 Good morning class. Welcome once again. Thank you for connecting on this class where we will study more about prayer in the session. Let's pray and begin. I would like to request one of our students to please lead with a word of prayer. Anyone can do that please. Please unmute your mic and lead in prayer. Laura, thank you for this play. Thank you Jesus that we are going to learn something today from prayer in the session through Pastor Nancy. I pray to the Father God that it's going to help us to grow in our relationship with you and that our relationship with you become more intimate. Thank you Jesus that we learn more and that we will be able to grasp what we are being taught in the class and thank you Jesus for everything and that you will help us all with Jesus to understand and to comprehend what we are learning. Thank you Jesus for everything. Amen. Thank you for leading us in prayer this morning. Just a quick reminder to attempt the assessment one for the online students, for the e-learning students and I know that the on-campus students will have their assessments this week. You did not have it last week. So yes please do do the exams because without clearing the exams you will not be able to complete this course and move on to you know the next semester. So yeah please make sure you attempt your assessments. And the assessments are till chapter 10. So chapters 1 to 10 if you have gone through you should be able to do the assessment without any issues. So today I am going to take up chapter 11. Yeah so the question here in the chat is is it an open book exam as I told you last week. Yes it is an open book exam. Okay so you can make use of your notes and answer the question. So that should be alright. Okay so here we are. In our next chapter we talked so much about first and prayer in the last class and today we are going to learn about intercessory prayer. Now intercessory prayer is a very common term in the Christian circle but we would like to understand what intercessory prayer really means. So in simple terms intercession is going to God on behalf of someone else. Now we do pray prayers where we pray for ourselves. We pray for God's leading, His blessings and you know so many other things that we personally want to receive. But intercession refers to us praying for someone else. So that's what intercession is. So let's quickly look at Isaiah chapter 53 and verse 12. I know that all of us have a copy of our notes. So I encourage you to please look at the notes as we go through today's chapter. So Isaiah 53 verse 12 it says, He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. So this talks about Jesus. He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. So as you look at this scripture and you look up the Hebrew words here for bore and then for intercession. It would reveal to us that Jesus carried, so bore means He carried our sin to the cross and intercession from the Hebrew word, it's a word paga which means meet. So Jesus carried our sin and He met with God. He met with God for the transgressors it says. Transgressors, transgression means missing the mark. It means doing something which should not be done or sinning against God. So Jesus carried our sins and He met with God on our behalf. So this expression of Jesus carrying our sin which is a burden and meeting with God on our behalf, not for himself but on our behalf. It is an act of, at least it looks like an act of intercession. Now we also see this word paga which I said you know He met with God. That word we see in Isaiah 53 verse 6 as well where it means has laid or He has put it down before God. So He has laid our sin before God. So the act of Jesus dying on the cross of Calvary it is you may call it an intercessory act. Okay, now of course it doesn't show us that Jesus was praying the way we pray by you know speaking or expressing His thoughts, His requests before God but He carried our sin. He met with God, He laid it before God. So that's what we have seen in these scriptures. It is like intercessory prayer. Okay, because intercessory prayer I began by saying it is about us going to God and praying for somebody else. So Jesus dying on the cross it looks like intercession because He went to God on behalf of others and their burdens. Okay, so we usually term this as a work of intercession. So what Jesus did on the cross of Calvary is a work of intercession. Now our intercession is in line with what Jesus has done on the cross. Now of course we don't you know generally we go before God and we pray. Okay, we express our request to Him not as an act but more as you know bringing the thoughts, putting the thoughts into words and talking to God about it. But we see a parallel here. We see a parallel between what Jesus has done in His action of carrying our sin on the cross and the way we pray. Okay, so we go to God and we pray to God. Now Jesus, okay, let's understand the work of the cross a little bit more so that you know we can see you know how His intercession through this act of dying on the cross really was. So Jesus by going to God became a mediator. Okay, so let's understand this a mediator first Timothy chapter two and verse five. I want to request one of us to please read that verse first Timothy chapter two and verse five. Yeah, please go ahead. Where there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus, the man Christ Jesus. Yes, thank you. So as we see here, there is one mediator between man and God. And that is the Lord Jesus Christ because that's what we see in this passage that is one mediator or we use other words to describe mediator mediator is a go between. Okay, so we're all familiar that at times when you know reconciliation is required, we