All tagged intercession

The Compassion and Intercession of Jesus

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Compassionate Intercession

One morning in 2015 I was reading a devotional and preparing for prayer. The subject was the absolute perfection of Christ and the compassion which leads Him to intercede for us. The accompanying verse was Hebrews 4:15, and it was so encouraging to me. Jesus understands us and what tempts us as men, and this gives Him the ability to intercede for us in prayer from a place of experience and a knowledge of our circumstances. Do we completely grasp the degree to which He is like us? Do we pray for others as Jesus prays for us; with empathy that is born of understanding and experience?

From Egypt to the Desert, and into Our Prayer Closet

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Prayer of Forgiveness

This morning we will begin by studying one of the most incredible examples of intercessory prayer. Moses goes to the mountain to receive the first set of tablets but while he is gone the Israelites ask Aaron to build them a golden calf to worship... which he does. Moses isn't aware of this when God tells him He will destroy the Israelites and build a nation from his offspring (much like the promise to Abraham). But, Moses prays that God will spare them.

Making God’s Promise Real through Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian, Daily Devotional, God’s Promises

It is true that people do pray more when they are in trouble, and they are also inclined to criticize God in the midst of great trouble, but in God's eyes our lives here are just a portion of the journey... When many are lost to calamity we have a tendency to think they are gone because this life is all we know, but in God it is not the end... Evil never triumphs, the journey is not complete. We already know the end of the story, and God is victorious and dries the tears of the martyred saints. Jesus has already risen and the promise of His return is real… He will return to claim His bride, and the dead in Christ will rise to meet Him. Are we ready?

Publix Brand Church

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Repeatedly Sifted

Something happened this week that shook me, and took me back to the year 2016 when I was in what I hoped were the final stages of dealing with cancer. A couple of days ago I learned that someone very close to me, who had battled cancer once before, had been told, following a routine check-up, that the doctor had found two places which appeared to be cancerous tumors. This is a moment that anyone who has ever had cancer fears… the return of their old nemesis. The return of Satan to sift us yet again.

Whose is the Glory of Doing?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional

Are we men and women who humble ourselves before God? Humility is a characteristic that is unmistakable in a person and gives them a certain quality that allows them to care for others and walk in faith without so much as causing a ripple... They become a part of the faith that surrounds them. However, the pride of doing, this morning's message, is one that convicts me often. Sometimes I struggle with that fine line between giving God the glory for answering a prayer and feeling that MY prayer might have been the source of that miracle. When you pray for people as often as I do and God answers our prayers for the needs of others, we might begin to associate God's movements with our own. When people seek you out as if there is some cure or other miracle that you can perform for them it presents you with a spiritual danger. The truth of course is that God performs all miracles and a person's faith is the catalyst that makes him worthy.

The Magnificence of Offered Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Praying for Others

Who will we come into contact with today? Will there be some chance happening in our life that isn’t quite as chance as it might seem, and that the Lord will orchestrate for His purposes, and glory? There are many intercessions that occur during what we think are less than significant meetings and encounters, and in those brief moments when we witness someone’s need or struggle, our minds often wander to God as we think such prayerful things as “Oh God.”, or “Jesus!”. Have you ever considered these instant utterances to be moments of prayerful intercession?

Intercession and Jesus

Richard Forbes
Offense, Daily Devotional , Praying for Others

Are we making intercession for others? Do we even know how to pray in such a manner? I worry about this often as I watch us attempt to pray for one another. Are our hearts in worship as we lift up prayers for those in need? Is there anyone even attempting such prayer? There have been times throughout biblical history when there has been no true intercession. One of them is recorded in Isaiah, and we can read it in these words...

Praying in the Spirit

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Spirit Prayer

Have you ever been in prayer and found yourself unable to express yourself to God in words? In that moment did the Holy Spirit well up in you, and with a moan, a groan, a sigh, or even in a deep tearful silence, did you feel a connection with the Lord that was far beyond your ability to express in words, or even understand the depth of? This is prayer at its very foundation. This is the language of the soul. Have you experienced it?

Prayer- Joining Together in Laughter as well as Tears

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Joint Prayer

As Christians we are often asked by the people around us for prayer. They ask us to lift them up individually, or to pray for their friends, loved ones, and various happenings in their lives. When we do so there is power in our individual prayers of intercession, but Oh the power, and might, of joint prayer. When we pray as one within God’s will, and with the full confidence of His promised answer… our spirits soar. However, when we do this together as a group, or church, something even more amazing, and beautiful occurs. Suddenly the incredible flight of a single prayer joins with all the others to soar before the throne as they turn together in symphony like a flight of pigeons. They wheel high overhead turning this way and that in unison, and seem to do so almost effortlessly as they join with the others to protect us from the falcons, hawks, and goshawks, that flash ominously through our lives.

Our Life’s Story, and the Eternal Intercessor who tells it

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Eternal Intercession

We have talked a great deal this month about intercession, and we have read scripture that states that Jesus makes intercession for us before God, but we haven’t really considered the fact that Jesus lives forever, and that because of this, His intercession is without end. We, on the other hand, intercede for others during our lifetimes, so today, let’s look at what scripture says about the role He plays as our High Priest, not just during our lives on earth, but for all eternity.

Intercessors need Intercession Too!

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Intercession

When we ask an intercessor to pray for us, and our prayers are answered, we can be tempted to place that person who prayed for us on a pedestal, and claim they have a power that they don’t possess. Prayers are answered by God alone, and there is no better evidence of this truth than when an intercessor asks others to pray for them. Even someone who intercedes will find themselves in need of intercession.

Are the Tearful Prayers of Intercession Mixed with Blood?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Tears of Intercession

If we were asked who the greatest intercessor was in our lives, what name would we answer with? Perhaps we would give that title to our mother or father, our pastor, or a Saint we know who has a powerful way of communicating with God in prayer, but although these would be good answers they would fall short of one man; a man who had spent his life interceding for us… Jesus Christ. He was born to intercede, and He continues on in that role through eternity.

Intercession the Loving, and Transforming, Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional , Intercession of Jesus

Intercessory prayer has always been important, and I would be surprised if you haven’t already prayed personally for the sick, or someone in need around you. Maybe it was one of your children, a spouse, a close friend, or then again, you might have seen a prayer list at church, or felt the need to say a quick prayer for someone you work with. In each of these situations you are filling the role of an intercessor. When we are sick, hurting, or in need it is equally important to ask others to pray for us. Perhaps your church has a team of Saints who have been identified as having a special spiritual gift when it comes to praying for others, but whatever the case may be, when we are personally in need of prayer then it is important for us to seek out another to join with us in lifting our concerns before God… find an intercessor.

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