5 Guaranteed Blessings of Intercessory Prayer
In his classic work, The Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan tells of Christian’s struggle as he attempts to climb up “The Hill Difficulty.” Facing the arduous task of ascension, the weary traveler drinks from the nearby spring to refresh his soul. He resolutely declares:
“The hill, though high, I covet to ascend,
The difficulty will not me offend;
For I perceive the way to life lies here.
Come, pluck up heart, let’s neither faint nor fear;”
For Christian (and any Christian for that matter), the goal of prayer is to go higher with God. It is to ascend the mountain and make our requests known before the Lord. This is not always an easy task, sometimes it is filled with proverbial hills and rugged cliffs. However, once we reach the apex, the view is always better, it is always worth the climb.
Reaching the summit grants us the opportunity to approach the throne of grace for others. It is there, in the spirit of intercession, we can bestow upon family and friends the very mercies of God. “No man can do me a truer kindness in this world,” said Spurgeon, “than to pray for me.” The truth about intercessory prayer is that it doesn’t just unleash a certain degree of “kindness” toward others, but it also contains a measure of blessing upon the one doing the praying. What then are the benefits of intercessory prayer?
It Aligns our Heart
When we pray for others, it tunes our heart with the melody of Scriptural commands. Praying for others is not just a religious nicety, it is a biblical responsibility. We are admonished all throughout the Word of God to bear one another’s burdens and pray for those who are in need. When we intercede for our friends, our family, and yes, even our enemies, we are aligning our hearts with Scripture.
It Adjusts our Minds
It is the nature of intercessory prayer to think of others, to bend the mind in the direction of our needy friends and neighbors. Therefore, to intercede in prayer is to remove selfishness and pride from the mind, to consider the circumstances, situations, and necessities of those around us. In so doing we become better positioned to “let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” When we humble our thoughts toward others in prayer, we are bettering ourselves in that we become more like Christ.
It Advances our Fellowship
Nothing strengthens the bond of friendship like prayer. To pray for others is to be near the heart of God and the heart of man at the same time. When we call out an individual’s name inside the prayer closet, it becomes increasingly more difficult to blaspheme that name outside the prayer closet. There is something about prayer that promotes fellowship and kinship among the saints of God, it ties the strings in the bond of unity.
It Awakens our Worship
At the throne of grace, worship and intercession are intertwined experiences. As we make our requests known for others, we find ourselves in the presence of the King. The divine light shines upon our brow, we commune at the table of shewbread, we smell the holy fragrance at the altar of incense, and we are invited to move beyond the veil. It is there in the Holy of holies our souls are engrossed with His presence. Therefore, to bring the names of others before the throne, is to awaken our own hearts in worship before the Great I AM.
It Awards our Faith
Just like the friends who lowered their companion through the roof, God looks upon our prayers, measures our faith, and rewards accordingly. When Peter was in jail, much prayer was made for the church unto God for him. Though Peter was the one delivered, it was the petitioners who were delighted when the answer came to the door. Even so, when we pray for others, God honors our requests, and in so doing, not only benefits the one which is prayed for, but simultaneously blesses the one who does the praying.
