It is Christ…who also makes
intercession for us….the Spirit…makes intercession for the saints… —Romans
8:34, 27
“Do we need any more
arguments than these to become intercessors– that Christ “always lives to make
intercession” (Hebrews 7:25), and
that the Holy Spirit “makes intercession for the saints”? Are we living in such
a relationship with others that we do the work of intercession as a result of
being the children of God who are taught by His Spirit? We should take a look
at our current circumstances. Do crises which affect us or others in our home,
business, country, or elsewhere, seem to be crushing in on us? Are we being
pushed out of the presence of God and left with no time for worship? If so, we
must put a stop to such distractions and get into such a living relationship
with God that our relationship with others is maintained through the work of
intercession, where God works His miracles.”
CHAMBERS
The easiest thing to do is to
lose sight of the spiritual aspect of our new life. There is spiritual activity going on, on our
behalf, all the time … 24x7 into eternity … spiritual intercession. But our focus is so earth-ward. Our natural lives consume us. Demanding our attention and devotion. The thing is .. so does God. He has set in place the means by which we are
eternally connected to Him, even while we walk out this life on earth. Think about this .. if Jesus and the Spirit
are making intercession for us, it must be because we need intercession. Jesus the sacrifice
once for all. (Hebrews 10:10) Jesus
our high priest. (Hebrews 4:14) Jesus is at the right hand of the Father (Romans 8:33-35) and the Spirit is in
us. (1 Corinthians 3:16) That is not going to change until we are
transformed. The Bible is unclear about
what our state will be then. Will we
still need the Holy Spirit in us? I don’t
know, but I am going to find out one day. The Jewish sacrificial system was a
metaphor for what Jesus did and is doing.
Even the design of the temple .. which God directed in detail pointed to
Jesus. All of that was and is necessary because
man rejected the “normal” life for something less.
I was talking with someone at
work yesterday. They had mentioned
earlier in the week that I seemed to be free from the worries of the
world. That I was living my life in that
freedom, more than anyone they had ever known.
Well, I thought about that, and decided that I needed to tell them
why. Yesterday presented me with the
opportunity. I told him that I lived by
faith in God. I trusted Him in every
aspect of my life and was not at all concerned about what might happen … health
.. work … whatever. Living by faith gives me incredible freedom. We talked about that for a while, and then he
thanked me for sharing wisdom with him and for the religious discussion. His words were revealing in terms of where he
is spiritually. I am not judging or
condemning, just observing and trusting that God will continue to give me more
opportunities to share the Gospel with him. (1 Peter 3:15) “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always
be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that
is in you, with meekness and fear” We
plant the seed, and God brings the increase.
You see, the world considers
any discussion about God as religious, abnormal, having little to do with the “normal”
life. That may be true for the world,
but it should not be so for those who are born again. We should understand that
we are the ones living the “normal” life, the life God intended for His creation. Those who are not joint-heirs with Christ are
actually living the “abnormal life”. But
it is the only life they know. As
Christians, we are tempted every day to accept and embrace that which is
abnormal. If we are not living with an
awareness of spiritual truth, we will find ourselves living like the rest of
the world. Numb to the spiritual
realities of our lives. Be on your guard
against this. And if you are already
living the “abnormal” life, repent and turn your heart back toward God. ELGIN
Charley Elgin
No comments:
Post a Comment