MOSES INTERCESSORY PRAYER

Transcription

1 WEEK MOSES INTERCESSORY PRAYER FOCUS VERSE Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groaning which cannot be uttered. LESSON TEXT Exodus 32:7 14, 32 7 And the Lord said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: 8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. FOCUS THOUGHT The church needs intercessors today who are willing to put their own needs aside and plead the cause of others before God. 9 And the Lord said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: 10 Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation. 11 And Moses besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? 12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. 14 And the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. 76

2 CULTURE CONNECTION Little Miracle of Intercession Teborah, a young mother of three, lived with her husband in a small home on a modest income. Her traffic ticket was not a welcome expense. Fortunately, completing a Defensive Driving class was to relieve most of the pressure and spare her an increase in auto insurance premiums. She enrolled in the course thinking the instructor would file her completion with the court and finalize the matter. She was mistaken. Sometime later she received a summons from the court to pay a much higher fine or be arrested. She was distraught and shared her concern with her pastor, who decided to do what he could to help. He would intercede on her behalf. The judge of the neighboring county where the ticket was issued was known for having little sympvathy for traffic offenders. The pastor approached the judge by phone with three appeals: (1) the offender believed the ticket to be resolved, (2) the ticket would place an extreme financial hardship on the struggling family, and (3) the judge had the power to rescind the charges. The judge responded negatively to all appeals and abruptly hung up the phone. It seemed all efforts to help had failed. But the pastor prayed for God s intervention on Teborah s behalf. When Teborah appeared before the judge, the judge completely dismissed the matter, removing all charges. It was a great relief and seemed to be a small miracle. When we are positioned to intercede in matters to help someone, we should do so. God placed Esther in the kingdom for just such a time. Like Queen Esther, we too can make a difference. If it seems all efforts have failed, we can add an intercessory prayer to God, who can turn a seemingly impossible situation into a miracle. OUTLINE I. MOSES IN COMMUNION WITH GOD A. God Gave the Commandments B. Moses Lingered before God C. The People Sinned and Became Corrupt II. GOD S DIRECTION AND PROM- ISE OF DESTRUCTION A. Go, Get Thee Down B. I Will Blot Out Their Names III. MOSES PRAYER OF INTERCESSION A. Moses Asked the Lord for Mercy B. Moses Interceded for the People C. The Lord Showed Mercy IV. INTERCESSION STILL EFFECTIVE A. Intercession for Our Nations B. Intercession for Our Families C. Intercession for the Lost CONTEMPLATING THE TOPIC In addition to petitioning God, prayer includes praise and worship. The model of the Lord s prayer begins with worship and ends with praise. The presentation of petitions or requests to God are sandwiched between worship and praise. Believers petition God in faith, believing that He is God and that He answers prayer. As children of God, believers can ask what they will of their heavenly Father with the trust and confidence of a loving relationship. There is no need to beg the Father, for it is His delight to grant His children their requests (Luke 12:32). Expressions of worship and praise to God are made in varied forms. (See Psalm 145.) We offer our wholehearted worship when we desire to sincerely honor the Lord for all His goodness. We worship Him by declaring His excellent greatness and His attributes. We thank Him for the privilege to be His children and for His manifold blessings. Many of the 77

3 psalms declare that we are to praise Him in song, the highest form of vocal expression. Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding (Psalm 47:6 7). Reciting verses of Scripture, the beauty of His own words filled with promises, is an act of praise. Praise dominates the believer s communion with God. This is as it should be because all acts of prayer are important and acceptable to God, but praise brings believers into the presence of the Lord: But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel (Psalm 22:3). Intercessory prayer is a specific act of prayer that includes petition and burden. While all prayers for others could be technically classified as intercessory prayers, intercessory prayer is referenced as that associated with an unusually deep concern, a heavy burden, and/or an emergency or impending crisis. It is an act of prayer out of the ordinary, usually associated with dire consequences should there be no divine intervention to meet the need. SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES I. MOSES IN COMMUNION WITH GOD Moses spent forty years in Egypt and forty years in the desert before he became the great emancipator of the Israelites from captivity. Those eighty years were years of communion with God. It began in the atmosphere of godly parents and developed into a concern for his people in Egypt. Moses fled Egypt but retained his God consciousness and devotion in the desert. His turning aside to observe the burning bush is a testimony of his communion with God and his hunger for spiritual things. He was not astonished at God s voice to remove his shoes, indicating his familiarity with prayer and spiritual matters. Moses prayer and communion with God was a lifelong experience. It started long before the events at Sinai. It underlines the truth that those whom God chooses to lead His people are usually people of lifelong commitment to God and to prayer. They have a concern for the things of God. A. God Gave the Commandments The exodus from Egypt was a miracle in process. The great miracle of deliverance included three events: the appearance of Moses representing the I AM before Pharaoh, the ten plagues, and the parting of the Red Sea. In the third month after the exodus from Egypt, the people of Israel came into the wilderness of Sinai (Exodus 19:1). There God summoned Moses to Mount Sinai to receive the commandments for Israel. Moses was given not only the Ten Commandments but also all the law concerning God s requirements for the people, the priesthood and the Tabernacle. The oral law that carried the sons of Jacob through the four hundred years of slavery in Egypt was to be replaced at Sinai by the written law. Israel was to become a kingdom of priests and a holy nation to the world and therefore needed a written law to govern the people (Exodus 19:6). Old and New Testament writers made numerous references to the written law of Moses or the prophets in establishing authority for their preaching and writing. (See Ezra 6:18; Isaiah 65:6; Psalm 40:7; Daniel 9:13; Matthew 4:7; John 6:45; Acts 1:20; 7:42; 15:15; Romans 8:36; 9:13; 11:26.) B. Moses Lingered before God On his return to the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the law and the commandments God had written, Moses took Joshua with him. Aaron and Hur were left at the encampment of the people to wait for Moses return (Exodus 24:12 14). The children of Israel could see the glory cloud covering the mountain, which appeared to them as a devouring fire. For six days Moses either climbed or waited on the mountain. Moses probably expected to be in the mountain for some time because the Lord told him to come up to me into the mount, and be there (Exodus 24:12). On the seventh day, God spoke to Moses and gave him instructions concerning the Tabernacle, the priesthood, and the commandments. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights. 78

