The Importance of Intercessory Prayer

Today I was able to listen to the last sermon in the short series on the importance of prayer, and can share my notes and pass along the message! While all prayer is of the utmost importance, intercessory prayer may just be the most important type of prayer!

If you do a simple search on the definition of the word intercession, you’ll see that it is defined as follows: To plead or make a request on behalf of another person. When we come before God in intercessory prayer, we are in agreement with God on not only the situation, but also on the solution to the situation. We agree on what the person’s needs are and we agree that God has the power to turn their situation around for good.

A big problem is, not many Christians take the time to intercede for others. When we come before God in intercession, we have an influence greater than we know! In Genesis 18 & 19, Abraham interceded for his nephew Lot; he prayed for his nephew to be spared. In Exodus 32:11-14, Moses interceded for the nation of Israel; he prayed for change and believed God had the power to change. In Ezekiel 22, we know God was going to bring judgement upon Israel, but we know God was looking for someone to come and intercede! It’s a simple task with a monumental reward! I can think of no greater reward than to know I am the reason someone came to know and believe in God!

Salvation is much more than just deliverance from sin; it also promotes us to sons and daughters of Christ and also kings and priests! We are priests in relation to God and kings in relation to satan. Priests represented the people before God; traditionally a priest was a man chosen by God who had authority we didn’t. There were certain rituals and places only priests were allowed to venture, but now we can all come before God on another’s behalf! As priests, we have the privilege of going before the Father and interceding for others, claiming the provision and power of His blood! We can ALL come before God not only on behalf of ourselves, but for others…especially those who don’t believe in God. Now, we take authority over satan! Not many of us really realize that fact; we tend to let satan bully us. Ultimately though, we are kings in relation to Satan. Kings exercise power and authority. Kings defeat their enemies and establish their will or desire in their kingdom. They are in control! In the same way, we rule over satan and we control what he can and cannot do in our lives, and by intercessory prayer we can come before God and do our part to stop satan in other’s lives and in the world around us. Some people will say, “Pray for me, Satan won’t leave me alone.” Nothing wrong with asking for prayer, but as believers we can also stop running, turn around and start chasing him! Satan will only do what you allow him to do in your life; if you give him the key, he will come in! God has given us a key to His kingdom and we can open doors we want open and close doors we want closed!

How do we effectively intercede?

1. We pray that God draws them (the non-believers) to Him. We pray He creates a desire in them.

2. We should pray that they would pursue God and seek Him out!

3. Pray for someone to tell them about Jesus; whether it be us or someone else! They cannot believe what they never hear about and they will never hear unless we become the messengers we are called to be and share the gospel with them!

4. Pray their spiritual eyes are open! For those who don’t understand, allow their eyes to open and for what they hear to make sense in their minds, hearts and lives.

5. Finally, pray they believe in Christ as their savior! Don’t just pray for them to simply open their eyes and believe, but pray for them to make the most important decision in their lives; to accept God as their personal savior so they may never be condemned but live eternally. Pray for them to get to that point where they can exercise their will to choose belief. God doesn’t want anyone perish; He always gives us a way out. One thing He will not do is violate a person’s free will! Everyone has been given the freedom to choose and we must pray for others who may not believe, to get to the point in their lives where they use their free will to choose belief in God. There should be no reason any of us Christians aren’t actively practicing intercessory prayer. We ALL have important people in our lives who aren’t saved. We should be concerned and care for them and all other non-believers the same! We should be excited to tell others about God and to share our story with them!

What if the only reason someone doesn’t make it to Heaven with us, is because you or I did not take the time to care enough to intercede on their behalf? What if we didn’t take our role and responsibilities as Christians seriously enough and it costs someone eternity? Intercessory prayer doesn’t take much effort, but it can have a huge return! What do you have to lose? As Christians, possibly not much…but what do non-believers you know or come in contact with have to lose? Eternity! Don’t cheat others out of what we have in God! Pray for the power to share with others and open doors for them! We have the key to the kingdom, let’s let them in!

God, we come before you today as believers in You, interceding for all non-believers we know well, have come in contact with or those we will come into contact with! Let us share our story of Your goodness with them, and may their eyes be open! May You draw them near and create in them a desire to pursue You and seek you out. We also pray if we aren’t the person who witnesses to them, that someone else finds them and does! Thank You for allowing is to come in front of You and intercede for ourselves and others! May we all make time for intercessory prayer in our lives! AMEN!

Remember it’s as easy as A·B·C!

·Admit to God we have sinned.

·Believe Jesus is God’s Son who was sent to save us and die for our sins on the cross.

·Confess your belief to God and allow Him into your heart and life.

Much Love and God Bless 💚