Are you the one

What Moses did here, was to intercede for his nation, to “stand in the gap” as it is often referred to. The Hebrew word for gap means a breach in the wall, where the defensive protection has broken down and the enemy can enter in. God heeded the intercessory pleas of one man and spared His nation.

The effect of one man interceding on behalf of a whole nation is extremely powerful. Earlier in Israel’s history, when the sins of her people were so great and numerous that God could no longer avoid pouring out His wrath upon the nation, He looked for just one righteous man to plead the cause of this wayward nation:

Ex 22:30 “I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one.”

God then destroyed the nation and the temple and sent the people into captivity. The point I want to stress here is that God was not looking for a thousand praying men, only one.

We find our ultimate Intercessor in our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is interceding for us day and night, standing in the gap between us and God (Rom 8:34). Undeserved grace indeed!

The following poem (unknown author) really touched my heart. Listen to God speaking to us:

Give me a man of God, one man/ Whose faith is master of his mind/ And I will right ten thousand wrongs/ And bless the name of all mankind./ Give me a man of God, one man,/ Whose tongue is touched with heaven’s fire,/ And I will flame the darkest hearts/ With high resolve and pure desire./ Give me a man of God, one man,/ One mighty prophet of the Lord,/ And I will give you peace on earth/ Bought with prayer and not a sword./ Give me a man of God, one man,/ True to the vision that he sees/ And I will build your broken shrines/ And bring the nations to their knees./ One man.

Points to ponder: Who has God placed in our world for us to be an advocate for? Most assuredly our family. But what about that difficult neighbour; that casual acquaintance from the tennis club; that co-worker who is spreading all kinds of lies about you at work; that person standing in front of you in the grocery check-out line? God has planned for certain people to cross our paths in some way or other, purely so that we can intercede for their deepest needs – that only He can meet. It might just be that no one else in their lives will ever pray for them. Are you prepared to fight for them? Are you the one?