The court was in session and there were the usual niceties that had to be observed. Everyone stood as the judge entered the courtroom. When everyone was seated again, the judge read the charges, and then asked the man at the defense table: “Are you the defendant in this case?” The defendant replied with these words: “No sir, your honor. I’ve got a lawyer to do the defendin’. I’m the guy who done it.”
He done it! He was guilty - but he had an attorney who would defend him. Intercession is what lawyers do for their clients, and lawyers are often the defenders of guilty people. That’s why in I John 2:1 it says “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate (or lawyer) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
When we are guilty (when we have sinned), Jesus is our advocate/attorney; Our defender; Our “intercessor”. He intercedes on our behalf. In fact that’s why Jesus came and died on our behalf.
A famous prophecy about Christ is found in Isaiah 53:12 where God declares: “Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes INTERCESSION for the TRANSGRESSORS.”
When Jesus came and died for our sins on the cross so He could make INTERCESSION for us. We were sinners; we were guilty; He came to be our defender, our advocate, our intercessor. And we received from Him… the opportunity to be freed from condemnation. We have a God who loves us so much… that He intercedes for us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…”
In fact, intercession is IMPORTANT to God because (as it says in Psalm 103) “He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.” Psalm 103:10-14
Intercession is important to God, BECAUSE He knows how fragile we are, and because intercession is so important to God He gives us examples of intercession throughout the Bible.
For example: When God decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah - who was it that interceded for those evil cities? It was Abraham! (Gen18:23-32) Why would God include that appeal in the Bible? Because God wanted us to see what intercession looks like.
When God told Moses that Israel had sinned so badly He intended to destroy them - who interceded for those sinful people? It was Moses (Exodus 17:8-16) Why would God include Moses’ appeal in the Bible? Because God wanted us to see what intercession looks like.
Notice, these intercessions were done for people who did NOT deserve to be spared. When God interceded for folks… they NEVER deserved it.
ILLUS: I read a cartoon that put it this way: The JURY FOREMAN stood and said “Your honor, 7 of us find the defendant - guilty as charged. Three of us find him - as guilty as they come. And 2 of us find him - guilty from the word ‘go.’”
That’s us. We’re guilty. Guilty as charged; guilty as they come; guilty from the word “Go”. We don’t have the right to receive any blessings from God. And yet God loved us so much that HE WANTED to give us His blessings… and so He interceded for us.
And that brings us to our Favorite Scripture passage this morning. Romans 8:26-28. “The Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Remember, we are a fragile people, and we know we don’t deserve for God to listen to us. So a lot of people feel like God WON’T listen to them.
ILLUS: Have you ever heard “I don’t think my prayers get past the ceiling”? “I keep talking, but I don’t think God is listening.” “It’s like He’s not in the same room with me.”
Now, sometimes that kind of feeling comes about because we haven’t repented of our sins. If you or I refuse to turn away from evil behavior, then God’s not going to listen! To be heard, we need to REPENT; We need to CONFESS our sin; We need to CHANGE our behavior.
But a lot of times, folks feel like God’s not listening because they don’t feel WORTHY of His attention. That’s why the Catholic Church teaches that people need to pray to the saints or to Mary. They teach that we’re not good enough to enter Christ’s presence, thus we need to make our appeals to special saints/Mary, because those folks have built up MERIT that gives them a special ability to intercede for us.
According to one Catholic blog: “The Catechism of the Catholic Church expressly says that (MARY’S) MERITS are “unfathomable,” which would seem to suggest that they are available to all of us in surplus quantity.” (https://catholicstrength.com/tag/marys-maternal-intercession/)
What do those “merits” do?
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church: (956-The intercession of the saints) “Being more closely united to Christ, those who dwell in heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness.... (The saints) do not cease to intercede with the Father for us (although the Bible doesn’t say that), as they proffer the MERITS which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus.... So by their fraternal concern is OUR WEAKNESS greatly helped.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church - The Communion of Saints. Retrieved 24 November 2018.)
In other words (according to this teaching), our weakness in prayer requires the merits (or the accumulated good works and “credits”) of Mary and the Saints. That has to happen… in order for our prayers to be heard.
But that’s not what Scripture says. The Bible says we have boldness/confidence to enter into God’s presence, and we do not require the prayers of dead saints or Mary to intercede for us.
Hebrews 10:19-22 “Therefore, brothers, since WE HAVE CONFIDENCE to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, LET US DRAW NEAR with a true heart in FULL ASSURANCE of faith…”
Because of Jesus’ blood and His intercession we have confidence and assurance to draw near to God with our prayers and petitions. We don’t need anyone else to do that for us because God has already permitted US to have free and bold access to His presence.
ILLLUS: You need to understand something about the Old Testament to fully appreciate what Hebrews 10 was talking about. Back in the days when Israel was wandering in the desert, God had them construct a Tabernacle that was always placed in the middle with all the tribes encamped around about it. The Tabernacle was a tent-like structure that was surrounded by a "fence" with one entrance. When the Israelites came to make their sacrifices they could step within that fence only as far as the altar. They were not allowed to go anywhere else in that enclosure. The Tabernacle itself was made up of two rooms. The front room held the Candlesticks, the Table of Shewbread, and the Altar of Incense. Every Priest was allowed in that room... but no further. The back room of the tabernacle had a barrier of a thick curtain and only one person (the High Priest) was allowed back behind that curtain ... and he was only allowed there once a year to offer a sacrifice for the sins of the people. This room held the Ark of the Covenant, and was considered to be the place where God dwelled. Part of the reason the Tabernacle was constructed the way it was was to drive home the fact that the Israelites served a Holy God and that no-one (because of their sins) was allowed to enter His presence.
