“In Biblical terms, intercession involves someone faithfully and continually pleading–particularly to God–for the needs of another person
(or group of people).” – Fire Bible
Jack Hayford – Penetrating the Darkness: Discovering the Power of the Cross Against Unseen Evil
Intercession is a different kind of praying than our devotional prayer time with the Lord each day. But the doing of intercession requires that we:
- Understand what we are seeking to accomplish in prayer
- Learn how to hear the voice of the Lord
- Respond in obedience to His promptings
- Know our place in partnership
- Make the long-term commitment to intercede for people and circumstances
The awesome power and potential of the intercessor is within the grasp of every believer, yet so few take it. In intercession we come to a realm of prayer that begins to reach out further than most people either realize they have the privilege of accomplishing or feel comfortable with. The very breadth of possibility can make it easy to become overwhelmed.
We also know our own limitations. While the Lord has called us to this glorious partnership with Him, we have to acknowledge that, basically, there is no way to cover all the needs we become aware of in the world around us in a day’s time . . . or a week’s time. Not only is time an issue, but in some cases, as we have already noted, naming long lists of people and places in our daily devotional habit would become tedious. Reciting lists of concerns that the Lord impresses on us soon becomes what Jesus said is impractical and of little value: Empty repetition does not accomplish anything.
Matthew 6:7-8
7 “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! NLT
In this calling of Scripture to offer sensitive, responsible prayers for people and issues, nations and circumstances beyond our scope how do we put it all together? How do we find practical ways of accomplishing the challenges of intercession? How do we work in conjunction with the Holy Spirit to be instruments of redemption? How do we pray “on target”? How do we know what is His will when we pray?
Ephesians 6:10-12
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Ephesians 6:18
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
Three Points to Understand
First, intercession has to do with praying for somebody else. The “somebody” may be a nation, someone you know or someone you do not know. It can be a family member or your congregation. Intercession has to do with praying on behalf of.
Second, intercession relies on the Holy Spirit’s guidance and help. Romans 8:26-27
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.
Romans says that when the intercessor reaches the point that he or she does not know for sure what to pray, the Holy Spirit will help—will enable—prayer beyond what the intercessor knows or understands. He will also prompt us, reminding us of people or circumstances that need to be carried in intercessory prayer.
But relying on the Holy Spirit goes further than simply letting Him enable our prayer; it also requires us to listen for, hear and obey His voice as never before. The Lord has things to say to His people; He calls us to prayer and instructs us of things to pray for. A person will come to mind: a sense of need and urgency. The summons is to prayer, recognizing that all consequences depend upon it.
The Bible calls this “discernment” or “the word of wisdom”, 1 Corinthians 12:8, “To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit”. It is another way He shows us how to pray for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. For any whom this concept makes nervous, let me briefly say here that the Holy Spirit and His working in our lives is never intended to be “weird.” We only have to look as far as the life of Jesus to see that. He was bold in how He approached the workings of darkness, and He has poured out that same power on His Church. Jesus said that He only did what He saw the Father do. John 5:19, Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”. That same ability to see into the invisible realm has been given to us—His Body, the Church. We are called to be bold; we are called to see the invisible. We are also called to listen for His voice because He has things to tell us; and we are called to respond in prayer.
Third, intercession challenges humankind’s helplessness to deal with the largest issues of life. We have already discussed our obvious inability to effect change in our lives or in the world outside of what Jesus has accomplished for us on the cross. At the same time, however, there is woven into the fabric of humankind a sense of powerlessness that cripples many, obstructing faith on the supposition that the issues of this world have been “predestined”—that is, already decided: The die is cast and a cosmic arrangement of things is fixed in place. What satanic darkness has structured and the things that human self-will and sinning have bound over to the will of flesh and the devil—so much of what we see around us—seems so firmly entrenched that we are tempted to feel that the best we can do is try to cope with it.
Jesus taught exactly the opposite. There is nothing in the Bible that suggests we are victims of unyielding circumstance. The whole concept of salvation argues against that: Christ’s coming, reconciling us with the Father, reversing the death process by His resurrection—all of these are statements to us by the Father that nothing is beyond redemption. Nothing in your life, nothing in my life, nothing of anything we face—nothing is beyond redemption. But there is a decisive issue to be settled.
Where can our conquering Savior find, among those who have acknowledged Him as the Christ, the Son of the living God, those who will then accept and apply the keys of the Kingdom? Those keys, which represent the authority He is inviting us to exercise, constitute the key component to change. Redemption on earth advances as God’s praying people take action, invoking through intercession the victory that is established in heaven.
So much of the Church lives passively, rather than taking action and becoming redemptive agents of God’s Kingdom in our world. We are called to transmit through prayer the invitation: “Let Your Kingdom come! Enter into this circumstance, that problem, that soul, that home! Let your will be done in our family, our town, our nation—exactly as You, Father, will it in heaven. Release it in Jesus’ name. Shed forth the blessing of His victory—apply what He has ‘finished’!”
We are not called to live out fate, neither have we been appointed to walk in futility. With new birth, God has made possible growing sons and daughters, not robots, puppets or pawns. And He is calling us to take action—to partner, to step up, to take our place. He has made us agents and ambassadors, “joint heirs with Christ” to extend His Son’s Kingdom unto His praise and glory! Romans 8:17, Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
