Word of Encouragement (02/03/2022)

I’m sure most of you know the context of these words but let me briefly review it. Here, Abraham is pleading with God for the sixth time(!) not to destroy the righteous with the wicked in Sodom and Gomorrah. In fact, he is asking God to spare the two cities for the sake of the righteous. He started with a hypothetical situation: would God destroy the two cities if fifty righteous were found? When God says No, he is emboldened to ask, how about forty-five? Then, he asks about forty, thirty, twenty, and finally ten.

Abraham knows each time that he is pushing the boundaries. Each time, he prefaces his request with a plea not to get angry with him. By the time he asks for the last time, he says, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once....” He wants to appeal to God’s mercy as much as he can without disregarding God’s justice. But he doesn’t know what the balance is. So, he keeps on asking. But even he knows that, after the sixth time, he has gone as far as he could.

This is convicting, isn’t it? Are we this persistent in interceding for others, both in prayer and in deed? This kind of thing is impossible to do if our hearts are not in it, or if what we are concerned about is just saving face, either by acting like we are trying to help or by not wanting to put ourselves in a potentially embarrassing situation for others. We all wish we had someone, who would advocate for us without holding anything back. Are we willing to do that for anyone?

We are so blessed because Jesus has become that Person for us. Oh, how far He was willing to go to be our Advocate! “For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:7-8). Even now, He intercedes for us day and night at the right hand of God! If we have Christ as our Advocate, we should be willing to do this for one another.

What we should not lose sight of in this interaction is God’s forbearance with Abraham. God doesn’t seem to get annoyed by Abraham’s repeated requests, asking for more and more. It even seems that God is drawing out these daring requests from Abraham. Remember: this whole interaction started because God said earlier, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do...? Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know” (Gen. 18:17, 20-21). What Abraham is asking for is only stating what God desires. If anything, God is more concerned about the righteous than Abraham. God is doing this so that Abraham can perform this role of intercessor faithfully and, in the process, come to know God’s character better.

I hope we are all encouraged to learn that it is OK to be persistent in our petitions, especially in our intercession for others. God is not wearied by it; rather, God is delighted by it. If God does not answer us right away, it may be because He wants us to grow more persistent in our care for others. But let us not forget to be humble. We have no right to demand anything from God. Yes, God has adopted us as His beloved children. But this is by grace, not by our merit. We must maintain a posture of humility before Him. And we should show our humility in seeking things that are in accordance with His will and character.

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