4 Lingering in the presence of the Lord is one of the most important parts of prayer. As Hannah lingered in prayer, Eli the priest noticed her. He observed her, spoke with her, and then pronounced a blessing upon her (I Samuel 1:12 18). The believers tarried at Pentecost until the Spirit came (Acts 1:4, 13). Cornelius and his house waited for Peter to come from Joppa so they could hear all things that are commanded thee of God (Acts 10:33). Too often pressure by the whims of the waiting multitudes can preempt the worship of the Master. Moses, in the glorious presence of the Lord, may have been unaware or unconcerned of the passing of time. At the end of God s communing with Moses, He gave Moses the two tables of stones, written with the finger of God (Exodus 31:18). C. The People Sinned and Became Corrupt While Moses lingered on the mountain, the people became impatient and pressured Aaron to make gods to go before them. For as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him (Exodus 32:1). Aaron gathered their golden earrings, melted them, and fashioned from them a golden calf. He then built an altar and declared the idol to be the gods that brought them out of Egypt. To make matters worse, he proclaimed the next day to be a feast day unto the Lord. Aaron was obviously uncomfortable with the cry of the people and was caught between them and Moses. The Apostolic Study Bible footnotes Exodus 32:4 as follows: The word translated gods is in the singular rather than plural. The grammatical structure makes it clear Aaron claimed he had made an image of Jehovah. This is further clarified by his declaration in v. 5 that the next day would be a feast to Jehovah. The people had asked for gods that shall go before us (v. 1), but Aaron was not willing to go that far into idolatry. Instead, he compromised by making an image of the one true God. However, his compromise still violated the commandment Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image (Exod. 20:4), even down to the detail that he had used tools to carve the image rather than casting it with a mold. Early the next day the people brought burnt offerings and peace offerings. Then they sat down to eat and to drink and rose up to play. The word play is also translated as revelry and implies wild partying, dancing, and quarreling, including immoral acts that were associated with pagan worship of ancient times. Paul made a direct reference to this incident of idolatry by the people in his warning to the Corinthians. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand (I Corinthians 10:7 8). The Lord told Moses the people had corrupted themselves and turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them (Exodus 32:7 8). It is amazing how quickly people can turn from giving God glory for His wonderful acts and attributing those acts to the leadership of human beings. It is also of interest how religious acts are mixed with pagan worship to create new gods to whom corrupted people give glory. II. GOD S DIRECTIONS AND PROMISE OF DESTRUCTION When the Israelites corrupted themselves, God changed neither the leadership of the people nor the Law for the people. The Law God gave Moses at Sinai remained intact, and the leadership He had chosen remained in place. What changed was God directions and response toward Israel. He tolerated neither the sins of Egypt nor the sins of Israel. Rather, a promise of destruction was given to Moses concerning the people. Aaron, Moses, and God all knew the nature of the people, but sin is inexcusable. Neither God s grace nor His wonderful acts allow wrongful behavior to be ignored. Israel s corruption was to be rectified, and Moses had to administer the correction. 79

