Interceding I
ntercessory prayer has been defined as “holy, believing, persevering prayer whereby someone pleads with God on behalf of another or others who desperately need God’s intervention.” What a blessing to be the beneficiary of intercessory prayer. We may not even haven been aware that we were being prayed for, but God spoke our name to someone and called them to lift us in prayer. Jesus is The Great Intercessor. He stands between God and sinful man as a bridge to bring them together through His sacrificial death. “For there is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity – the man Christ Jesus” (I Timothy 2:5). “Therefore he is able, once and forever to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf ” (Hebrews 7:25). And Jesus was our model of intercessory prayer during His ministry on earth. He prayed for the sick, for the demon-possessed, for His disciples and others. In John 17:20, we see that He prayed for us – “…I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one…” He continues to be our intercessor in Heaven. “Who then will condemn us? No one – for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us” (Romans 8:34). God also calls us to intercede in prayer for one another, to plead with God for His will for others. In intercessory prayer we follow the Old Testament priestly example and the New Testament example of Jesus – standing before God and interceding for others. Before we can truly intercede for others, we
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The Connection
SPRING 2021
for One Another by Mrs. Judy Edwards
must first stand before God for ourselves and be a Christ-follower. We must allow Him to work in us, developing a personal intimacy with Him, giving ourselves to Him as a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1). Out of that intimacy with God, we are then able to receive direction and wisdom from Him and hear the voice of the Holy Spirit as He calls us to prayer and instructs us in how to pray His will for others. Intimacy with God is also important because intercession is spiritual warfare, doing battle in the spiritual realm. Ephesians 6:12 tells us, “For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” This is a battle we cannot fight ourselves. We must put on the Armor of God (Ephesians 6) for this spiritual battle. We have many biblical examples of intercessory prayer – Abraham, Moses, Samuel, Paul, just to name a few. As believers, we are called to intercede in prayer for our nation, our government and church leaders (even those we disagree with), pastors, friends and even for those who persecute us! (Matthew 5:44) God may call us to intercession for unbelievers or for fellow believers. As an intercessor, we must rely on God for wisdom and direction as to how to pray and we must pray for God’s will, not our own. Remember how meaningful it was to have someone intercede for you? As you hear the call of the Spirit, be that person for someone else. Judy Edwards is the Chairman of the Evangelical Methodist Department of Prayer
