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Jeremiah 15:1 – "Then said the LORD unto me, Though
Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people:
cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth."
Introduction:
This text is not teaching that saints in heaven intercede for men on earth.
It is teaching there is no prayer from anybody that will help Israel. They have
gone too far.
I Timothy 2:5 – "For there is one God, and one mediator between God
and men, the man Christ Jesus;"
I. Intercessory prayer is very good.
A. Psalms 65:2 states, "O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee
shall all flesh come." God always hears prayers.
B. II Chronicles 30:27 declares, "Then the priests the Levites
arose and blessed the people: and their voice was heard, and their prayer
came up to his holy dwelling place, even unto heaven." When the
Passover was kept during the reign of Hezekiah, there was much rejoicing,
and the prayer of the Levites came up before God.
C. Revelation 5:8 states, "And when he had taken the book, the
four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having
every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the
prayers of saints." Our prayers are a sweet perfume before God. He
keeps our prayers. How many of your prayers does God have stored in heaven?
D. Examples of Intercessory prayers.
1. Luke 23:34 – "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for
they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast
lots."
a. The first thing Jesus said when he was nailed to the cross was to
ask his father to forgive those that crucified him.
b. I believe God forgave these people, and saved them on the Day of
Pentecost.
2. Nehemiah 1:4-11 – Nehemiah prayed that God forgive the sins of all
Israel, even though Nehemiah did not actually commit the sins. It is good
for us to ask God to forgive others.
3. Daniel 9:3-19 – When Daniel understood the curse upon Israel
because of their rebellion, he prayed that God would forgive all Israel,
even though Daniel himself had not sinned in fact.
4. James 5:11-15 – These verse instruct those that are afflicted to
call for the elders of the church, that they might pray for him. The
prayer of faith is what saves the sick, and causes his sins to be
forgiven.
II. Intercessory prayers – One person prays for another person.
A. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest intercedes for all Israel by
taking the blood of the Passover lamb into the holy of holies.
B. In Genesis 18:23-32, Abraham intercedes for Sodom. If there were only
10 righteous souls, the cities would be spared.
C. Moses prayer for Israel.
1. In Exodus 32:11, Moses prayed, "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?"
2. In Exodus 32:31-32, Moses continued to intercede for the nation of
Israel, "And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this
people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. 32 Yet
now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee,
out of thy book which thou hast written."
3. God replies to Moses prayer by stating that Israel had gone too far,
they would not be forgiven, but they would not be destroyed, as recorded
in Psalms 106:23, "Therefore he said that he would destroy them,
had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his
wrath, lest he should destroy them."
D. The apostle Paul interceded for the nation of Israel in Romans 10:1, "Brethren,
my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be
saved."
E. Luke 23:34 – "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for
they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast
lots." Jesus prayed that God forgive the sins of those that
crucified him. Is not this what we should do? Matthew 5:44,45 states, "But
I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to
them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and
persecute you; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in
heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and
sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."
III. It is not wrong to ask for intercessory prayer. Psalms 99:6-8 states, "Moses
and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name;
they called upon the LORD, and he answered them. 7 He spake unto them in the
cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them.
8 Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them,
though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions." Moses, Aaron, and
Samuel prayed for Israel, whom God heard and refrained from destroying Israel,
although he punished them for their wickedness.
A. Israel asked Samuel to pray for them on several different occasions.
1. Israel asked Samuel to pray for them when the Philistines attacked
them. I Samuel 7:8 states, "And the children of Israel said to
Samuel, Cease not to cry unto the LORD our God for us, that he will save
us out of the hand of the Philistines."
2. When Israel asked a king, it displeased Samuel because he knew it
displeased the Lord, and he prayed for them. I Samuel 8:6 states, "But
the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us.
And Samuel prayed unto the LORD."
3. I Samuel 12:19 states, "And all the people said unto Samuel,
Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have
added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king."
