The Ministry of Intercession

 

“And He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor” (Isaiah 69:16a)  The great need of the hour is prayer warriors, for our friends, our churches, our homes, our nation and the world.  The ministry of intercession is putting our shoulders under the burdens and needs of others.

Most of the great prayer warriors of the Bible were great intercessors; Abraham, Moses, Samuel, David, Daniel, Paul.  Jesus’ great High Priestly prayer of John 17 is a prayer for others.  The scripture says that even now in heaven, “He ever liveth to make intercession…” (Hebrews 7:25).  The Holy Spirit, who now resides in human temples, “makes intercession for us…” (Romans 8: 26,27).  

To succeed in the ministry of intercession we must care about the needs of others.  This means getting beyond our own needs.  Paul is a great example of this.  In most of his letters, he mentions his prayers for the saints (I Corinthians 1:4, Philippians 1:3-10, Colossians 1:3, I Thessalonians 1:2).

How often do we say to others, “I will pray for you” and then we fail to do just that.  Real intercession calls for understanding, sympathy, intensity, commitment, sacrifice and discipline.  It requires patience and faith.  The answer does not always come immediately.  

The blessings of intercession though are immeasurable.  That God helped someone else because of your prayers.  Think about it!  


The Pastor's Pocket

Pastor Bruce Freeman


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Not Home Yet

Image
 As Christians, we’re destined for something much better than what this world has to offer!  As the old song says, “This world is not my home, I’m just a passin’ through, my treasure is laid up somewhere beyond the blue…And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.” The Bible tells us our time on earth is brief (Psalm 103:15 / James 4:4).  If we’ve trusted Jesus as our Savior, our eternal home is heaven.  Therefore we are seen as pilgrims just passing through here.  We are aliens, strangers to this present, evil world system. Isn’t it silly? We spend so much time trying to “have it all” here and now, when in reality we already have it all “in Christ”.  Abundant life that Jesus told us about doesn’t have anything to do with having an abundance of things.  It has to do with the quality of life we possess with all the spiritual riches that come from knowing Christ. God warns us not to love this world.  We must never get too attached to “stuff”....
Read more

Humbly but Boldly

Image
  Fervent prayer goes way back.  We know that prayer was a distinctive priority for the early church (Acts 1:14, 2:42, 3:1, 6:4 and many other verses). Calling on the Lord is seen in the life of the prophets; Habakkuk 3:1, Jonah 2:7, Daniel 7:17 and 9:13, Nehemiah 1:6 and 4:9, David in Psalm 4:1, 6:9 and 17:1. But prayer goes back even before Moses and Abraham!  In fact, the first mention of men calling upon the Lord occurs in Genesis 4:25 and 26. Yes, right in the book of Genesis – the book of beginnings. Before there was anything called the church, before there was a Bible, a choir, or any kind of “service” like we have today, men were calling upon the name of the Lord.  From the godly line of Seth, men somehow sensed they could call out to God and He would answer, He would listen and He would respond! The first prayers had sound! It was the sound of men expressing their needs, desires, and praises to God. My point is this: crying out to God in prayer is not some n...
Read more

Thank You

Image
Hello everyone, Pastor Bruce here with an important announcement regarding our daily devotionals known as “The Pastor’s Pocket.” After today, these will be discontinued.   I am so thankful to each of you who have enjoyed reading these devotionals and I trust the Lord has encouraged you through each one. I challenge you, as Peter does, to “grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18).   It is my desire that you will continue in your own personal study of the word of God. Learn the Word, Love the Word, Live the Word!   There may come a time when I can write these again, but for now, I will devote my time to other areas of ministry and ways to serve Him! “To HIM be all the glory both now and forever. AMEN!”   The Pastor’s Pocket Pastor Bruce Freeman
Read more