Have you ever had someone you earnestly prayed to the Lord for?

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I mean, you REALLY prayed that Jesus would do something miraculous and turn that person back to Him?

I had a friend from college named Keyth. For years, he professed to be a Christian.  Suddenly, he announced it was all a lie.  He said he was an atheist.

Keyth also announced he was leaving his wife and embracing the homosexual lifestyle.  To say it was a shock is a mammoth understatement.

I prayed for Keyth.

I watched as he threw his life away.  And I prayed.

I watched as he changed his looks so he was hardly recognizable as the same Keyth I knew.  And I prayed.  He contracted a sexually transmitted disease. And I prayed. 

At one point, I remember praying, “God, I don’t know if he ever really knew you. But for the sake of his wife and baby son, please bring Keyth to You.”

Have you ever interceded for someone to the Lord?

As we continue our journey through Genesis, we’ll see Abraham interceding for others.  We read in Genesis 18:16-33:

16 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17 Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”
20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”
22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare[c] the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
27 Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”
“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”
29 Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”
He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”
30 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”
He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”
He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”
32 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?”
He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”
33 When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.

Genesis 18:16-33, New International Version

This conversation is fascinating, and space doesn’t allow me to dive into all the intriguing parts.

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But it’s interesting to note that Abraham is interceding for the wicked!  He’s asking the Lord to spare the entire city (with all its wickedness) because of the righteous.  He is not asking for the Lord to spare the righteous!  He is asking for the Lord to show mercy on those doing evil.

Abraham asks, and the Lord graciously agrees.  Throughout the conversation, Abraham demonstrates his understanding of Almighty God’s righteousness, goodness, mercy, and justice.

Having had the last word, the Lord left, and Abraham returned home.

Do we pray that God will spare the wicked for salvation? Or do we rejoice in the fall of the wicked?

There’s a fine line here between righteous anger and wanting revenge.  We must be careful.

It is not cliché to say my country of the United States is like Sodom and Gomorrah.  Many of our nation’s sins were also the sins of those cities on the plain.  I fear that we may be at the end of God’s patience.

So, we must intercede.  We must have enough pity in our hearts to share Jesus with them. God’s hand will not be stayed forever.  His justice will roll.  While there is time, may we intercede on behalf of the dear souls that Jesus died to save.