THE SEARCH IS FOR WHO TO HONOUR

Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

(1Sa 2:30 KJV)

In my last write up, I revealed that God is in constant search for a Man. The attribute He looks for in a man is one that intercedes. And by men fulfilling their roles as intercessors, they position themselves as instruments of God’s use, and through their prayers, order can be restored in a world of chaos.

Have you ever wondered why the search? This question is very necessary, especially when the power and nature of God is known. God is a self-existing one and He is almighty, it’s hard to accept that God will need the help of man to get His agenda done on earth. Who is mighty enough to help the Almighty?

Simply put, God does not need help, and it is made clear in our key scripture of yesterday. Let’s consider it again.

And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.

(Isa 59:16 KJV)

The word ‘therefore’ suggests that what is to be said next is a direct consequence of what was said before. That means, because there was no Man (or an intercessor), God came down Himself in the person of Jesus Christ (symbolized in this verse as His Arm) to bring salvation. The reason He is looking for a Man is because He is looking for who to honour, not because He can’t do it himself. God honours us by clothing us with Himself; His presence, and by empowering us for His service.

Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

(Psa 104:1 KJV)

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.

(2Ti 2:20 KJV)

To understand this, let’s go back to the beginning. God created the earth to be a parallel of heaven, and His intention was that Man would administer earth as a King and a Priest (Gen. 1:26, 3:8). Man was created to be a leader over the created things on earth. However, because He loved his wife more than God, he yielded to the voice of the devil through the wife to eat of the fruit he was forbidden by God not to eat. As a result, he relinquished his authority over God’s creation to the devil, and he became subject to what he was to rule over.

God, because of His love for mankind, devised a plan to restore them to their original state. Part of His plan was to model a pattern for them in stories written in a document called the Christian Bible. He intended that the restored Man (The New Creation or Christians), will look into this document and learn His righteous ways and judgments, growing into maturity, can come into that position of honour that God had in mind for him in the beginning.

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

(2Co 3:18 KJV)

One of the reasons Adam failed was because he was created as a grown-up man who did not know God (He did not experience the process of growth). Being bequeathed with the glory and honour of the kingdom in that state, he was not able to steward His blessings, then He fell. We Christians are born again as spiritual babes, and by meditating on scriptures, and following the ways of God revealed (one of which is living as intercessors), we grow up into spiritual maturity. Being honoured, we can properly steward His blessings.

As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

(1Pe 2:2 KJV)

WHAT CAN WE SEE IN THE BIBLE TO PROOF THAT INTERCESSION IS THE WAY TO HONOUR

1. The Old Testament Priesthood

Intercession is a priestly duty; priests carry out their duties by interceding for the tribes of Israel and making sacrifices, which include that for the forgiveness of their sins. When giving the commands about their service, Moses made an important statement that is good for us to note.

Have Aaron your brother brought to you from among the Israelites, along with his sons Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, so they may serve me as priests. Make sacred garments for your brother Aaron to give him dignity and honor.

(Exodus 28:1-2 NIV)

We see that the priests were to wear clothes for dignity and honour (glory). By this, the Holy Spirit was indicating to us that one of the ways to gain back the honour (glory) that Adam lost was through intercession. Though we’ve all been clothed with Christ (who is the glory of God) at our new birth (Galatians 3:28), this was accomplished in our Spirit. One of the ways to work out this glory that God has worked in our Spirit is by intercession.

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation (which include honour and glory) with fear and trembling.

(Php 2:12 KJV) (Emphasis mine)

2. Jesus was an Intercessor when He was on earth

For Jesus to fulfil His office as The Saviour, he had to fulfil the ministry of an intercessor.

Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

(Heb 7:25 KJV)

We see that Jesus was only able to fulfil the honourable task of saving mankind because he intercedes for them. None will be able to fulfil ministry without being an intercessor, especially for the people he has been sent to. Jesus exemplified this by His life, despite He is God Himself.

In conclusion, service is the pathway to honour in the Kingdom of God. Intercession is one of the services we do to qualify to be honoured by God.

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