The Holy One calls to me this morning. Jewish and Christian history is the progressive revelation of our mysterious and Sovereign Creator God. As long as we live, we will never reach the point of knowing all there is to know about our Creator. His thoughts and ways are so much higher than we can ever imagine.
Yahweh's grace for humanity in light of the fall is beyond our comprehension. My heart hears His voice in the early morning hour:
"My grace is a deep well. I encourage you to search the depths of it in your prayers for the world that touches your life."
Prayer is such a priceless blessing when we can grasp that prayer is actually Adonai's invitation to come into His Counsel room and co-labor with Him in the government of our world, His world and the people who occupy it.
Prayer is not storming Heaven's gates hurling our wants and needs to get things from a stingy controller. Prayer is a Divine invitation to join in the process of bringing the Kingdom of Heaven and God's good will to bear on the people and events that make up our personal world.
The original co-mission was for Adam and Eve to go forth and multiply and exercise their delegated dominion over God's created earth. They were to extend the beauty and order of the Garden of Eden over the whole earth, which at the time was undeveloped. They were to establish and operate in and under Adonai's ruling authority as His representatives to all who would come after and teach them the truth about the Creator.
Rebellion replaced loyalty and the fall from God's grace took place.
Humanity wanted independence and independence they got. Evil took claim to the turf given humanity to care for, and the long process of restoration to our rightful identity as immortal image bearers of our Creator and co-laborers with Him in His ruling authority began to take root in the heart of a remnant.
Throughout history, we can see the evidence of God's grace (His unmerited favor). If not for His grace, humanity would not have survived.
Today the Holy One takes me back to two of those who in the historic record answered Yahweh's invitation to come into His Counsel room and make intercession for humanity.
In Genesis 18, Abraham interceded for Sodom and Gomorrah and in Exodus 32, Moses interceded for the Children of Israel. Both of these historic figures teach us much about intimacy with God and the wide scope of His grace.
Abraham pleaded that if the presence of righteous people amid the wicked could be found, might that stop the hand of God's divine judgement against the wicked in the city?
In this account, Abraham was a student learning about Adonai's amazing grace in his petition that if a certain number of righteous people living in the city might stave off the judgement Holiness was about to execute. The amazing thing is that Adonai agreed to spare the city if 50, then 45, then 40, then 30 then 20 then if even 10 righteous people could be found, He would spare the rest.
Sadly, Abraham felt that he had reached the farthest limit of God's grace and stopped with 10 rather than pressing even further for if just one righteous person could be found, the wicked humanity would be saved.
That lesson in the wide scope of divine grace would be taught much later in the historic revelation when Yeshua, the one righteous person to ever live, was sent to save all the unrighteous humanity ever born since the fall.
Moses, when Yahweh was going to annihilate the Children of Israel for the wickedness of their idolatry, pleaded for them to be spared, and God's grace agreed to His petition.
With these two examples brought to mind, and as I take up and accept Adonai's invitation to make my petitions known, I am overwhelmed by the thought of the extent of His grace and His willingness to extend it over the situations and people I bring before His Throne and into His Counsel room.
His grace truly is amazing, and I am encouraged knowing I have been invited to participate through prayer to find the depths of His grace in the co- governing of my world. With the Lord so willing, how can we not ask for the much, much more of His saving grace?
The Holy Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
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