Genesis

ONE of the essential and most blessed features of the Believer’s fellowship with God is the privilege and responsibility, the joy and duty of intercession. The Divine announcement concerning Sodom led Abraham to intercede for the doomed city. God’s revelation thus finds its response in His servant’s intercession. Some of the elements of intercession are clearly shown in the above passages.

Intercession with God presupposes a spiritual relationship and position from which all else follows. He was in God’s presence. "Abraham stood yet before the Lord." The two angels had gone on to Sodom to fulfill the Divine will, leaving the Angel of the Covenant with Abraham.

He also realized God’s nearness. "Abraham drew near." How like this language is to the teaching of the Epistle to the Hebrews (Heb 10:22). Abraham was on a true footing of fellowship as he poured out his heart to God.

He also knew God’s will. He had already been told what God was about to do, and this led him to prayer.

We have here a striking illustration of the true spirituality and power of Abraham’s life. Several elements of real prayer are clearly seen.

II. The Earnest Spirit (Gen 18:23-24).

His compassion is manifest. Abraham’s prayer is evidently for the whole city and not merely for his nephew Lot. It is striking that he does not mention Lot from beginning to end, but only prays for the city.

His definiteness is noteworthy. He asked for what he wanted, and this is always the true attitude in prayer. God will tell us whether what we want is also what He thinks we need, but mean while our prayers should be definite.

His boldness is striking. There is no hesitation in his utterance, no fear in his attitude. Everything is frank, fearless, courageous, for the simple reason that he knows Whom he believes. Our Lord frequently inculcated boldness in prayer (Luk 11:5-10; Luk 18:1-8).

But Abraham was perplexed by the fact that the destruction of Sodom would involve the destruction of righteous men with wicked ones. With this difficulty in his mind he did the very best thing; he told God about it. Problems thus brought to God will either be resolved, or else sufficient grace will be given to wait for the perfect solution. Abraham had some how got hold of the great principle that good people are as salt preventing surrounding corruption. How often one Christian in a family keeps back Divine judgment on sin! How often wandering boys are withheld from ruin through their mother s prayers!

Yet he cannot help entertaining a strong conviction. He felt that it was impossible that the righteous could be destroyed with the wicked. In the absence of any revelation of a future judgment redressing present inequalities, we are not surprised at Abraham’s strong assertion of his sense of the injustice of indiscriminate destruction. He was evidently concerned for God also, and was particularly anxious that the heathen around should not get a wrong impression of the God of Abraham.

And all the while he rests in a sure confidence in God. Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? He makes his appeal to God’s righteousness rather than to His mercy, and in so doing he touches the very foundation of things. With a perfect trust in the absolute justice of God he pours out his heart and tells God his difficulties. This is the true spirit of the believer who is face to face with the great mysteries of life. He takes them all to God in prayer, and in the presence of Divine righteousness he finds that rest of heart which enables him to wait patiently for God (Psa 37:6-7; Psa 73:16-17).

Let us observe, moreover, how point by point the prayer was met by a Divine response: "And the Lord said." Thus God spoke to His servant in answer to prayer. So it ever is with the believer. God’s Word is the complement of and response to our petitions.

"If I find ... I will spare." God met his servant’s request by a definite promise that if He found fifty righteous He would spare the place.

"For their sakes." Thus God responded to His servant’s conviction that there was indeed a power and influence good people. The whole city is to be spared, notwithstanding its sin, simply and solely on account of fifty people therein. Nothing can be clearer than this testimony to the salutary power and influence of godliness (Mat 5:13).

Abraham had a profound consciousness of God. I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord. Again we notice how his friendship with God is never allowed to make him forget his true position of dependence.

He also had an equally real and deep knowledge of himself. Which am but dust and ashes. This is always the consciousness of the true child of God as he abides in the Divine presence. God’s holiness and our sinfulness, God’s greatness and our nothingness, are the overwhelming experiences.

Six times Abraham intercedes for the wicked cities. His heart is drawn out in pity and compassion, and he pleads again and again. Persistence in prayer is one of the prominent features of New Testament teaching. Continuing instant (Rom 12:12). Steadfastness in intercession is one of the sure marks of reality and earnestness.

Six times God responded to His servant’s prayer. After each petition came the definite answer. So is it always; as long as we ask, God will answer. Notice the threefold promise^ with its element of increasing persistency in Mat 7:7.

Why, then, did Abraham stop praying when he reached the number ten? Probably because of his ignorance of the extent and effect of Sodom’s sin, and, from another point of view, probably because of his ignorance of the extent of the Divine mercy and longsuffering.

As it has often been said, Abraham ceased asking before God ceased giving. The reason why Abraham did not go lower than ten was possibly due to the fact that now he did not think there were anything like that number in the city.

We naturally compare and contrast Abraham’s words, "I will speak yet but this once" with the intercession of our Lord Jesus Christ, Whose pleading on our behalf knows no limitation whatever.

"He is able to save to the uttermost . . . seeing that he ever liveth to make intercession" (Heb 7:25).

Abraham rose up early in the morning and looked towards Sodom. Somehow or other he must have expected that God would at least deliver the one righteous man that was in Sodom, and not destroy him with the rest.

Is it not very significant that Lot’s preservation is here directly connected with Abraham’s intercession? Thus Abraham saved his nephew for the second time. The first time by the sword (Gen 14), the second time by supplication (Gen 18).

1. The solemn responsibilities of Intercession.

How striking are the words of Samuel teaching us that we are actually sinning against God if we do not pray for others! (1Sa 12:23) Do we clearly realize this? Does it not make us ashamed and even afraid when we remember how little we pray for others as compared with our prayers for ourselves? And yet there is scarcely any part of prayer more prominent in the New Testament than prayer for others (Jam 5:16; 2Th 3:1; Eph 6:17-18; 1Ti 2:1). The reason why intercessory prayer is thus so plainly taught is that it is the best opportunity we possess of showing spiritual interest in others. Our Christian life will never be really healthy and strong until we make intercession a very prominent and even predominant feature of our private devotions. The Lord’s Prayer gives us the model in this as in other respects.

2. The marvellous possibilities of Intercession.

The Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends (Job 42:10). This shows the reflex blessing of intercessory prayer, but far beyond this is the social value of intercession. God has included in His great purpose of redemptive love the power and blessing of prayer for others, and if only God’s people would realize what their prayers could do for the world, they would take up this work of priestly intercession in a way that they have never realized before. Only the great day will reveal what has been done by intercessory prayer. The Apostle Paul depended greatly on it in his ministry, and was frequently asking his friends to remember him and his work in prayer.

3. The essential conditions of Intercession.

We can only intercede in proportion as we abide in close fellowship with God. "If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you" (Joh 15:7). Asking in our Lord’s Name (Joh 14:13; Joh 16:23) is another way of stating the need of union and communion with God. In "My Name" means, not simply using His Name as a plea, but praying in union with Him and with all that we know of His will. When these conditions are fulfilled the Lord’s words become blessedly true. "Ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full." (Cf. 1Jn 3:22; 1Jn 5:14-15.)