In his book Teach Me to Pray (Bethany House, 2002; ISBN: 0-7642-2596-0), Andrew
Murray writes, “Of all the Christlike traits, none is greater and more glorious
than conformity to Him in the work that engages Him without ceasing in the Father’s
presence: His all-prevailing intercession. The more we abide in Him and grow in
His likeness, the more His priestly life will work in us, and the more our life
will become what His is: one that intercedes for others” (6).
Amen.
The call to join Jesus in the ministry of
intercession is, in part, a fruit of the destiny Jesus has fashioned for all
who believe in him, namely, to be conformed to his image. We will never be
Jesus because he is God and we are not. But by grace through faith we will be
like him. This is our destiny. And since the heart of his daily ministry is
intercession, one of his chief desires for us is that we would ever grow in the
practice of prayer until we learn to ever-intercede for others.
To be more specific, Peter teaches us that
God has made us to be a royal priesthood in Christ. If you’ve known Jesus for
any length of time, you’ve surely heard this before but have you ever paused to
take it in? Have you ever paused to think of the implications of this for our
way of life in Christ? Oh a book could be written about this, and surely one
has been, but let me try to summarize the glory of this calling in one
sentence. I’ll admit, it’s a complicated sentence but here it is:
By the irreversible decree of God the
Father, Jesus has been designated the eternal King and High Priest of heaven
and earth, and by virtue our unity with him we are both royal (King) and
priestly (High Priest).
Indeed, since Jesus has promised to
conform us to his image and since he is the eternal King-Priest, we must be a royal-priesthood. Somehow, by the
awe-inspiring grace of God, we are destined to share in Jesus’ power and to share
in Jesus’ labor. Stunning—just stunning!
Now, the chief function of priests is to mediate
between God and people, so when God himself calls us a royal priesthood it
means, in part, that he’s calling us into the privilege and labor of mediation.
He’s calling us to stand between God and people in such a way that people can
get to God and God can bless people. But since believers are still broken and
in some measure given to sin, how does this work? How can this possibly work? How
can broken and sinful people mediate on behalf of a holy God and other broken
and sinful people?
It works because we’re united with Christ and
he is the one and only perfect Mediator. Since Christ, the perfect Mediator, is
not flawed, he is the one and only way to God. So we who believe in Christ are
given the privilege and responsibility of mediating between God and people not
because of who we are but because of who he is. We are united with Christ, and
we carry out our labor in Christ alone. As the Apostle Paul wrote in 2
Corinthians 5:20, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We
implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” (emphasis mine).
I’m not sure exactly how God envisions
this but in my mind’s eye I see Jesus working out his mediatorial work through his
church, through his royal priesthood. I see Jesus calling to people and
bringing some to himself through his church on the basis of his blood and by the
power of his Spirit. I see Jesus praying for people through his church on the
basis of his blood and by the power of his Spirit. I see Jesus healing and calling
and empowering and warning and rebuking and accomplishing many other things
through his church on the basis of his blood and by the power of his Spirit. I
see Jesus administering his Kingdom through his church; I see Jesus dispensing
his grace through his church; I see Jesus glorifying his great and gracious
name through his church.
Beloved, in Christ, we are a
royal priesthood. This is not a metaphor but a living and eternal reality (see Revelation 1:5-6; 5:9-10; 20:6). By virtue of our unity
with Christ we share in the privilege and labor or mediation between God and
people, and by virtue of our mediatorial calling we share in the privilege and labor
of intercession. Some Christians do, of course, have a special gift of
intercession but this doesn’t imply that only they are called to the life and
labor of intercession. We are all called to learn what it means to pray without
ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We are all called to bring our anxieties to our
Father and cast our cares upon him (Philippians 4:6; 1 Peter 5:6-7). We are all
called to abide in Christ and ask whatever we wish that the Father might be
glorified and the Son might be confirmed in us (John 15:1-11). We are all
called to pray for the nations that some might come to a saving knowledge of
Christ (2 Thessalonians 3:1).
In other words, we are all called to be like Jesus in his
character and in his labor.
As we hear Jesus’ call and submit to his
will, we come into the fullness of what he’s created us to be on this earth. As
Murray writes, “Through intercession, the church finds and exercises its
highest power” (6). Indeed, the highest power of the church is not found in
providing moving worship experiences. The highest power of the church is not found
in providing practical messages to enhance people’s lives. The highest power of
the church is not found in providing programs to entertain and educate people
and their children. The highest power of the church is not found in helping those
in need. The highest power of the church is not found in social justice and
advocacy. The highest power of the church is not found in seeking to transform
the culture from liberal to conservative values.
All of these things have their place, but
the highest power of the church is found in this: we have access to God through
Jesus Christ. The highest power of the church is that we can learn to pray in
such a way that God hears and answers our prayers not only for ourselves but
also for others. The highest power of the church is that we are the conduit
through which Jesus accomplishes his mediatorial labor. So Murray is right when
he says, “Only when the church yields itself to this holy work of intercession
can it expect the power of Christ to be manifested on its behalf” (7).
Amen. May we hear the call and follow the
Master into the courts of intercession.
If you’re like me, you’re convinced about
these things because they’re in the Bible but you’re wondering how this looks
in daily life. God’s truth is true and faith clings to it in childlike wonder. However,
even genuine faith must ask, “Yes, Father, but how?”
Christians live by the power of the New
Covenant which is marked by the words, “I will do it, declares the Lord”
(Hebrews 8:1-13). We live by the hope of the promise that Jesus is the founder
and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). We live by the joy of the fact that
he who began this work in us will complete it until the day he comes to take us
home (Philippians 1:6). So how do we grow in the privilege and practice of
intercession? By surrendering to Christ and allowing him to do his work in us,
allowing him to pray his prayers through us.
The author of Hebrews teaches us in Hebrews
7:25 that Jesus ever lives to make intercession for us. Jesus is the Chief
Intercessor of the universe, and he always will be. The good news is that when
we intercede Christ is ever-interceding, and when we fail to intercede Christ
is ever-interceding. He is who he is regardless of who we are; he does what he
does regardless of what we do or fail to do. And he will transform us into his
image, from one degree of glory to another, in his own time and way—he will do
it! He will perfect! He will finish! He will teach us to intercede! He will
teach us to surrender and allow him to breathe his heart through us and back to
the Father.
Learning the joy of intercession is about
surrender not obligation. And as Murray says, “We can have the fullest
confidence that with such a teacher we will make good progress” (15).
Amen.
“May God open our eyes to see what the
glorious ministry of intercession is to which we as His royal priesthood have
been set apart” (8).
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