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To: roamer_1
Can you forgive your friend of his sins? Can you heal him? Can you cause his heart to be opened to our Lord? Not of your own will, you cannot. You may ask for those things for your friend, in Christ's name. It is still Christ that intercedes. It is still His work that forgives, heals, or saves, not yours or mine.

None of that changes the dynamic you object to in the first place. It doesn't matter if I'm interceeding in Christ's name, or by the power of Castle Grayskull: I'm still interceeding which according to your earlier formulation, is usurping Christ's role as priest.

103 posted on 04/03/2008 10:20:21 PM PDT by papertyger (The left fosters lawlessness & bad culture by denying the legitimacy of the law and Western culture.)
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To: papertyger
I'm still interceeding which according to your earlier formulation, is usurping Christ's role as priest.

In the first place, your 'usurpation' is a bit presumptuous. You have no ability to usurp anything that is Christ's.

Secondly, while you are welcome to try, any intercession you might make before Jehovah standing upon your own name will come to naught. Standing upon the name of Aaron, in the way of the Levitical priesthood is also without merit. You may stand upon Peter, or any apostle, Mary, or any saint, the power of castle grayskull, the great doorknob, or the devil himself... Bupkis.

There is only Christ. Jehovah has hidden Himself from all others, as they are a stench in his nostrils.

And by the way, assuming intersession of saints for the sake of argument, If one knows the name of the High Priest, having a personal relationship with Him, what other name would better suffice? What shepherd shall we call to but our own? Why would one place a call to the advertising department when one has the private number of the CEO? It seems a bit silly, doesn't it?

Our prayers, be they praise, forgiveness, intercessory for others, or whatever, are all offerings before the Father. They ALL must pass from us to our Priest (intercessor), to the Father. We are unworthy to access the Father without the intercessory power of our Priest. That is why we pray in his name, and no other name will do.

So no, your intercessory prayer does not 'usurp' anything, nor does it in fact intercede. You ask in Christ's name for Jehovah to intercede as an offering of faith.

Finally, I think that prayers of intercession are quite like an act of forgiveness toward someone who has harmed you personally:

That act of forgiveness is seldom known to the person one is forgiving, and has no real impact upon that person's life. The act of forgiveness has much more influence upon oneself- It heals one's self of anger and fear, distrust and self pity. It causes one to put the matter to bed and to cease dwelling on the offense. It is really profound, and worth understanding.

Likewise, I imagine an intercessory prayer is of little real effect in the presence of an eternal, omniscient, omnipotent God. He already knew the score, and was already inclined to help, no matter who one might be praying over, or why. Does He need us to draw attention to the plight? Would He have forgotten that soul's cries had we not reminded Him? Are we not just an incidental tool in this way?

But that act of caring and belief does much within oneself to form a contrite heart, ready for supplication. Belief brings more belief, caring brings more caring, and so it goes. As is always the case, selflessly focusing upon others before God winds up helping you more than them.

125 posted on 04/04/2008 1:00:35 AM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just Socialism in a business suit.)
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