5 A. Go, Get Thee Down Though Moses may have desired to linger longer on Sinai, God told him, Go, get thee down; for thy people which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves (Exodus 32:7). God was angry with their sinful behavior and their denying God the glory for their deliverance from Egypt (Exodus 32:1). Although the abilities and efforts of great spiritual leaders are appreciated and praised, it is never acceptable to attribute to humankind what belongs to God. Jesus said to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar s, and to God the things that are God s (Mark 12:17). B. I Will Blot Out Their Names The Lord told Moses that the sons of Jacob were stiffnecked, stubborn, headstrong, and obstinate. It was an observable characteristic. Aaron said the same of them when he was giving an account to Moses concerning the calf. It may have been to their credit to survive Egypt, but their behavior was despicable in the presence of God who had just made a covenant with Moses concerning them (Exodus 19:5 6). God s anger had waxed hot against the people. He was ready to consume them because of their sin. Only Moses stood in the way of their destruction. God could have destroyed Israel without talking to Moses except for the precedent He had established for Himself of not doing things without telling His beloved. Noah was warned of the flood (Genesis 6:13), and Abraham was notified of the coming destruction of Sodom (Genesis 18:17). God had been communing one-onone with Moses for forty days, and it was only right that Moses knew what the Lord was going to do concerning Israel s corruption. The relationship God had with Moses was unparalleled in Scripture. Jacob saw the Lord face-to-face and lived, but Moses talked to God face-to-face as a man speaks to his friend. (See Genesis 32:30; Exodus 33:11.) God s request to Moses to leave me alone speaks to the covenant relationship God had with Moses. Both held the promise of God to Abraham in high regard, a cherished covenant, a lasting relationship. God told Moses that He would consume the people and raise up a great nation from Moses. God could have blotted out the names of Israel and still kept His covenant with Abraham because Moses was a descendant of Abraham and the covenant of promise. But the love God had given to Moses for the people was too great to sacrifice for such personal aggrandizement. Moses rejected the thought. III. MOSES PRAYER OF INTERCESSION Though numerous prayers of intercession are given in the Old Testament, Moses prayer for Israel is the model prayer of intercession. Abraham s prayer for Sodom and Gomorrah is possibly the second greatest example of a recorded intercessory prayer (Genesis 18:23 33). Even Paul s expression in Romans 9:3 4 where he said, I could wish myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh; who are Israelites, is not as strong as Moses request to God to remove his name from the book of life if Israel was destroyed in God s anger. Moses was actually facing the real possibility of God removing his name while Paul was theoretically willing for severance. A. Moses Asked the Lord for Mercy Mercy is one of the great attributes of God. Love, light, fire, holiness, justice, and mercy are a few of the incomprehensible attributes that identify God. The justice of sin is death, but the mercy of God is life. That which makes mercy possible is the shed blood. When the blood of the sacrifice was placed on the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies, God s consuming fire turned to mercy and sins were forgiven. In Moses pleading for the people, he did not excuse their guilt or justify their wrong; rather he entreated the Lord for mercy. Moses reminded the Lord that these were His people and it was He who brought them out of Egypt with a mighty hand. He proposed to God that if He destroyed the people, the Egyptians would say the Lord had brought them into the wilderness to destroy them from the face of the earth (Exodus 32:12). Then Moses asked the Lord to turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people (Exodus 32:12). 80

6 Moses continued his intercession by reminding the Lord of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the fact that He confirmed the covenant with His own words in an oath to His servants. Moses, who had been in the presence of God for forty days, was speaking out of love, reflecting the greatest of all God s attributes. Abiding in Christ s presence will enable believers to reflect His nature and characteristics in their own lives. God s mercy is everlasting (Psalm 100:5). Through intercession, believers can appeal to Him for mercy on behalf of others. B. Moses Interceded for the People All of Moses family was born and lived in Egypt. Moses saw the splendors of Egypt from inside Pharaoh s palace. He also witnessed the suffering of the people of Israel. Knowing he was an Israelite, his heart was always with them. He forsook Egypt, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God (Hebrews 11:25). In Egypt, Moses had already suffered greatly because of his love for the people of Israel. He could not bear the thought of seeing them now destroyed and losing out on the promises of God. He was one of them, inseparable in suffering and spirit, but strong in faith toward God and His covenant with Abraham. Therefore, Moses did what he was positioned to do by love; he prayed to God, interceding for mercy. He willingly put himself in their place to die with them should the Lord not have mercy. Moses love for the Israelites would not allow him to continue without them. C. The Lord Showed Mercy The result of Moses intercessory prayer while he was still on the mountain with God was that the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people (Exodus 32:14). As Moses went down from the mountain, he heard the sounds of revelry. When he saw what God had seen, Moses became angry. He burned the idol, ground it up, put it in the drinking water, and made the Israelites drink it. After reprimanding Aaron, he sent the sons of Levi, who had responded to his appeal to be on the Lord s side, into the camp to kill all those who were involved in the revelry, regardless of who they were. Three thousand men died. (See Exodus 32:15 28). Moses then called for a consecration of every household to the Lord so He would bestow upon them a blessing (Exodus 32:29). God had granted mercy. After this, Moses returned to the Lord with a passionate intercessory prayer for forgiveness of Israel s great sin. (See Exodus 32:31 32.) The Lord had already shown mercy and Israel was now forgiven. Intercessory prayer works because God is a merciful God. His desire is that none should perish. IV. INTERCESSION STILL EFFECTIVE Moses was not the first to pray an intercessory prayer, nor will he be the last. Crises will arise, fostering a search of one to pray for God to intervene. A. Intercession for Our Nations Moses prayer was a prayer for the emerging nation of Israel. God s desire was that Israel should become a kingdom of priests, an holy nation (Exodus 19:6). In Egypt they were God s people, but in the Promised Land, they became the holy nation of Israel. God has always been interested in nations of people. The Great Commission is to go and teach all nations, baptizing them and teaching them the commandments of the Lord (Matthew 28:19 20). The kings and prophets were nation builders. From Samuel to John the Baptist, from King David to King Jesus, all were kingdom builders, intercessors for the people, whose prayers preserved and blessed the nation. Today Christians have the privilege to intercede for their nations as well. Intercessory prayer brings blessing and prosperity to any nation, but the nation that forgets God shall perish. (See Psalm 9:17.) B. Intercession for Our Families From the beginning of human time, the family has been central to human existence. The geneology of Jesus is traced through His family. Healthy family relationships produce strong nations and churches. Therefore, prayers for the family are possibly the most-often prayed and are among the most important. When there is unrest in the family, it is difficult to give meaningful support 81

