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Podcast: Do You Know That Jesus Is Praying for You? (Joel Beeke)

November 30, 2020 by: Crossway

This article is part of the The Crossway Podcast series.

The Doctrine of Intercession

In this episode, Joel Beeke discusses the doctrine of Christ's ongoing intercession in heaven. He explains what that doctrine is all about, where we find it in the Bible, and why it's more important and spiritually edifying than you may realize.

Reformed Systematic Theology, Volume 2

Reformed Systematic Theology, Volume 2

Joel R. Beeke, Paul M. Smalley

The second installment in the Reformed Systematic Theology series draws on historical theology of the Reformed tradition, exploring the doctrines of man and Christ with an accessible, comprehensive, and experiential approach.

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Topics Addressed in This Interview:

01:25 - The Continuing Work of Christ

Matt Tully
Joel, thank you so much for joining me today on The Crossway Podcast.

Joel Beeke
Glad to be with you, Matt.

Matt Tully
You're a seminary president who also happens to teach, you're also a pastor and the editorial director of Reformation Heritage Books, you're the vice president of a translation society, and on top of all that—as if that's not enough to fill one person's time—I've read that you've written or coauthored over one hundred books. Is that true?

Joel Beeke
Unfortunately it's true. I've probably written too much. I feel closest to God when I write.

Matt Tully
That's what I was going to ask you: What's behind that prolific output? Obviously it must be something that you love to do.

Joel Beeke
I love God's truth. I guess I'm a weirdo because I could study from eight in the morning until midnight and just love every minute of it. I just love working with biblical truth, but also when I write I feel closest to God. Even if I wouldn't be published, I would write. I've been writing since I was a teenager. God converted me and called me to ministry when I was fifteen-years-old, and I actually felt a call to be a writer at the same time. It's hard to explain, but it was a powerful, compelling call not only woe unto me if I don't preach the gospel but also woe unto me if I don't write the gospel.

Matt Tully
Let's shift gears and talk about one of these doctrines that you spent a lot of time on in your newest book. Often when we talk about the gospel we tend to emphasize Christ's atoning work—his atoning death for sinners. Sometimes we even maybe neglect the resurrection. I know that's been a critique that many have had of modern evangelicalism. But even if we do highlight the resurrection, in my experience evangelical Christians often will stop there—Christ died for our sins, he was raised for our justification, and then that's the end of the story when it comes to his work for us. But there is more to the story, right?

Joel Beeke
That's right! I think that Christ's intercession has gotten short shrift not only from preachers in the pulpit but also from writers and, consequently, in the experience of the individual believer. I've met few of God's children who really treasure this doctrine the way they should.

Matt Tully
If you had to boil down this doctrine—Christ's intercession—into simple language for a new Christian, how would you explain what it is actually all about?

Joel Beeke
I would put it this way: Jesus died for you so that you would be saved; but now he's in heaven interceding for you—praying for you—moment by moment that you stay saved. Without his intercessions you can't keep what he's given you because you would sin it away again. So the intercession of Christ is absolutely critical. From moment to moment, as Hebrews 7:25 says, he's ever living to make intercession for you. Think about that like a clock ticking: tick, tick, tick—he's praying for you, he's praying for you, he's praying for you. He has the infinite capacity—and this is what most people don't realize because they think of Jesus as a mere man—to pray for all of his millions of people corporately at once; but at the same to pray for each one individually. That's beyond our comprehension, but Romans 8:34 (if he intercedes for us, who can be against us?) validates that for us, as well as Hebrews 7:25. When you combine the various texts in the Bible about the intercession of Jesus and you really begin to realize that every single moment he's praying for you and his prayers are always effectual. The preservation of your salvation is interwoven—it dovetails—with Christ's intercession for us.

Matt Tully
Would you say that's the core of it—the idea that Jesus is praying for us at all times?