However, when Jesus died on the cross, the curtain that walled God off from His people was torn in two - from top to bottom - and suddenly the way into God's presence was opened... and we who belong to God can now boldly and with full assurance come into God's throneroom to offer up our prayers and petitions. NOT because we were righteous or had earned that priviledge, but only because Jesus had died on the cross for our sins, and now was making intercessions for us.
(PAUSE) But, just in case you worry that your prayers aren’t reaching BEYOND the ceiling, God assures us that we don’t have to worry. We have a “HOT LINE” to the throne.
(PAUSE) In our society we several “HOTLINES” that are dedicated phone numbers. There’s 911; Suicide prevention hotlines; Mental health hotlines; Domestic violence hotlines… and on and on and on. These lines are open 24 hours a day so you can be assured when you call or text those numbers somebody’s gonna be there.
And that’s what Romans 8 is telling us. When we pray… the Holy Spirit IS our hotline. We have a direct patch to God’s throne, and when we pray… somebody’s gonna be there.
Now notice what this passage is saying: Romans 8:26-27 “The Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but THE SPIRIT HIMSELF INTERCEDES FOR US with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”
Now, Romans says we are weak in our prayers, but notice WHO we can count on (in our weakness) to do intercession for us? It’s not Mary or the Saints. So, who is it then? Well, it’s the Holy Spirit. What’s interesting is that the Spirit doesn’t use… WORDS. The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Now, this Jeff Strite’s understanding of what this is saying. (I could be wrong… but here’s my take).
ILLUS: Have you ever been praying and you just can’t find the words to say what you’re feeling? A lot of people, when they pray, pray because they’re upset or sad and they’re asking God for help. They’ve experienced sorrow, pain and loss and they just can’t find the words to express the emptiness and grief they feel. Those are the ones who most often describe their prayers as being empty as not reaching beyond the ceiling. It’s like God isn’t listening to them.
But what’s really happening is that they’re mistaking their own inability to express their feelings with God ability to hear and understand their emotions. They’re already down emotionally and now they can’t put their weakness to say what they want to say into words.
But they don’t have to worry about that, because the Spirit FEELS their emptiness. He SEARCHES your heart and He senses your sorrow and pain. And then, He expresses your emotion to the presence of God with groanings that are too deep for words to express. He is your emotional direct line to God!
ILLUS: It’s kind of like the story I read about a man who’s wife had died. He was so depressed, he cried and cried, and when he found he was still emotionally drained, he went and got a fifth of whiskey and intended to drown his sorrows. About that time, the doorbell rang. He opened the door, and there was a man from church, Bob. Bob came into the living room and just stood there for a few moments and didn’t say a thing while the man unloaded his grief on him. Then, Bob just reached over hugged the man for what seemed like an etermity. After a few moments, Bob left and had said virtually nothing… but he carried away his friend’s heartache and grief with him.
That’s the imagery of Romans 8. That’s what the Holy Spirit does when He intercedes for you. He feels your emotions… and He cries with you. He groans for your pain!
CLOSE: But there’s more than that. The intercession of the Spirit on YOUR behalf also includes this promise. The Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:27-28
God intercedes for us in answer to our prayers. Notice this passage doesn’t say that everything we experience is from God, and it doesn’t say that everything that happens to us is good… but what it does say, is that… it doesn’t matter! Why? Because – if you love God and are called according to His purpose, God will take that which is wrong in your life and make everything work together for good.
ILLUS: I'm going to close with this illustration from years ago, when I was preaching at another congregation. In that congregation where was a couple who were both nurses who had a daughter who in the hospital giving birth. As any preacher would, I went to spend time with the family and prayed with them. It was enjoyable time of fellowship... until the nurse came in and said "I have some bad news. Your daughter's child has an oxygen level below 90." I had no idea what that meant... but the child's grandparents knew and they wept openly - this was a death sentence. Babies (and adults) cannot survive long with their oxygen in the bloodstream being below 90. As a last resort, the hospital was sending the child to Riley Hospital in Indianapolis, but they weren't sure if the child would make it there and they offered us one last visit with the child before she was sent on to Riley.
When my time came, I walked into the baby ICU. It had warming beds on either side... and at the far side of the room was the warming bed that held his little girl. She was buck naked and had all kinds of needles and sensors on her body. A nurse was looking at the monitors, but her expression was not comforting. I came close to the nurse and asked if I could touch the child. "Of course," she replied, and then she stepped back to give me privacy.
I put my hand on the child's foot and began to pray. I'd love to tell you that I prayed a powerful prayer filled with faith and eloquent words... but I didn't. The child was going to die. I knew it, the staff knew it, the family knew it... and there wasn't a thing they or I could do about it. I sensed how powerless I was to change the course of this event, and as a result, my prayer was one of the most pathetic and worthless things I've ever uttered. I felt I had failed even in this.
I stepped away, and the nurse came back to examine the monitors again... and she became excited. Something had changed. Between the time I'd begun to pray, and the time the nurse stepped back in the child's oxygen level had gone back up. The child survived, and (as far as I know) is still living today.
Did the child live because I prayed a powerful prayer. No. In my weakness I didn't know how to pray as I should have. But the Spirit interceded with groanings too deep for words and accomplished what I, in my frailty, could never have done.
