Fierce Love
My grandmother had a big screened-in back porch right off the kitchen in her Tennessee home. In the summers we’d visit, and it was a regular occurrence to find her rocking and praying there in the morning light. I’d sneak down early to rummage through the pantry looking for Pop-Tarts, a delicacy we didn’t get much at home. One morning, hiding near the screen door and enjoying my sweet delight, I heard grandmother mention my name as she prayed. That piqued my interest. While I don’t remember what she prayed, that she was talking to God about me made a lasting impression.
Have you ever considered how Jesus is interceding before His Father for you?Would you be curious to hear how He is praying?
John 17 is a clear place in the gospels where we hear Jesus praying for all those who believe in him. Truth is, He began praying for us the very moment we believed. While He died for the entire world, His primary prayer focus is you.
John 17:9 says “I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.”
That sounds a lot like how grandmother prayed. Regularly covering the entire family by name. She prayed like all praying mothers do, with strength and mercy.
Our prayers live in His ears as He continually intercedes for us. He’s not a “one and done” type of advocate. I wonder how many times I’ve promised to pray for someone, lifted a momentary prayer and then, with the best of intentions, forgot to follow through?
“Therefore, He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.” (Hebrews 7:25) Jesus’ saving nature is rooted in His continual intercession. He just doesn’t stop. I always knew my mom and grandmother were praying, even when I wasn’t praying for myself. More faithful than these is the One who stands at the right hand of God.
His love is both tender and fierce
As we face the challenges and hardship every day, we see Jesus models in this way: “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.” (John 17: 15) The salvation Jesus is asking the Father for on our behalf is not to remove us from circumstances, but to keep us from the touch of the enemy. Jesus seems more committed to saving us through our circumstances than necessarily saving us out of them.
We’ve all had days where we feel alone in the fight, where a faint whisper, “Help, God” is the only prayer we can muster. Then a message arrives, from someone removed, saying, “You’ve been on my mind,” or “I’ve been praying for you,” and a strengthening in our spirit is suddenly added.
Jesus is actually praying for us beforehand. He sees what is coming and asks the Father to strengthen us through it. This is exactly what Jesus did for Peter in Luke 22:32: “But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”
If Jesus is seriously, continually praying for us, it proves that we are His. His love is both tender and fierce. I’ve heard it said that a momma bear snuggles playfully with her cubs, but heaven help the one who comes between them. She instantly becomes the most terrifying beast and will stop at nothing in protecting her own. Both the tender moment, and the most terrifying, are expressions of the same love.
The same Jesus that comforts us with His love turns His fierceness on the evil one when we are threatened. That’s what love does.
The screen door creaked, and grandmother invited a sticky-faced nine-year-old up on her lap. Safe and secure in a powerful place. No one can separate us from the love of His hand. Sneak a peek at Jesus’ intercession today—how is He praying for you?