B. Moses prayed for Israel when fiery serpents bit them. Numbers 21:7
states, "Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have
sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the
LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the
people."
C. Other examples of intercessory prayer.
1. Jeroboam asked the man of God to pray for him to restore his hand, I
Kings 13:6, "And the king answered and said unto the man of God,
Entreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand
may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the
king’s hand was restored him again, and became as it was before."
2. Hezekiah sent Eliakim, Shebna and the elders of Israel to Isaiah,
asking him to pray for Israel against Rabshakeh. II Kings 19:1-4 states, "And
it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes,
and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. 2
And he sent Eliakim, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe,
and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the
prophet the son of Amoz. 3 And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah,
This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and blasphemy: for the
children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.
4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom
the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God; and
will reprove the words which the LORD thy God hath heard: wherefore lift
up thy prayer for the remnant that are left."
3. Zedekiah asked for prayer, Jeremiah 37:3. "And Zedekiah the
king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah
the priest to the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now unto the LORD our God
for us."
4. Abraham prayed for Ishmael.
a. Genesis 17:18 states, "And Abraham said unto God, O that
Ishmael might live before thee!"
b. Genesis 17:20 reveals that God heard the prayer of Abraham for
Ishmael, "And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have
blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him
exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great
nation."
5. Moses prayed for his sister Miriam when became leprous because she
complained about the Ethiopian woman Moses had married. Numbers 12:10
states, "And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, Heal her now, O
God, I beseech thee."
6. When Aaron made the golden calf, and led Israel into idolatry, God
was going to kill him, but the intercessory prayer of Moses saved his
life. Deuteronomy 9:20 states, "And the LORD was very angry with
Aaron to have destroyed him: and I prayed for Aaron also the same
time."
D. We are to pray for the sick when they ask. James 5:14-16 states, "Is
any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them
pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15 And the
prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if
he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16 Confess your faults
one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The
effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
E. Paul often prayed for the churches he established.
1. Romans 1:9 states, "For God is my witness, whom I serve with
my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of
you always in my prayers;"
2. I Thessalonians 3:10 declares, "Night and day praying
exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is
lacking in your faith?"
F. Paul asked the Ephesians to pray for him in Ephesians 6:18,19, "Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching
thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints 19 And for
me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to
make known the mystery of the gospel,"
IV. Persevering Prayer. Ezekiel 36:37 states, "Thus
saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel,
to do it for them."
A. Prayer is the forerunner of mercy. Turn to sacred history, and you will
find that scarcely ever did a great mercy come to this world unheralded by
supplication. You have found this true in your own personal experience. God
has given you many an unsolicited favour, but still great prayer has always
been the prelude of great mercy with you. When you first found peace through
the blood of the cross, you had been praying much, and earnestly interceding
with God that he would remove your doubts, and deliver you from your
distresses. Your assurance was the result of prayer. When at any time you have
had high and rapturous joys, you have been obliged to look upon them as
answers to your prayers. When you have had great deliverances out of sore
troubles, and mighty helps in great dangers, you have been able to say,
"I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my
fears." (Psalms 34:4 – WWR) Prayer is always the preface to blessing.
It goes before the blessing as the blessing’s shadow. When the sunlight of
God’s mercies rises upon our necessities, it casts the shadow of prayer far
down upon the plain. Or, to use another illustration, when God piles up a hill
of mercies, he himself shines behind them, and he casts on our spirits the
shadow of prayer, so that we may rest certain, if we are much in prayer, our
pleadings are the shadows of mercy. Prayer is thus connected with the blessing
to show us the value of it. If we had the blessings without asking for them,
we should think them common things; but prayer makes our mercies more precious
than diamonds. The things we ask for are precious, but we do not realize their
preciousness until we have sought for them earnestly.
Prayer makes the darken’d cloud withdraw;
Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw;
Gives exercise to faith and love;
Brings every blessing from above.
