What Is Intercession?

Intercession is a popular word these days, but it is easily misunderstood. What does it really mean?
Intercession is primarily not you praying to God, but the Holy Spirit of God praying through you.

It is not the same as “prayer”
Ephesians 6:8 says “all manner of prayer”, meaning every type of prayer. There are several different types of prayer outlined in the Bible, including:
• Petition: Asking God for things (e.g. Matthew 7:7-11; Philippians 4:6).
• Supplication: Our hearts are involved more deeply, praying for a loved one or beseeching the Lord for a lost soul (Hosea 12:4; Acts 1:14; Philippians 4:6).

But this is not yet intercession, because it originates with us; it is our prayer. Intercession is “God’s prayer”. It starts with God.

It is not a prayer list of the nation’s needs
There is a time for covering those things in prayer, but again, however deeply we pray, it is we who begin, plan and say such prayers. They are still “our prayers”. In intercession we become the vessels for the prayers of God’s Spirit (Romans 8:26).

It is not striving in your own strength
It is easy to look at the terrible spiritual state of the nation and to be fired up with zeal to pray until God answers, but you will be surprised how soon you burn yourself out. Only God has the true and lasting burden of intercession to give you. We need to get it from Him. The Greek word for intercession in the New Testament, (NT1793: entugnchano {en-toong-khan'-o{), means to “meet up with” someone by chance, in order to receive a message or talk with them. While there is an implication in this of the meeting not being instigated by ourselves, we need to meet with God before intercession can begin.
The task is in any case far too big. An intercession group praying for their city were once reading in the gospels about the disciples’ failure to cast a demon out of a boy (Matthew 17:14-21). Jesus told them that it wouldn’t come out except by prayer and fasting. Later the spirit spoke to the group through prophecy: “Do you know what you are asking? Jesus’ disciples couldn’t cast one demon out of one boy, and you are asking for the demon over a city and a nation to be cast out!” Are we equal to that?
Because intercession is “more” than all of the above things does not mean that it is something “super-spiritual”, i.e. way above the “ordinary Christian”. On the contrary, you have probably already been involved in the beginnings of intercession without realising it. If you have ever come across someone in a terrible state, seen some awful situation, or maybe just passed somebody in the street and inexplicably felt a grief and compassion for them welling up deep inside you — that is the beginning, the Holy Spirit praying through you “with groanings that cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26). These are seeds of intercession sown in you by the Holy Spirit who indwells you (1 Corinthians 3:16).
Part of the process of intercession involves the fact that we are made to feel most inadequate for the task! God shows us all our weaknesses to humble us, for without humility and brokeness of our natural self there can be no intercession, indeed no true ministry of any kind. So don’t be discouraged if you feel a failure as a Christian, lacking zeal and full of apathy. God is only showing you yourself, so that He can be your power, your strength, your life (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Intercession is for every Christian
• It is part of the priesthood of every believer
Every Christian is called a priest (1 Peter 2:5-9; Revelation 1:16). Jesus’ present ministry as our high priest (Hebrews 4:14) is intercession (Hebrews 7:25). Intercession is therefore part of our priesthood.
• The Holy Spirit dwells in us (1 Corinthians 3:16)
The ministry of the Holy Spirit includes intercession (Romans 8:26). We are His dwelling place, so the only way He can intercede it through us. That makes us intercessors.
• Each member of the Trinity does intercessory work
In 2 Corinthians 5:20 Paul says that God beseeches the world, through us, to be reconciled to Him through Jesus. That is what God is doing today, and He desires that all men be saved (1 Timothy 2:4).
From Hebrews 7:25 and Romans 8:34 we learn that Jesus’ present ministry is intercession for us. He is now before God’s throne as a priest, an intercessor.
In Romans 8:26-27 we read that, as we do not know how to pray as we ought, the Holy Spirit “intercedes for us”. He does our interceding; that is His intercessory ministry.
• Christ is the Head of the Body
The head decides and controls what the members of the body do. They are one person. If Christ, our Head, is interceding, should not his Body, the Church, also be interceding? It becomes apparent that intercession, far from being the task of the “prayer-warriors” or the few who are mature enough in the “deeper life”, is actually the essence, source and basis of all Christian ministry, and one of the foundations and wellsprings of Christian life. No-one is excluded!

