Privileged Access

03.08.09

J.A. Matteson

"In whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him." Ephesians 3:12

Spiritual pettiness displays a diminished comprehension of intercession by exhibiting a preoccupation with the temporal over the eternal, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:3). The veracity of intercession is grace, its means is faith, and its end is the privileged access behind the veil into the most holy place for the redemption of sinners and sanctification of saints.

Let not a man presume upon the grace of the Lord by pursuing access before Him recklessly. Only by the atoning blood of Christ is a man able to come before the holy presence of El Shaddai, “since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand” (Romans 5:1-2).

Presumption upon the grace of the Lord can result in tragic consequences, as was the case with Nadab and Abihu who were struck down for their brash arrogance. Intercession affords the man of God manifold opportunities to give glory to the Lord for the redemptive activity of the Spirit: by giving thanks for those being saved, “many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand...all the people were praising God for what had happened” (Acts 4:4, 21); recognizing the sanctifying work of grace in the saints, “We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers” (1 Thessalonians 1:2); pleading for mercy on behalf of sinners to quell divine wrath, “O Lord GOD, do not destroy Your people….” (Deuteronomy 9:26); and requesting that spiritual wisdom and insight may be granted to believers, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18).

Through intercession the Lord reveals Himself to His servant; the servant speaks to God about men, and subsequently speaks to men about God. Unlike Moses who wore a veil over his face lest the children of Israel should behold the fading refracted glory of the Lord upon his face, the Spirit’s presence within the Christian does not diminish, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

The Apostle confidently yet cautiously measured his access to the throne of the Lord in respectful submission and adoration, “I bow my knees before the Father” (Ephesians 3:14), soberly aware that he came before the King of kings and Lord of lords. The Spirit works within the saint to reorient him to intercede along the line of divine redemptive priorities. And grace persists until the will is conquered and brought into alignment with heaven and it is at that place where heaven is moved through the intercessor, “Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (James 5:17). Submission produces requests from the saint that find their origin in the heart of the Lord, “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14).

Effective intercessors restrain from entertaining fleshly speculations as to the will of the Lord, by virtue of their time in His presence they know his mind along a particular line and are readily brought into conformity with it, “For who has known the mind of the Lord, that we will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). From the Father the divine will concerning men finds its genesis; the Son is the medium through whom the intercessor is received by grace, and the Spirit supplies unction and heavenly insight so that the intercessors prayers are effectual. The high priest was granted access into the holy of holies once a year on the Day of Atonement. The once and for all atonement of Christ rendered the temple veil of separation torn and obsolete, permitting direct access the Lord—“I AM”—for all who believe, by grace through faith. Unlike the high priest of old the believer now comes confidently and boldly before the throne of grace without a safety line tied to his body, to speak to God about men, and then men about God—as Moses and Christ. Let the servant of the Lord remain faithful to and diligent in intercession, cherishing it as a most sacred privilege and responsibility.

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