generally look to a mediator. Let's, let's, you know, talk about two parties quarrelling or two parties fighting. You would need a mediator to come and reconcile both these parties. So in the same way, what Jesus has done for us is he has become the mediator between God and between man. So he came in between. So which is why we call him the go between. We can also call him the reconciler. Okay, so God and man needed to be reconciled. Jesus came as the go between or the reconciler and he brought us together. He carried our sins. He paid for, you know, our forgiveness, our healing, our deliverance, our blessings, our relationship with God, you know, to be restored. And he became the reconciler. So Jesus is a mediator. Now when we talk about intercession, you need somebody to go between God and man. So in intercession, that's what a person does. We go to God. It could be on behalf of our friends, it could be on behalf of our church, it could be on behalf of our family members, it could be on behalf of our city, on behalf of our nation, you know, on behalf of anybody else. So what are we doing? Very similar picture as Jesus going to the cross on behalf of man. Okay, so we become the, you could say, the people in between God and those who need prayer. Okay, so intercession has a very similar picture like Jesus being the mediator. But we should never misunderstand that we need another mediator. The Bible is very clear that Jesus was the only go between who could bear the sins of mankind. Now we as intercessors, we take requests of people and we go to God. But that doesn't mean that we are bearing people sins and you know, we are bringing the reconciliation on our own because if we say that what happens is that we are trying to equate ourselves with Jesus which is not the case and which can never happen. Jesus has already done the work of redemption for us on the cross of Calvary. We are just looking at a picture. So the way Jesus went to God on behalf of us and he became the go between intercession is also going to God on behalf of man. Okay, so we are taking people's burdens to God, you know, carrying it on our shoulder. So it's just a picture and that's all I'm trying to suggest here that what Jesus did on the cross of Calvary, it was an act of intercession. But here we are praying prayers of intercession where we are like those people who are taking other people's concerns and we are going to God on behalf of them. So let me just pause for a moment and check if you are all in sync with what I'm saying. If there are any questions or you know, if I need to clarify what I just shared, so feel free if you have, you know, if you need to ask something then you could do so. And I think it's a great opportunity for the online students to speak because so far you've only been posting on the chat. So I'd love to hear your voices. So are we okay with the picture of Jesus's act of intercession and our prayers of intercession and how they are somewhat similar just that we are not, you know, bringing or doing the work of redemption because Jesus has done it once for all, you know, the book of Hebrews says one sacrifice. And, you know, that was done by Jesus. He was the perfect sacrifice. And he already died for us on the cross of Calvary. So all we are doing is we are just receiving from the provision that has come through the cross. And one of the ways in which we can tap into what God has already done through Jesus is through our intercessory prayer and intercession, primarily means praying for others. We are able to pray for others, go to God, carry their burdens, you know, on our hearts. We are able to meet with God. We are able to plead for anything that people want. It could be for their forgiveness. It could be for the healing. It could be, you know, for an answer to prayer, which people are seeking God for, or even, you know, we could battle on behalf of them against the enemy and, you know, continue to pray that they experience the victory of the cross in their life situation. So that is the true nature of intercession. Now, how many of us here would say that intercession is important? Is intercession important? Okay, that's good to know. Intercession is important. Why is intercession important? Any thoughts on that? Because people need our prayers and, like, maybe other, like, if we are praying for, like, non-believers and, like, they don't know how to pray and, or if you are interceding for them to come to know about Christ, then, and if we intercede and pray on behalf of them, like, God can move and He can work on behalf of what we are praying for. Yeah, yeah. Thank you. Thank you, Rin. So that's so true. We know that people need intercession, especially unbelievers, because they cannot, you know, they can make prayers to God. And we know that God hears. But then we as believers, we have, you know, we have the authority in prayer, which has been delivered to us because of the cross. We have the power of the name of Jesus that you can, that we can use in prayer. These are all things that an unbeliever cannot use. And when we look at believers, you know, the Bible says that in this world, all of us, all, all the believers, the brethren, we all go through challenges, we all go through, we all have needs. Okay, we need each other. We need to support one another. So as you look at scripture, you know, there are many scriptures where we find that people were praying for each other. Okay, Paul was praying for different churches. He was asking those people to pray for him. He was asking those people to pray for, you know, certain needs and requirements. So prayer for each other, prayer for each other. It's a, it's a very common thing that you see in the Bible. And