7 to practical or spiritual matters. Intercessory prayer can become the healing balm for hurting families. It was in a house prayer meeting, a family setting, that intercessory prayer brought Peter s deliverance from prison. (See Acts 12:5 13.) C. Intercession for the Lost Jesus came to save His people from their sins. Since all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, all are in need of salvation. The world is the field and the field is white unto harvest. The need is evident. A harvest is waiting. Jesus, while laboring in the field of souls, gave us this admonition: Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest (Matthew 9:37 38). At another time, Jesus admonished his disciples to become involved in the harvest of souls. He expressed it as His own personal work as the will of the Father, which He intended to finish. As followers, the harvest is the vested work of all believers. Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest (John 4:34 35). The work of the kingdom is the preaching of the gospel. The power of preaching is prayer. And the form of prayer that rescues souls is intercessory prayer. Look at the harvest and behold the shortage of workers; pray that the Lord will supply laborers. INTERNALIZING THE MESSAGE Jesus taught extensively concerning prayer. Matthew captured His early teaching on the techniques of prayer and the Lord s Prayer as a model. The other Gospel writers also referenced His teaching and parables on the subject. But what is important is that Jesus actually prayed, and in a few cases the contents of His prayers are recorded. His prayers fall into four categories: (1) thanksgiving such as when He broke bread and when He prayed at Lazarus s tomb (Matthew 15:36; John 11:41); (2) blessing such as the blessing of bread with two disciples from Emmaus and the blessing of those who were present to witness His ascension (Luke 24:30; Luke 24:50); (3) submission in his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:39); (4) intercession. Jesus often prayed such prayers. Consider some of the following: Jesus prayed for Peter because Satan desired to destroy him (Luke 22:31 32). Jesus prayed for His disciples and all who would believe, which includes the Christians of all ages, as a result of the disciples words (John 17). Jesus prayed for forgiveness for those who were crucifying Him (Luke 23:34). All prayers for others are prayers of intercession, but some prayers of intercession are prayed with greater urgency and burden than others. It is this kind of intercessory praying that relies upon the Holy Spirit to help our prayers. When the burden is overwhelming and we do not know how or what to pray, the Spirit makes intercession for us. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God (Romans 8:26 27). The key is our willingness to become vessels through which the Spirit can work. Isaiah declared that the Lord is willing to work and deliver, but who will let him? (Isaiah 43:13). Remember, one is never alone in intercessory prayer. There is a ready companion in the Holy Spirit. 82

8 REFLECTIONS Discuss Moses previous suffering for Israel in light of his prayer for God to remove his name from the book of life if Israel were to be destroyed. Discuss the reasons Israel so quickly turned to idols after God had done so much for them. What is similar in the intercessory prayers of Abraham (Genesis 18:23 33), Moses (Exodus 32:31 32), and Paul s declaration in Romans 9:1 5? What is different? Discuss what causes people to love others to the point of sacrifice, even when the others are doing wrong? In light of Moses long absence from the people, discuss the importance of leaders and spiritual examples in the lives of those who have recently been delivered from a world of sin. Discuss the companions of intercessory prayer: fasting, tears, united group prayer, Scripture, and the Holy Spirit. 83