God needs you to be an intercessor
God actually needs men and women to be vessels through whom His Spirit can intercede. We are not automatically intercessors just because we are Christians; we must let the Spirit have freedom to work in us. Otherwise we quench and grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:19).
God has chosen not to work sovereignly, but to subject His power and redemptive grace, in this age of grace, to the free will of man. So it depends on us. John Wesley said, “God does nothing redemptively except in answer to prayer”.
That is why God searched in the past and still searches today for an intercessor who will “stand in the gap of the land” (Isaiah 59:16; Ezekiel 22:30).
Imagine a city wall which has a gap in it because it has been broken down; enemies can get straight in. A man goes up to plug that gap with his body. That is intercession. Often it is simply the action of being there that is enough. There may be no vocal prayer as such. Many of the visions and prophecies I have come across concerning intercession describe someone lying flat on their face, never saying a word. We are only vessels.

The Cost
But it is costly to us. We need to deny ourselves. Our ideas, our pride, our strength must go. That is the price. Intercession is costly. That is only to say that Christianity is costly, and today we very much need to recognise that.
In much of our prayers, we are asking God for favours, but in intercession, God dictates the terms and makes the requests. That is only as it should be. A servant does not tell His master what to do, or spend his life asking his master for things. Rather he says, “What do you want me to do?”, and presents himself for his master’s use (see Luke 17:7-10).
We are bought with a price (1 Corinthians 6:20). Our part is to present ourselves to God and yield our heart and will to Him, so that we become the vessels into whom God releases and pours out His own heart, His Spirit, His will. This is the fulfilment of our prayer “Thy will be done”.

Practical Intercession
So where do start? The first essential is to be convinced in your own mind that God needs intercessors. Read books about the old revivals and see how they were all the result of prayer and intercession. See and believe that God does nothing except by prayer. Get together with Christians of like mind, and challenge one another. Work in groups rather than alone. Fasting especially is easier when done with others. Likewise being humbled! Use the spiritual gifts. The gift of tongues is especially helpful when you are seeking God, though you may feel nothing at the time. Remember that you are speaking mysteries to God in the spirit (1 Corinthians 14:2). Expect God to speak through prophecy and vision. That’s why those gifts are there, enabling you to have a dialogue with God. Spiritual gifts are for spiritual warfare. Remember you are not fighting flesh and blood, but principalities and powers (Ephesians 6:12).

Be prepared to be humbled and broken
Often a group of people eager to intercede will experience nothing but humbling from God for weeks and months. That is necessary and essential preparation, the groundwork.

Be prepared to do God’s will
Be ready to be obedient to whatever God should want. Leave yourself as free as possible. Check: am I ready to surrender this or that (my time, or something I am still clinging to); am I prepared to battle; am I willing for God to take over my life? And so on. Do this as you are seeking God: many times God will pinpoint something particular, often something small, which you have to sacrifice and surrender to Him before you can continue. Arm yourself with the mind to be obedient and sacrifice.

Learn how to seek God’s mind
As you wait on God, constantly search for His presence, His Spirit, His mind, His will, His thoughts. Remember, until you have heard from Him, you have not started. Ask God to show you His mind and heart, and do not be satisfied until you hear from Him. Be ready to battle against any obstacles, spiritual or fleshly. Be bold and brave. Don’t worry about what others think of you — your reputation also has to go!

Be prepared to wrestle until you prevail
Jacob said to the angel “I will not let you go until you bless me” (Genesis 32:24-31) — a vital scripture for intercessors).

Learn to feed the new nature
A bide in Christand be led of the Spirit because intercession is a lifestyle. You learn it as you become sensitive to the Spirit’s workings within you day by day. Be prepared to spend time with God. Go to Him and learn intercession. Be ready to stick at it. It is the only way. The price is high, but the rewards are great.

In Conclusion
By God’s grace, our eyes have been opened. We have forgiveness and eternal life. Jesus is our life, our salvation. We have the wonderful hope of His coming, and meanwhile, on earth, we have access to God’s very throne. And God chose us — it was not our works, lest we should boast. How then can we hide this talent of gold in the ground? How can we hide God’s love from our fellow men, just because we know God is “a hard man”, whose love demands our all and will not compromise, but lays down His life and asks that we too carry that love? Is God not right to call those who will not do this “wicked and slothful”, and to cast them into outer darkness (Matthew 25:24-30)?
Be then a “faithful and wise servant”, and hear God’s call to use your “talent” of intercession, for it will bear much fruit.
“He that goeth forth weeping, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him” (Psalm 126:6).