that's how God has orchestrated things in the kingdom of God. There is a place for us to pray for ourselves, but there is also a place where we can pray for one another. And it is very effective and it is very much required as well. Right. So we must pray for each other and praying for others is what is known as intercession. So as I look at the chat here, Krisha says to pray for different people, city, country, other relevant reasons. So true, Krisha and, you know, especially in our times, we see that so many things are happening in regions of the world, nations of the world, cities. There are many concerns, isn't it, burdens as we hear the news every day, just hearing the news, you realize, oh, I need to be praying for people in tough situations, you know, a flood and an earthquake and, you know, a storm or tornado, so many things. Even currently we know that all of this is happening in various regions of the world and we must be praying for others. Okay. The other comment here from Shri Radha, it says it also helps us to exercise our authority given to us. Okay, that's from Rin. Yeah, so Rin is saying that, yeah, we learned that prayer is a way of exercising our authority. So intercession, obviously intercession comes within that category of prayer through our intercession, we are exercising authority, we're releasing authority, okay, even over the lives of the people. So it becomes so very important. Now, let's quickly look at the Ministry of Jesus. I said that the Lord Jesus, it is at, of dying on the cross, he showed us the meaning of intercession. Okay, going to God on behalf of the people's sins and lay the sins of the people before God to bring forgiveness to the people. So we learn the meaning of intercession from there, but another question that we need to ask about the Ministry of Jesus is, yes, Jesus did that when he came to the earth. But we also are aware in the book of Acts, we read that Jesus ascended up to heaven. Okay, so he, as the disciples watched him, he was lifted up and you know, the clouds received him. So where is he now? He is seated at the right hand of the Father and scriptures tell us that he no longer physically inhabits the earth. So where is the position of Jesus? He is in the presence of the Father in heaven. So what is the Ministry of Jesus right now? Before, you know, he returns. We know that, you know, he will return and we know that, you know, he will rule and reign and many different things have to take place in the future. But right now, as the Lord Jesus sits up in heaven, what is the role that he plays? So there are a couple of scriptures in our notes and we will quickly go over them. Could somebody please read Hebrews chapter 7 and verse 25. Hebrews 7 and verse 25, please. Can I unmute? Can I go ahead? Yes, please. Yes, Nina, go ahead. Therefore, he is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. Were you able to hear me? Thank you. Thank you. Yes, yes, I did. I did. Yeah. Yeah. So as we've seen Hebrews 7 and 25, thanks Nina. We know that Jesus lives to make intercession. For whom? For us. He lives to make intercession for us. And what can his intercession do? It's able to save us. He's also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through him. Okay, so we know that the work of redemption already saves us. But up in heaven, Jesus right now on the basis of the work of intercession, you know, or redemption that he's already done. So his death on the cross, you know, that is complete. And the redemption that comes from his death on the cross, that's already complete. You know, he doesn't have to do anything more for us to be saved. But scriptures tell us that in heaven, you know, he continues to see it for us on the basis of the work on the cross. Okay, so he does a work of intercession up in heaven. Let's also read Romans 8 and verse 34. Romans 8, 34. Yeah, I'll just come to the question on the chat. We'll read some verses. Romans 8, 34. Who is he who condemns it is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen who is even at the right hand of God who make who also makes intercessions for us. Who shall separate us from the love of God? Okay, thank you, Krisha. So verse 34 again talks to us about the redemptive work of Christ. Who is he who condemns it is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen. So that is the redemptive work that Jesus did on the cross. And then, you know, that scripture moves on to reveal to us. Who is even at the right hand of God who also makes intercession for us. So his current ministry. Where is Jesus right now? Hebrews again the book of Hebrews. It talks about how he is in the, you know, real tabernacle of heaven in the presence of God. You know, that is the temple of God where the presence of God is hosted. So he is in heaven at the right hand of God doing what makes intercession for us. So the present ministry of the Lord Jesus is to make intercession for the believers on the basis of his redemptive work on the cross. Hebrews 9 24. That's another verse which has been given in the notes for us. And that says, for Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us. So Jesus makes intercession for us in the presence of God. Now, because Jesus makes intercession in the presence of God for us, I have a question, you know, to ask all of us. Does that mean you and I can stop praying for ourselves or stop praying for others because Jesus is already praying for us? What are your thoughts about this? Jesus is praying for us, isn't it? So why should we pray? What do you think? Because Jesus asked us in the Bible to pray. He has asked us. I mean, he also told us if we ask and believe, then we will receive what we have asked. So we can't just