Text: Ezikiel 22:23-3l.
Intercession is a special and selfless act of carrying other people's burden to God in prayer.Intercession is a unique and a special type of prayer that is made for0the thirdparty burden at the expense of one's burden.Intecessory prayer can be for the Church, the nation, sinners, leaders, friends and family, etc.Regrettably however, our text reveals the lamentable and utter neglect of this important ministry.
The Bible enjoins believers to plead (pray) on other people's behalf and not to concentrate or bother on our personal needs and problems.When we plead on the behalf of others, the Lord in His mercy will see to our personal needs and problems, because He sees in us the spirit of self-lessness.We are bidden to pray "for kings and for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty" (l Timothy 2:l).We are well called upon to pray for our nation, persecutors, the unsaved, ministers of the word, the work of the Lord, the church and for one another.When we pray intecessory prayers our nation shall be in a good atmosphere, persecutors and sinners shall come to knowledge of the truth, the Spirit of the Lord shall work mighthily in his ministers, the church and everyone shall progress in all ramification.Jesus our perfect example is interceding for us at the right hand of God daily.
Rather than launch an attack or join in civil disobedience against our leaders, we need rather to pray for them for God's help in their life; our national leaders need our prayers for God's wisdom to effect good goverance, peace and economic progress.Only effectual, unceasing and fervent prayers can save our nation from the threat of war, criminal activities and the ravages of fear and famine.
When the Church of God becomes sleepy, dull, cold to spritual realities and lack in the area of finance, we are called to intercede for the Church, that God's great power to enliven and revive the Church (believers) again.In this dark world characterized by the decline of the vital, old time religion, and the sweeping influences of gross immorality and worldliness among professors of religion, believers are expected "to stand in the gap as an intercesor and make up the hedge".Our prayers can effectively combat the wave of sin, lukewarmness and backsliding in the Church of God.
When there are offenses, factions, and bickering among believers, the Christian attitude is not a censure or criticism, but to correct one another in love and pray for one another for the restoration of confidence, love, trust and the renewal of the fellowship of Christ.
At such time like this when sinners are turning deaf hears and hardened hearts to God's passionate call to repentance, believers need to awake and stir up themselves and pray earnestly for God's melting power to soften their hearts for the willing acceptance of the author of salvation, Jesus.Sinners have remained hardened because we have not taken it upon ourselves to pray.
However, it must be pointed out that it is not all professors of religion that are qualified to intercede for men.Sinners and only SELF individuals cannot hope to receive anything for themselves, let alone for others, i.e they are not qualified to intercede for others.In order to have a dynamic intecessory ministry, we must have the genuine experience of salvation, santification and the Spirit's baptism.Equally essential are self forgetfulness, burden for others, vision for the lost, preseverance in prayer and faith in God's unfailing promises.
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