ICS Daily Devotions
God Is Looking for Someone
Genesis 18:27-28 (NKJV) Then Abraham answered and said, “Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?” So He said, “If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.”
In this passage, Abraham chose to stand in the gap to reason with God before He judged Sodom. He asked for the mercy of God to be shown to the city even if there was just a handful of righteous people in it. Although God is gracious and merciful, He is also holy, righteous and just, and He cannot go against His attributes. Therefore He is constantly looking for people to stand in the gap to intercede. Otherwise, the devil would be able to accuse Him of being unjust or violating His attributes. In order for that not to happen, God must look for people who are willing to stand in the gap, in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Ezekiel 22:29-30 (NKJV) The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully oppress the stranger. So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.
According to the Kingdom Dynamics of the Spirit-Filled Bible, the text “I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of…” describes the work of intercession where one comes “before God on behalf of” others. Also significant is the intercessor’s two-fold responsibility to “make a wall”, which suggests that they would restore a breach caused by an enemy and “stand in the gap”, or plug up that breach against the enemy throughout the building process.
While God was judging the nation of Israel due to their disobedience, He was also looking for people to stand in the gap so that He could extend His mercy and grace to the people and the situation.
Today, God is interceding for us through Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the people He put around us. The wonderful news of living in the New Testament is that we are at peace with God because the wrath of God towards sin has been dealt with on the Cross of Calvary. We are in an everlasting covenant with God, and we get to partner with Him to intercede for the situation. God consistently needs us to pray and intercede so that He can act. Therefore, we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, who might put a burden on our hearts to pray for people whom we know or may not know.
Sermon Series: I Have You Covered