be passive. We must be active. Okay, thanks. Thank you for attempting that. I really appreciate you doing it and sharing your view where it is saying that Jesus taught us in the Bible to pray. That's correct because John 1626, you know, it's a very nice scripture. It says, in that day, you will ask in my name and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you. So Jesus was suggesting that the believers would pray and that he wouldn't be doing their praying, you know, for them. That he would be interceding. But it's a different kind of intercession compared to the praying for others, you know, which we are supposed to do or praying for ourselves, which we are supposed to do. So Jesus did mention it. So John 1626, he said in that day, you will ask in my name and he clarifies. He says, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you. So I am not going to do your praying. You have to do your praying while I do my part in interceding before the Father. So it's very clear. Yes, Jesus has a ministry of intercession up in heaven right now, but that will not replace your ministry and my ministry of intercession where we pray for others. Okay, so just wanted to clarify that before we go any further. And as I look at the chat here, there was a question from Rin, where she asked the Holy Spirit is our mediator right now. Okay, so the Holy Spirit as a mediator, could you please clarify what you mean here? I mean like in, like I put the scriptures there, Romans 28 verse 26 and 27, like it says like how the Holy Spirit makes intercession for us in verse 26 and 27 of Romans 8. And so that's what a mediator does, right? The mediator intercedes on behalf of, so that's what I think. Okay, sure, Rin, so I get what you're saying. So on the basis of Romans 8, 26, you're saying wouldn't the Holy Spirit also make for a good mediator. But here are my thoughts. If you read that same passage, you know, in certain versions like I was just looking at it in the NKJV version. And it says likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses for we do not know what we should pray for as we are. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. So it begins by saying the Spirit helps in our weaknesses. Okay, though it goes on to say the Spirit himself makes intercession. When we look at other passages of the Bible, okay, like we talked about praying the Spirit, right? Because this is, this verse is about praying the Spirit. Okay, praying the Spirit. So if you look at other passages, like for example, 1 Corinthians 14, where 14 and 15, when we said, you know, Paul says, I pray the Spirit. I will pray the Spirit. I will sing in the Spirit. You know, it shows us that though this one verse seems like the Holy Spirit kind of takes over. Other passages reveal to us that there is an element of our will involved in this intercession. So when we talk about praying in the Spirit, it's not like the Holy Spirit will take charge of us and we will not have a say, like he will just overtake us and then we begin to speak in tongues. It never works like that. Our will is very much involved. It's only when I am willing that the Holy Spirit can release, you know, those utterances through my mouth. Okay, so my faculties and my will is also equally involved. So when I talk about the Holy Spirit, his work in intercession, I would put it more like, I wouldn't say he's a mediator. You know, I wouldn't call him a mediator. Instead, what I would say is, I would say he helps believers. He helps us in our weaknesses or in other words, you know, the Holy Spirit, when you study about the Holy Spirit, you know, there is a description of the Holy Spirit where we say that he is a one who stands alongside or he is a helper, you know, paracletos, that name as you study that name of the Holy Spirit, he's a helper. So he does not really become a mediator. You and I, he's helping us make our intercession. Okay, so I'm just trying to answer your question, Rin, where you said Holy Spirit our mediator. So Holy Spirit is not a mediator in that sense. Jesus Christ, yes, he became the mediator between God and man. So that is quite clear, but Holy Spirit, you know, his role is more of a helper. He aids, okay, he supports, he strengthens. So that's how we look at the work of the Holy Spirit, even in the case of intercession. Okay, so Rin, I hope it is clear that there's no confusion regarding this. So we wouldn't call Holy Spirit as a mediator. Right, okay. Okay, I see Krisha's answer to the earlier question, which I had asked. So now we have understood, you know, we have seen how we intercede, okay, and we will not say that Jesus is doing, you know, our intercession for us, so we don't have to play to God on behalf of others. We also need to note, you know, there is a passage in 1 John chapter 2 verse 1, where Jesus is called as an advocate. Okay, he is an advocate in heaven for us. So based on this scripture, a lot of people say that, oh, Jesus is in heaven. And every time we sit on earth, you know, Jesus is there and Satan is there and Satan is accusing us and Jesus stands up and he, you know, he covers up for us. He justifies us before the Father. Now, it seems very nice, you know, when we interpret 1 John chapter 2 verse 1, where it says he is an advocate, you know, just like an advocate here on earth. Jesus is standing in heaven and every time an accusation comes up before the Father, Jesus will come and defend us. You know, what that verse really means is the very presence of Jesus condemns the devil because Jesus has already taken care of our sins on the cross of Calvary 2,000 years ago. So it doesn't mean that every time we sit, Jesus has to make an intercession for us. No, that's not how it