change his mind, no miraculous persuasion of the authorities through Peter’s inspired eloquence, as had happened before. A rapid-response jail break at night that even Peter thought was a dream – that was God’s answer! As John Stott pointed out, Chapter 12 of Acts starts with James dead, Peter in prison and Herod triumphing. It ends with Herod dead, Peter free and the church triumphing!
The apostle Paul, writing to the Ephesians, said this: ‘Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to the power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen’ (Eph. 3:20). The early believers praying for Peter’s release never imagined God would accomplish this in the way that He chose – and this prompts the question, what are our expectations of God? Do we dare to pray ‘big’ prayers and leave in His hands the outworking of the answer? Do we try to fit God in with our limited imaginations and fail to see what He is actually doing when the answer is right in front of us? This is certainly something to think about. What are our ‘big’ prayers, and what as a body of believers, the church of Jesus Christ, are we praying for earnestly? Healing for friends or family? The extension of God’s kingdom? Justice and equality, fairness for the disadvantaged and those who are suffering around the world? An end to the coronavirus pandemic? Whatever it is, let’s take encouragement from this passage of scripture and earnestly bring our big prayers to our heavenly Father – and expect big answers that go way beyond what we could ever dream or imagine!
Having written this blog post, I actually experienced my own unexpected answer to prayer, which I’d like to share. One of my cats has been suffering from epileptic fits over the past few months. I thought they were under control with medication, but just as I was finishing writing this piece, he had a particularly bad fit right behind me. It took him a while to get over it. Later that evening, after sharing this for prayer with a couple of friends, he started to have another fit, and was beginning to convulse. I felt God telling me to lay hands on him and pray, which I did, out loud. The fit stopped. Immediately! He then started walking around, lay down on the bed and began to purr, and passed a very peaceful night. Now I’m afraid my faith was not very great when I prayed for him, but God did far more than I had imagined, and he did it straightaway. This is only a very small example of our God going way beyond what can ever think or expect. He cares enough about the life of one small cat and what he means to his human companion – how much more about the major concerns the world is facing every single day? God longs for us to call out to Him and see Him pouring out blessings that exceed all our limited expectations: ‘Taste and see that the Lord is good’ (Psalm 34:8)!
Jacqui Pearce