V. Prevailing prayer only comes from a broken heart.
A. I suppose everybody knows and understands that Elijah prayed, God
stopped the rain, then he prayed again, and God sent the rain once again.
B. I Samuel 1:1-11.
1. Her husband’s other wife provoked her.
a. We should be provoked into asking the Lord’s blessings by the
wickedness of the world.
b. The world continually provokes us into action.
c. We will either pray or not pray.
2. Hannah was in bitterness of soul.
a. Her bitterness, and longing for that which is better caused her to
earnestly pray to God.
b. Her bitterness was not based on short notice, but developed over
time.
c. Her weeping was an outward sign of her inward turmoil.
d. Her weeping was not a fake or put on to make an impression to God
or anybody else.
3. I think Hannah prayed many times, but this time she prayed in a
special place.
a. She prayed "before the Lord" in Shiloh at the time of
yearly sacrifices.
b. She waited until the time she could pray before Almighty God, and
then she prayed.
c. Nothing would stop her from praying.
4. Why did the Lord shut her womb?
a. So he would receive glory when he answered her prayer.
b. God seldom does anything for us except we pray first.
c. Hannah would be greatly blessed and we would be encouraged to
continue to pray as we read this story.
5. This private prayer changed an entire nation.
a. She was not praying for great things, but she was praying to a
great God.
b. God is very able to take small things, and turn them into big
things.
C. Daniel 9:3 – Daniel prayed and fasted for the blessings of God upon
Israel.
1. Fasting indicates a long-term (at least a day) of seeking the face
of God.
2. It is likely Daniel prayed longer than twenty minutes, as he sought
God to bless.
3. The dust and ashes reveals the anguish in Daniel’s soul for the
well being of himself and Israel.
D. Matthew 17:21 – The disciples had attempted to cast out a demon, but
were unable to, because "this kind goeth not out but by prayer and
fasting."
1. I wonder how many things in our lives are not accomplished because we
do not fast and pray.
2. Often, we pray for five minutes, and think we have done God a great
service by our sacrifice of time.
3. James 5:16-18 – I do not know how long Elijah prayed, but I know he
prayed long enough to "pray though".
4. He wasn’t concerned with time, but making sure God heard his prayer.
E. Luke 18:5 – The widow woman received an answer to her desire,
because she continually came before the unjust judge.
1. The unjust judge declared he would answer the woman’s request
because of her continually coming to him.
2. God is not an unjust judge; therefore we should be more diligent
than ever to come before him with our requests.
3. We can rest assured he will hear and answer our prayers.
F. Jacob prayed all night.
1. Genesis 32:24 – "And Jacob was left alone; and there
wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day."
2. Jacob received peace from God, but not until he had prayed all
night.
3. The peace was realized the next day when Jacob met Esau and Jacob
realized everything was okay between the two men (and nations).
G. Samuel prayed all night when God rejected Saul as king.
1. I Samuel 15:11 – "It repenteth me that I have set up Saul
to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not
performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the
LORD all night."
H. The early church prayed continually when Peter was in jail.
1. Acts 12:5 "Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer
was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him."
2. I would imagine the church prayed more earnestly for Peter after
they were told James, the brother of John, had been killed.
3. God did not give the praying church peace about the outcome as he
was releasing Peter from jail.
4. Peter already had peace as he was sleeping between the two guards,
and didn’t even realize he was free, but thought he was dreaming.
a. John 21:18,19 – Peter had been told by Jesus that he was going
to be carried places he did not want to go, and how he would die.
b. For all Peter knew he was facing the end of his life, yet he
slept.
c. He has peace with God before he knew he would be released.