works because we have to interpret that passage of scripture in light with other clear passages of scripture. So when we talk about Jesus as an advocate, what we really mean is he already did the work of redemption and as he sits in heaven right now, his very presence, you know, is a testimony of the work of redemption. So Satan is condemned. Every charge which rises against, you know, us believers, that is taken care of because the work of redemption was performed 2000 years ago. So as an advocate, the role of Jesus is not like an earthly role, you know, standing up every time and defending every mistake that a believer makes. But his presence up in heaven talks about that finished work, which he already did. So that's how we understand Jesus as an intercessor and as an advocate. So I hope that is clear because there are some new teachings that say, you know, Satan is in the presence of God accusing us and Jesus is defending us moment by moment. So that dynamics is not seen in scripture, you know, so if we interpret Jesus as an advocate in that way, it would be wrong. Jesus as an advocate simply means he stands up in heaven on the basis of the work of the cross. Okay. Right. All right. So let's move on then. If you have any questions, you can always interrupt. If not, I will continue with what we've been talking about. So we're understanding about intercession, we're understanding about the role of an intercessor, how an intercessor goes to God on behalf of the people. So as we look at scripture, you know, there are examples of people who stood as intercessors. You know, Abraham is a wonderful example. We see that when God, in Genesis chapter 18, God wanted to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. He spoke to Abraham about it. He revealed his plan to Abraham. What did Abraham do at that point? You know, Abraham started negotiating with God. Okay. On behalf of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, why was he interested in the people of Sodom and Gomorrah? Maybe because his nephew Lot was in that place and he did not want that place to be destroyed. Okay. So that could have been one of the reasons. But you know, Abraham swings into action and he begins to talk to God and says, God, if there are these many righteous people, would you please spare the land? You know, if there are these many righteous people, would you please spare the land? And you see that God was actually listening to Abraham. So it shows us the dynamics, you know, based on what is permitted in the word of God. In this case, mercy. You know, mercy. God is a long-suffering God. He's a patient God. He's a generous God. He's a merciful God. So what was Abraham doing? He was appealing to the merciful heart of God, to the mercy of God. And he was saying, God, if there are so many righteous people, would you please spare the land? And each time, you know, God was telling him, yes, Abraham, if I find so many righteous people, I will do that for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah. But unfortunately, you know, we know that the land could not be spared. So in this manner, you know, Abraham, he actually interceded with God on behalf of the people. Okay, so what role does Abraham take up in this scenario? He behaved like an intercessor. So even at a time when, you know, Abraham encounters King Abimelek. And Abimelek, he unrighteous, I mean, he decides to have Sarah as his wife. But then, you know, that is because he was not aware that Sarah was already Abraham's wife, you know. God was angry because of this unrighteous desire that Abimelek had. And we read how the like Abimelek and his people and his, you know, his cattle and all the livestock, all of them came down with a curse. They could not bear children. And Abimelek, you know, he goes to God and he asks God for forgiveness. He asks God for healing from this curse. And at that time, God tells him, you ask Abraham to pray. So, you know, we understand some things here. We understand that we can appeal to the nature of God. What did Abraham do? He knew God was merciful. So he started interceding for the people. Okay. So can we do that today? Yes, based on the nature of God, based on what is provided in the word of God for us. If God says, yes, I will heal your land. I will forgive your sins. You know, I will put none of these diseases upon you. We can intercede in line with that word because when God said it, he will do it. So Abraham, knowing the nature of God was appealing to that nature of God. Secondly, you know, God seeks for an intercessor for Abimelek. And, you know, for healing to come upon Abimelek's people, God said, I need an intercessor. Somebody needs to pray for you, Abimelek. Ask Abraham. So Abraham becomes an intercessor. So you see how in the dynamics of the kingdom of God, God requires intercessors. So there is a role for people to pray through prayer. If it was not the case, we wouldn't have the opportunity to intercede. Or, you know, God would just tell all of us, all of you pray for yourselves. It's good enough, isn't it? But Jesus did say in that day, you know, you will pray. You will ask him my name and I will do it for you. I'm not going to pray those prayers for you, but you will have to pray and you will also, you know, need to be praying for others. So there is definitely a role that intercessors have in the kingdom of God and, you know, we pray for others. We pray for the needs of others. All right. So I noticed that it's 9.50 now. So let's go ahead. Let's take a break. 10 minutes and we'll come back at 10 a.m. We will continue from where we stopped and hope, you know, you all are getting something out of this class and look forward to connecting soon. Thank you.