Joel Beeke
I would say that's the core of it. Combined with it, however, is this whole idea of advocateship that Paul speaks of. He's heaven's lawyer; he pleads our case. So, connected with intercession is advocateship. I like to look at advocateship this way: as a Christian, we have two advocates. We have one in heaven named Jesus who is pleading our case, and we have one on earth who is in our heart—the Holy Spirit—who is our internal advocate by which we groan with groanings that are unutterable—Paul says in Romans 8:26—back to God, our petitions and our cries. John Bunyan put it this way: Christ as intercessor, which is what he's doing all the time for us, is sitting at his Father's right hand and interceding for us. When he exercises his advocateship, Bunyan says, it's as if he stands up and pleads our case and helps us in times of tremendous need.

07:24 - Wasn’t Christ’s Death and Resurrection Enough?

Matt Tully
Help us understand a little bit more why this is so crucial. I think oftentimes the way that we think about salvation and Christ's work for us, and honestly the way it's often taught and preached, is there's such an emphasis on Christ's once-for-all effective death and resurrection. He did something in history, and that was efficacious—that did it; it sealed the deal. So I think hearing someone speak, like you are, about the need for Christ to continually represent us before the Father, it feels like you're suggesting that maybe Christ's work on the cross in history somehow wasn't enough to save us forever. Help us understand that dynamic.

Joel Beeke
That's a very good question. I think part of the problem is that we've neglected sufficiently stressing the inward life of sanctification. We've gotten down pat, as it were, the doctrine of justification, which is great. Without the Protestant doctrine of justification, there's really no sure salvation. I'll compare it this way: the day you married your wife, you signed the papers. You are now legally in a state of marriage. But that doesn't mean that from then on you can say, Oh well, my dear wife. I'm married to you; you can't change that now. I can't change that, so I can just live whatever way I want to live. No! You've got to work out that marriage day by day, with all of its ups and downs, all of its challenges, all of its understandings and misunderstandings, and you've got to grow in that relationship. So it is in our relationship with Jesus. It's one thing to become a Christian; it's another thing to remain a Christian and keep growing as a Christian. That's critical. And so, Christ's intercession from heaven and the accompanying groaning work of the Spirit in our soul—this is the experiential reality of the Christian life of growing in sanctification. When I preach about the intercession of Christ, what I like to say is this: This is a doctrine that resonates with the deepest inward experience of a believer. If you could give me just a couple of minutes to develop this, I think it's important. I can stand in the pulpit and say, You know, friends, this doctrine of intercession is very important because it means Jesus is praying for us all the time, and that's a wonderful thing. Our salvation is secure in him; he will keep us. That would be great—nothing wrong with that, and that's true. But that's very different than saying something like this: My dear friend, if you're a believer, you know what it's like to really come into spiritual distress and sometimes perhaps to be so overwhelmed with affliction—internal or external—that perhaps you think, 'I can't even pray anymore!' You come to the wit's end of your own prayers. But if you realize at that moment that Jesus is still praying for you and you just cry out to him, 'Oh Lord! Please intercede for me as I can't seem to do it, but I know your prayers are always effectual!' and you cast yourself upon the intercession of Christ and you remember he's always living to intercede for you and he will help you, even when the water seems to come up to your lips or over your head, you will not drown; you will not be burned in the fire; you will come forth without your hair even being singed because he ever lives to make intercession for you! Praise be to God for this wonderful keeping grace of Jesus from the right hand of the Father! You see? That resonates with the experiential struggles of the believer. My dad used to say to me—I was 9-years-old when he first said this to me: You know what the difference between a believer and an unbeliever is? I always said no because I always got the wrong answer.

Matt Tully
You know there's something coming.

Joel Beeke
Right. He said, A believer always has a place to go—to a Savior who is always remembering him. That is so incredibly comforting for a believer. This is how I grow in sanctification: not by relying on my own efforts, but knowing that Jesus is remembering me; and out of gratitude to live to his glory. I don't want to injure in any way by my abominable sin this glorious Savior who not only died for me but is now living for me. And so, if he died for me and he lives for me, why can't I at least live for him and die to sin?

