MAY 5
“… pray one for another” (James 5:16).
The word high priest is repeated again and again in the epistle to the Hebrews. The Lord Jesus Christ is not only our Saviour but also our intercessor and our High Priest. Those who have to go to court engage an advocate because they do not know how to present their case. These advocates know all the laws and claim justice for them. The Lord Jesus Christ as our High Priest is willing to plead for us in heaven. Because He knows our weaknesses, limitations and failures. He pleads for us. He does not cover our sins that we may be forgiven and restored, but as an advocate He pleads, saying, “Father, forgive So and So. In the weakness of his flesh he has fallen into sin. Someone had deceived him and he has fallen. Father, forgive him. He is sorry for his sin. I have bought him with My precious blood. I will deliver him and help him in future”.
Some parents plead in the court saying, “From now onwards we will look after our son carefully. He is too young and fell into bad company. We too have been careless so far”. The Lord Jesus Christ pleads for us and afterwards helps us to become overcomers. He gives us extra strength for our temptations. We as His co-workers have to learn to intercede for those who fall into sin. Rather than condemning them we ought to plead for them and travail for them. These days we find only few who know how to intercede.
Many are clever in spreading stories. They think they must go about telling stories. So they go to people saying, “Don’t you know, what happened in such and such a place? They are talking about it all over”. They go on adding some salt and pepper to make it very interesting. They go from door to door; that is their business. As believers, we have to intercede for others. The devil is far too strong for all of us. No one can say, “I will never fall” because the devil is very clever. For a small thing he can deceive us.
Sometimes people put their feet unawares on a piece of soap in their bathroom and they fall down and fracture their legs. It is due to a small negligence. That is how the devil makes us to fall into some small temptation and commit sin.
We are told in Gal. 6:1-2, “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ”. As co-workers with the Lord Jesus Christ we must intercede for others.
The Lord Jesus Christ is our heavenly King, but in Rev. 1:13 we see Him as our Advocate and High Priest. In John 13:4,5 we read that the Lord girded Himself with a towel, to wash His disciples’ feet. Thus He reminded them that though they were disciples, they needed their feet to be washed. Our Lord warns us that in this wicked world, we are bound to be defiled by hearing and seeing.
Just as we wash our hands many times a day, the Lord Jesus Christ is willing to wash us constantly from all our defilement. As our everlasting High Priest He is girded with a golden girdle and is willing to intercede and pray for us. We as His co-workers should do the same ministry.