He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. (Psalms 33:5)
God’s character is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Among other things, he is holy, all-knowing, merciful, loving, just, and trustworthy. Those who know and leverage these traits will be successful in obtaining answered prayers.
Do not mistake leveraging God’s character as somehow forcing God’s hand. There is no coercion or magic in this technique. Rather, it is the fulfillment of what God has asked us to do. It is the fulfillment of his commandment for us to ask, seek, and knock with faith in him.
Faith opens the door to miracles that wouldn’t otherwise happen. Faith is much more than belief, it is belief in something that is true. By identifying situations where God’s character suggests his intervention, you can exercise your faith in him to bring about miracles that wouldn’t otherwise happen.
To illustrate the connection between faith and leveraging God’s attributes, consider the story of the Canaanite woman who successfully obtained a miracle from the Lord.
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour. (Matthew 15)
The woman knew that the Lord was merciful. She invoked his mercy. Even when he told her all the reasons he could not do as she asked, she pressed on. She knew that the Lord’s mercy was greater than all of those reasons. She was right. In granting her request, he commended her by saying, “O woman, great is thy faith.”
The Lord wants to bless us with far more blessings than we actually receive. Our failure to invoke his character in our petitions is one reason for this.
As demonstrated by his answer to the Canaanite woman, the Lord is merciful to those who lean upon him in total submission. Another example of this is found in Matthew 20:
30 And, behold, two blind men sitting by the way side, when they heard that Jesus passed by, cried out, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou Son of David.
31 And the multitude rebuked them, because they should hold their peace: but they cried the more, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou Son of David.
32 And Jesus stood still, and called them, and said, What will ye that I shall do unto you?
33 They say unto him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened.
The disciples tried to quiet this man. Instead of being daunted, he cried even louder! Imagine this man—imagine his intensity in crying. He truly had full trust in the Lord. The angels are not as merciful as the Lord is. Cry right past them! Contrition moves the Lord. He healed the ten lepers who said “Master, have mercy on us.” (Luke 17:13) He forgave the sins of the contrite publican:
10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. (Luke 18)
The Lord is merciful to those who lean on him.
Abraham knew God’s character. He knew that God would not destroy the wicked with the righteous. He invoked God’s justice in an attempt to spare Sodom and Gomorrah from destruction:
22 And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the Lord.
23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
24 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
26 And the Lord said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:
28 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.
29 And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty’s sake.
30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
31 And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake.
32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake. (Genesis 18:22-32)
God loves us and does mighty works to help us have faith. He realizes that men will struggle to have faith in a God who appears to be inconsistent, fickle, or weak. We can leverage his desire to help men see his greatness.
Elijah invoked the justice of God in behalf of the widow whose son died. This woman had sacrificed much for the benefit of Elijah because he was a man of God. Elijah reminded the Lord of the woman’s kindness to him, as well as the inevitable ill effect of the death of the son on his ministry and God’s reputation:
20 And he cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child’s soul come into him again. 22 And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. (1 Kings 17)
Moses frequently leveraged God’s reputation to intercede for Israel. He reminded God that if he destroyed the Israelites:
13 ...the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;)
14 And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou Lord art among this people, that thou Lord art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.
15 Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying, 16 Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness.
17 And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying,
18 The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
19 Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now. (Numbers 14)
He focused on the fact that the surrounding nations would interpret their destruction as his inability to deliver them:
26 I prayed therefore unto the Lord, and said, O Lord God, destroy not thy people and thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed through thy greatness, which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand.
28 Lest the land whence thou broughtest us out say, Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which he promised them, and because he hated them, he hath brought them out to slay them in the wilderness. (Deuteronomy 9)
9 And the Lord said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people:
10 Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation.
11 And Moses besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand?
12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.
13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.
14 And the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people. (Exodus 32)
Without Moses’ skillful leveraging of God’s attributes in behalf of Israel, they would have been destroyed. Though this prayer strategy is simple, it can be used to work great miracles.
When the Assyrians threatened Israel, Hezekiah sought the Lord’s protection through invoking his jealousy. He brought to the Lord the Assyrian general’s mockery of the Lord:
15 And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said, O Lord God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth.
16 Lord, bow down thine ear, and hear: open, Lord, thine eyes, and see: and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God.
17 Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands,
18 And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone: therefore they have destroyed them.
19 Now therefore, O Lord our God, I beseech thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only. (2 Kings 19)
Hezekiah pointed out how God’s action against the Assyrians would distinguish God from the false gods of previously defeated kingdoms. By crushing the Assyrians, God could help men have faith in him. The Lord destroyed the Assyrians in a day in a great miracle. Hezekiah’s tack was very wise, as his righteousness was not mirrored by his people, and it would have been difficult to make a case for intervention from God by pleading for his people directly.
Nothing is impossible with God, and he enjoys proving this to men. Consider the Lord’s reaction when his servants were unable to help one particular child:
15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatic, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.
16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and _they could not cure him_.
17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.
18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour. (Matthew 17)
We can leverage his omnipotence by providing opportunities for him to do what is impossible with men.
The Lord is merciful. We can invoke God’s mercy, as Nehemiah did:
And said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: (Nehemiah 1:5)
The Lord is just. Those who know this can invoke his justice:
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? (Revelation 6:10)
The Lord delights to bless those who love him. Righteous king Hezekiah was able to secure a blessing from God by asking him toremember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight....” (2 Kings 20:3) Moses frequently employed this tactic. On one occasion he said:
12 And Moses said unto the Lord, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight.
13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people.
14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.
16 For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth.
17 And the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. (Exodus 33)
King David asked the Lord to bless his son Solomon and the people in recognition of his acquiring materials for a temple in the “uprightness of [his] heart”:
16 O Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own.
17 I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.
18 O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee:
19 And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision. (1 Chronicles 29)
The Lord is the definition of selflessness. He recognizes this trait in his servants. Seeking blessings on behalf of others is one way to move heaven. Solomon’s prayer for wisdom was answered because he asked for it not for his own benefit, but for the benefit of his people:
6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
7 And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.
8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. (1 Kings 3)
More about how to seek blessings for others is explained in the next chapter.
The Lord is willing to work mighty miracles for those who invoke his righteousness in faith. Learning God’s attributes and leveraging them in prayer is one way to secure answers to our prayers.