- Amos 3:6-8 (Purpose of revealing God’s plan)
Our Sovereign Lord speaks through His prophet Amos and says that He does not do anything on this earth without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets. Since our God is an Almighty God and this very earth is not wide enough to contain His majestic glory besides this, He is full of wisdom and power then why does He want to reveal His plan to His servants before He can bring it to pass?
The reason is revealed in the book of prophet [Ezekiel 18:30-32]. Here our God says that He doesn’t take pleasure in anyone’s death. When a man dies in sin; He knows that man will perish forever. Therefore, when the people or nation rebel against Him and commit terrible sins against Him, His anger rises against them and He decides to bring judgement upon them and destroy them by sending calamities and disasters on this earth like plague, famine, flood and earthquake etc. but because of His ‘Agape love’ towards His people; before He could bring judgement upon His chosen people and destroy them, He reveals His secret plans of destruction to His servants the prophets so that His servants may give warning and a wakeup call to God’s people to fast, pray and intercede for His people and for the nation. So that His anger may subside and He may withhold punishment from them and forgive them. This shows how much God loves His people and is concerned about them.
We see in the book of Jonah, that the people of Nineveh were leading a very wicked life and were terribly sinning against God. So, God’s anger rose against them and He decided to destroy them but before He could do this, He revealed His secret plan of disaster to His servant Prophet Jonah and said, ‘Tell the people of Nineveh and warn them, Thus, says the Lord, that within 40 days if you’ll do not turn away from your wicked ways; this city will be over turned.’ People of Nineveh believed in prophet’s word. They fasted, prayed, interceded and repented so God did not bring upon them the disaster that He was about to bring upon them.
Therefore, the word of God tells us that our God is a God of compassion, slow to get angry and full of love. This reveals about the heart of God and our Sovereign Lord desires same qualities in His chosen people.
2. Ezekiel 22:30-31 (Identity of the intercessors)
The other name for an intercessor is mediator. Our God Himself is in search of intercessors. Why does God search for intercessors? When the people and the nation sin against Him, He punishes them and destroys them because our God is a just God. It is when the intercessors stand in the gap between God and man and plead for His mercy, His anger calms down. Thus, he forgives them and does not punish them.
So, the intercessors are called the peace makers. They make peace between God and man. So, like preaching the word of God is a gift from God so also intercession is also a gift from God. Now-a-days, many of God’s chosen people want to become preachers, prophets, worship leaders etc., but no one wants to become an intercessor because they are not aware of the fact that, intercession is also a gift from God.
Many of God’s chosen people have this gift but unfortunately, they are not ready to use their gift to pray for the people and their nation. Intercessors are not ordinary people in the sight of God but they are peace makers. As the preachers of the word of God take hard efforts by fasting and praying for God’s people even the intercessors also need to fast and pray for their family, for their church, for the welfare of their country etc. God will hear their prayers and definitely in His right time He will bring revival in the lives of the people as well as in their nation and they will be rewarded at God’s appointed time for every sacrifice they make.
3. Numbers 25:10-13 (Reward for intercessors)
The people of Israel who were brought out of Egypt, under the leadership of Moses while journeying towards the promised land Canaan were grumbling, complaining and rebelling against God in the desert. God warned them through His servant Moses and told them to turn away from their wicked ways but they did not listen. So, God was very annoyed on them and He decided to destroy them in the desert but before He could do this, He revealed His plan to His servant Moses, and Moses stood between God and His people by interceding and pleading for God’s mercy and asked forgiveness on behalf of them. Thus, God moved with compassion towards His people, and He forgave them.
Yet, once again they sinned terribly by taking God’s forgiveness for granted. When they were passing through the Moabite land, they too joined with the people of Moab and worshipped their false God. When God saw their unfaithfulness, God’s fierce anger burnt against them and He told His servant Moses to kill all the Israelites who worshipped the false god of Moabites but here Phinehas the priest interceded and stood between God and the people of Israel and pleaded for God’s mercy. Then God’s anger subsided and God did not destroy them. Here God said to Phinehas the priest that since he had interceded for the people of Israel and calmed down God’s anger; God made a covenant of peace with him and his generations.
The reward for the intercessors is great as they are called peace makers by God and God makes His covenant of peace with them and their generation to come. So, the word of God tells us in Matthew 5:9 that blessed are the peace makers for they will be called the sons of God and they will find peace in His Son our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!