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Mind the Gap: Recovering the Synergy of Strategic Intercession
MIND THE GAP: RECOVERING THE SYNERGY OF STRATEGIC INTERCESSION
PREACHED: APRIL 16, 2023 AT FREEDOM LIFE CHURCH | myfreedomlife.com
Ezekiel 22:30 (NRSV): And I sought for anyone among them who would repair the wall and stand in the breach (GAP) before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.
Isaiah 59:16 (NRSV): 16 He saw that there was no one, and was appalled that there was no one to intervene (INTERCEDE); so his own arm brought him victory, and his righteousness upheld him.
Romans 8:26–27 (NRSV): 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit INTERCEDES with sighs too deep for words. 27 And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the MIND of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
The BIG IDEA is two-fold:
1. No human could bridge the gap between heaven and earth, God and people—so Jesus, the “strong arm of God,” came to be the ultimate intercessor. However, the ministry of intercession was not finished: Jesus ascended and poured out the Spirit so that he could intercede within us.
(WHY PRAY? Because prayer is a human invitation for divine intervention.)
2. The only effective intercession that can bridge the gap is SYNERGISTIC INTERCESSION, intercession that aligns with heaven. (Romans 8, Revelation 8) God is searching for intercessors who know how to allow Holy Spirit to “MIND THE GAP,” to bridge the “mind gap” between heaven and earth. Holy Spirit teaches us how to enter the SILENCE and empty our minds of the chatter of earth and hear the chorus of heaven.
Spirit-taught intercessors must be RECONCILIATION INTERCESSORS. They must be intercessors who are well-schooled in the word of reconciliation and know how to mediate the prayer of Jesus, "Father, forgive them! They know not what they do!" And the cry of Stephen, "Lay not this sin to their charge!"
The key is FORGIVENESS. Do we know how to intercede as the forgiven crying out for forgiveness? Do we know how to wield the wrath of God as Jesus did? Or shall we imitate Peter, who pulled out the sword and was warned by Jesus, “Those who live by the sword will die by the sword!” Only the forgiven who cry for forgiveness are qualified to intercede!
Forgiveness-driven-intercession is much different than the "tolerance" promoted by the world. In fact, "tolerance," as the world defines it, is pseudo-forgiveness. Tolerances encourages sinful, destructive behavior, but forgiveness does not. Forgiveness confronts the deadly power of sin and breaks that power with mercy. Forgiveness does not water down how wrong sin is and how dehumanizing sin is, but it does extend full pardon to the sinner.
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By Steve PixlerMIND THE GAP: RECOVERING THE SYNERGY OF STRATEGIC INTERCESSION
PREACHED: APRIL 16, 2023 AT FREEDOM LIFE CHURCH | myfreedomlife.com
Ezekiel 22:30 (NRSV): And I sought for anyone among them who would repair the wall and stand in the breach (GAP) before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.
Isaiah 59:16 (NRSV): 16 He saw that there was no one, and was appalled that there was no one to intervene (INTERCEDE); so his own arm brought him victory, and his righteousness upheld him.
Romans 8:26–27 (NRSV): 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit INTERCEDES with sighs too deep for words. 27 And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the MIND of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
The BIG IDEA is two-fold:
1. No human could bridge the gap between heaven and earth, God and people—so Jesus, the “strong arm of God,” came to be the ultimate intercessor. However, the ministry of intercession was not finished: Jesus ascended and poured out the Spirit so that he could intercede within us.
(WHY PRAY? Because prayer is a human invitation for divine intervention.)
2. The only effective intercession that can bridge the gap is SYNERGISTIC INTERCESSION, intercession that aligns with heaven. (Romans 8, Revelation 8) God is searching for intercessors who know how to allow Holy Spirit to “MIND THE GAP,” to bridge the “mind gap” between heaven and earth. Holy Spirit teaches us how to enter the SILENCE and empty our minds of the chatter of earth and hear the chorus of heaven.
Spirit-taught intercessors must be RECONCILIATION INTERCESSORS. They must be intercessors who are well-schooled in the word of reconciliation and know how to mediate the prayer of Jesus, "Father, forgive them! They know not what they do!" And the cry of Stephen, "Lay not this sin to their charge!"
The key is FORGIVENESS. Do we know how to intercede as the forgiven crying out for forgiveness? Do we know how to wield the wrath of God as Jesus did? Or shall we imitate Peter, who pulled out the sword and was warned by Jesus, “Those who live by the sword will die by the sword!” Only the forgiven who cry for forgiveness are qualified to intercede!
Forgiveness-driven-intercession is much different than the "tolerance" promoted by the world. In fact, "tolerance," as the world defines it, is pseudo-forgiveness. Tolerances encourages sinful, destructive behavior, but forgiveness does not. Forgiveness confronts the deadly power of sin and breaks that power with mercy. Forgiveness does not water down how wrong sin is and how dehumanizing sin is, but it does extend full pardon to the sinner.