The Heart of the Intercessor

Sometimes, it really only takes one person, in the right place at the right time, to make a profound difference.

I can think of a number of examples from scripture. King David, when he was a mere shepherd boy, standing in the “gap” between two armies and courageously facing down Goliath—“Is there not a cause?” Or Esther, ascending to the throne in Persia, “for such a time as this.”  No one acquainted with their stories would discount the impact each had in rising to the occasion presented.

King Hezekiah was one such example.  Following on the heels of wicked king after wicked king, he arose with a heart to do what was right in the sight of the Lord.  The people had so long been led astray by those who used their power as an all-access pass to do whatever their flesh desired—what a breath of fresh air young Hezekiah must’ve been!  This morning I read in 2 Chronicles 30 about when Hezekiah decided it was high time to reinstitute the Lord’s Passover, the way it was meant to be kept. Apparently, that hadn’t happened in a long time.  I can only imagine that it’d been handled with so little fidelity after so many disastrous governments, most folks probably had no idea what it was supposed to look like.  I think it was probably commercialized, and even marginalized, to the place where Moses wouldn’t have recognized it if it had hit him on the head.

When Hezekiah got hold of what was right, he couldn’t shake it.  From my reading of the passage, it appears that they weren’t able to hold the celebration in its rightful place on the Jewish calendar, because the priests hadn’t yet completed their personal sanctification process.  That didn’t stop Hezekiah.  They were GOING to hold that Passover feast.  But he also recognized the need to approach God with care and preparation.  He was unwilling to walk in rashly.  This King, unlike so many others, was determined to do things decently and in order.

So they just delayed the celebration for a month, which gave them time to send out the word, and call God’s people in Israel, Judah, Ephraim, and Manasseh to return to Jerusalem for the ultimate Passover celebration of their lifetimes.

And WHAT a celebration.  The account made me weep, thinking of how many had chosen to follow Hezekiah’s lead.  Not all, but many.  These verses in particular took my breath away:

2 Chronicles 30:6-10 NLT

⁶ At the king’s command, runners were sent throughout Israel and Judah. They carried letters that said:

“O people of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, so that he will return to the few of us who have survived the conquest of the Assyrian kings. ⁷ Do not be like your ancestors and relatives who abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and became an object of derision, as you yourselves can see. ⁸ Do not be stubborn, as they were, but submit yourselves to the Lord. Come to his Temple, which he has set apart as holy forever. Worship the Lord your God so that his fierce anger will turn away from you.

⁹ “For if you return to the Lord, your relatives and your children will be treated mercifully by their captors, and they will be able to return to this land. For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful. If you return to him, he will not continue to turn his face from you.”

¹⁰ The runners went from town to town throughout Ephraim and Manasseh and as far as the territory of Zebulun. But most of the people just laughed at the runners and made fun of them. 

Can you even imagine?  Dear Lord Jesus!  But honestly, it sounds like the mocking of our own culture toward all that is holy and right.  To be so far gone, so calloused and jaded, that you can’t even humble yourself despite the most beautiful invitation you’ve ever received?  Unbelievable.

2 Chronicles 30:11-14 NLT

¹¹ However, some people from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and went to Jerusalem.

¹² At the same time, God’s hand was on the people in the land of Judah, giving them all one heart to obey the orders of the king and his officials, who were following the word of the Lord. ¹³ So a huge crowd assembled at Jerusalem in midspring to celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread. ¹⁴ They set to work and removed the pagan altars from Jerusalem. They took away all the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley.

People humbled themselves.  People got real, and got rid of anything that was distracting them from what was right.  People ‘inconvenienced’ themselves, altered course, and made new priorities.  People made an intentional decision to follow leaders who were following the Word of the Lord.

Friends, THAT is revival.  And it didn’t stop there. 

Probably my favorite passage, though, was where Hezekiah recognized that not everyone in attendance was properly prepared to celebrate Passover the way the scriptures prescribed.  But he also knew that the serious deficiencies in spiritual leadership was mostly to blame for this, and he stepped in to intercede on their behalf.

2 Chronicles 30:17-20  NKJV

¹⁷ For there were many in the assembly who had not ^[g]sanctified themselves; therefore the Levites had charge of the slaughter of the Passover lambs for everyone who was not clean, to sanctify them to the Lord. ¹⁸ For a multitude of the people, many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the good Lord provide atonement for everyone ¹⁹ who prepares his heart to seek God, the Lord God of his fathers, though he is not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.” ²⁰ And the Lord listened to Hezekiah and healed the people.

Am I the only one who was brought to tears at this account?  The power of a humble heart, determined to seek the Lord, fills me with gratitude!  The idea that I don’t have to BE perfect already, but simply seeking to BE LIKE the One who IS perfect already; if I recognize my own shortcomings, and appeal to Lord who IS good—that means something to Him.  And for Hezekiah to stand in the gap like this?  It’s so beautiful, the heart of this leader.  I don’t know about you, but it makes me weepy to think about it.

When we intercede, humbly and transparently, it moves God.  It touches His heart, and it moves Him to action.  It moves His people, too.  Look how the chapter concludes:

2 Chronicles 30:23-27  NKJV

²³ Then the whole assembly agreed to keep the feast another seven days, and they kept it another seven days with gladness. ²⁴ For Hezekiah king of Judah gave to the assembly a thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep, and the leaders gave to the assembly a thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep; and a great number of priests sanctified themselves. ²⁵ The whole assembly of Judah rejoiced, also the priests and Levites, all the assembly that came from Israel, the sojourners who came from the land of Israel, and those who dwelt in Judah. ²⁶ So there was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the time of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. ²⁷ Then the priests, the Levites, arose and blessed the people, and their voice was heard; and their prayer came up to His holy dwelling place, to heaven.

This reminds me how, after an awesome church service, no one wants to leave.  You just want to linger in the manifest presence of God, and fellowship with the family of God.  No one there begrudged a 7-day extension of Passover!  And look at what happened when the priests sanctified themselves?  Their blessings and prayers were now heard, and their prayers made it all the way to His throne.  There was nothing cluttering up their souls, nothing blocking their prayers or disqualifying them from getting an answer.  Real revival effects change.  Real repentance opens lines of communication with the King.  An intercessor makes a difference.

Today, my heart is grateful for King Hezekiah, and all those like them, who find themselves willing to stand in the gap, taking a stand for what is right.  Hezekiah was one man, in the right place—and HE DECIDED this was the right time to correct everything that was broken about his nation.  He humbled himself.  He sought the Lord, and made intentional decisions, using the Word as his guide.

Oh, that we would all be like Hezekiah, with the heart of an intercessor.

Our world would never be the same.