5. Acts 12:12-17 – "And when he had considered the thing, he
came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark;
where many were gathered together praying. 13 And as Peter knocked at the
door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda. 14 And when she
knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in,
and told how Peter stood before the gate. 15 And they said unto her, Thou
art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they,
It is his angel. 16 But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened
the door, and saw him, they were astonished. 17 But he, beckoning unto
them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord
had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go shew these things unto
James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went into another
place."
a. I personally belief the early church believed their prayer would
be heard and Peter would be released.
b. They did not think he would be released the way he was.
c. I think the early church believed Peter would be released (if it
were the Lord’s will) through the normal governmental channels).
d. It is also interesting to note that Peter did not go to James, the
pastor of the church at Jerusalem, but instructed the people praying in
Mary’s house to go to James and tell him what had happened.
e. This was no evil reflection on James or on any pastor.
f. It is important to realize the affairs of God do not revolve
around any pastor, but around the people of God.
I. Christ prayed all night just before he placed the apostles in the
newly organized church.
1. Luke 6:12 states, "And it came to pass in those days, that
he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to
God."
2. This is a lesson for us: Anytime we face difficult decisions, it is
not wrong to continually pray.
3. It is wrong to only pray when we have trouble, but there is
certainly nothing wrong with more praying when we have trouble.
J. Acts 1:14 states, "These all continued with one accord in
prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and
with his brethren."
1. While in the upper room, the disciples prayed continually for the
fulfilling of the promise of God concerning Pentecost.
K. Acts 6:4 – It was the desire of the early church leaders to be able
to pray and minister the word continually.
1. "But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to
the ministry of the word."
2. In order to free the pastors to pray and minister the word
continually, others were chosen by the early church to take care of the
daily functions of the church.
VI. The value of intercessory prayer.
A. We will be like Jesus Christ, as reflected in Matthew 6:9, "After
this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be
thy name."
1. Jesus said to pray, "our", "we", and
"us".
2. We are not to pray, "I", "my", and
"me".
B. We must pray for our enemies as stated in Luke 6:28, "Bless
them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you."
C. We are in good company when we pray for others. – Consider all the
prophets and faithful servants of God mentioned above.
D. When we pray for others, we may save them from destruction.
1. Abraham saved Lot and his family from destruction.
2. Moses prayer preserved Israel on more than one occasion.
3. The prayers of the church at Jerusalem saved Peter from being
killed.
4. The prayer of faith can cause people to be healed.
VII. We do not claim anything by prayer. (The reason we pray is because we
cannot get a thing on our own. We pray, asking God for his grace, mercy and
help.)
A. Hebrews 4:16 states "Let us therefore come boldly unto the
throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of
need."
VIII. Intercessory prayers have limits.
A. Sometimes people can get so far into sin; and continually refuse to
listen to God’s warnings; God is finished with them.
1. Jeremiah 7:16 states, "Therefore pray not thou for this
people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession
to me: for I will not hear thee."
2. Jeremiah 11:9-14 gives a good summary of the wickedness of the
people of Israel, "And the LORD said unto me, A conspiracy is
found among the men of Judah, and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10
They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, which refused
to hear my words; and they went after other gods to serve them: the house
of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant which I made with
their fathers. 11 Therefore thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil
upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall
cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them. 12 Then shall the cities of
Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem go, and cry unto the gods unto whom
they offer incense: but they shall not save them at all in the time of
their trouble. 13 For according to the number of thy cities were thy gods,
O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have ye
set up altars to that shameful thing, even altars to burn incense unto
Baal. 14 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or
prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto
me for their trouble."
B. I John 5:16 states, "If any man see his brother sin a sin
which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them
that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he
shall pray for it." God states there is no need to pray for the
person who has sinned the sin unto death.
C. Our prayers do not change God; our prayers change others and us.
IX. Conclusion.
A. I John 5:14-15 states, "And this is the confidence that we
have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have
the petitions that we desired of him."
B. I Timothy 2:1-3 states, "I exhort therefore, that, first of
all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made
for all men; 2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may
lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 3 For this is
good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour." We should
pray for our elected leaders that we might be able to lead faithful lives to
God; that government won’t get in our way.
C. I Samuel 12:23 states, "Moreover as for me, God forbid that I
should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you
the good and the right way:"
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