“Put in a good word” is something people will say when they want to make the most of a relationship to give someone the opportunity they need. This weekend we saw a demonstration of this from the life of Moses in Exodus 32. Moses, living in a right relationship with God became a mediator between God and his rebellious people. This pattern is common in biblical history with examples such as Daniel and even Jesus Himself who is the ultimate mediator.
Unfortunately, the mediator was not always present. Ezekiel 22:30 speaks of a time when God looked for one who would mediate between Himself and His straying and rebellious people. The big question for us is, when God looks at our generation, does He find the faithful mediators like Moses and Daniel, or is it like the times of Ezekiel when God looked for one that would mediate but found none. May it never be said of us or our generation, that we were not willing to step into that unique place of mediation in prayer for those who need to come to a restored relationship with God.
This morning we were encouraged to pray consistently for those living apart from God. As we pray for them, I would encourage us all to include these five prayer points:
1. Pray that Jesus would be revealed to them for who He really is. In John 20, Mary encounters Jesus Christ after His resurrection, but does not recognize Him. It was only when Jesus spoke her name (John 20:16) that she realized who He is. Most people know about Jesus, but there is more to it than knowing about Jesus, it is about knowing Him personally. In the same way that Jesus spoke Mary’s name and she came to know who He really is, we also pray that Jesus would speak the names of those living apart from him and they would come to know who He really is.
2. Pray that our Father in heaven would draw them to Jesus. In John 6:44 Jesus said that no one can come to Him unless God draws them. Therefore we pray exactly that, that God would draw people to Jesus.
3. Pray that they would be free from the spirits that bind them. In 2 Corinthians 4:4 Paul teaches us that it is the god of this age that blinds that minds of those who do not see Jesus. Pray that God would free them from whatever prevents them from seeing the truth about who Jesus is.
4. Pray for other followers of Jesus to cross their paths. In Matthew 9:38 Jesus asks us to pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into the harvest field. As we pray for others, let’s pray that God would bring other believers across their paths to influence them for Jesus.
5. Finally then, let’s pray for the Spirit of adoption to be released into their lives (Romans 8:15). Many people live with the mistaken understanding that God has rejected them and does not want to their relationship to be restored. Nothing could be further from the truth. Pray that God would give them the understanding that he desires to have them reunited with Him.
In Exodus 32, we see that a whole nation of people were saved simply because Moses was willing to “put in a good word” on their behalf. Let’s make the most of our relationship with our heavenly Father, which we have simply because of His goodness and grace, and ask Him to be as gracious to others as He has been to us.