Matt Tully
Do you ever think that maybe the imbalance is when people not so much overemphasize one thing but underemphasize all the other things?

Joel Beeke
Yes.

12:54 - Intercessory Prayer in the Bible

Matt Tully
There's a really robust Old Testament background to the idea that Christ continues to intercede for his people as our priest. Could you elaborate on that a little bit?

Joel Beeke
I think there are typological elements in the Old Testament that are pointing to Christ's intercession, and I think there are some more direct elements. Certainly Moses, the way that he interceded for Israel at times. God says to Moses, I'm going to divorce myself from the people of Israel, and I will just keep you, Moses, and I'll make you a great nation. That's rather tempting for the corrupt human heart, but Moses says, Oh no, Lord! This is your people and your name is connected with this people. Have mercy upon them! Then Moses actually comes to the point where he would rather be blotted out than have the nation blotted out, so he has this real love for the people of God. All of that, you see, is he's a type of Jesus. Jesus pleads with his Father, based on his own merits, Deliver this sinner from going down into the pit, for I am his ransom. And then, of course, you have the whole Aaronic priesthood which is pointing to Jesus's priesthood, the priesthood of Melchizedek, the golden altar of incense which symbolizes prayer, the brazen altar representing justification, and then coming in and offering up a prayer—the second major work of a priest—by the golden altar, sprinkling it with incense and the cloud going up—it's all a symbol of Christ's intercession. The concept of the Angel of the Lord interceding for the people of God in the Old Testament. The covenant points to Jesus as well. And then, of course, spilling over into the beginning of the New Testament, you have examples of Jesus praying for others while he's still in the state of humiliation. I think of his prayer for Peter: “Satan demanded to have you . . . but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:32). That's a prestaging of the intercessory work of Christ to come.

01:32 - A Neglected Doctrine

Matt Tully
If this doctrine is so present throughout both the Old and New Testaments and in church history—you mentioned that the Puritans and the Reformers talked about this often and didn't disconnect it from the doctrine of justification—if it's such an encouraging and edifying to meditate on, why do you think it is that the evangelical church today has often so neglected it?

Joel Beeke
I would say that goes back even to the Reformation. I don't think that the Reformed church even gave it as much attention as it deserves. Maybe one reason is that Reformers are coming out of the Roman Catholic system, and you've got so much talk about the intercession of Mary, the intercession of the saints, and how man contributes to his own salvation. So the Reformers are really laser beamed on getting right the doctrine of justification by faith alone. The Puritans did more than the Reformers in developing the doctrine of sanctification. Not that they brought new things, but just emphasized it more. They emphasized intercession a bit more. One notable example of that, by the way, is Anthony Burges. He's one of my favorite Puritans. He wrote 145 sermons—1,200 pages—on John 17, which is Christ's high priestly prayer where he talks so much about intercession. By the way, we have just edited and retyped it all from the original transcript. It went through many, many editing stages and I had the privilege of being the last editor. We've got it at the printer right now—a two-volume work—and it will be coming out in about three weeks. Anyway, Burges's work on Christ's intercession is, even among the Puritans however, a fairly notable exception. I tell my students in my Reformation church history class that from the Reformation, even into today, I think the most neglected doctrine in the Reformed faith is the intercession of Christ. I preach on it quite a bit, and I think one reason I do is because I feel the poverty of my own prayers. I need someone who prays a whole lot better than I pray for myself, and that person is Jesus. I just get so much out of the intercession of Christ experientially for my own soul that I think I'm on a kind of crusade to try to get God's people to see more in this doctrine. The more you see in it I think the happier you are as a Christian, the more secure you are as a Christian, and the more profound appreciation you will have for Jesus in his state of exaltation and not just in his state of humiliation. To me that's a huge transition in the spiritual life of a believer—to really come to treasure him in the state of exaltation. One Puritan—Thomas Goodwin—I need to mention him because he did something fantastic. He wrote a little book titled something like this, Christ's Beautiful Heart in Heaven toward His Saints on Earth. What he's saying in that book is that because of the intercession of Christ and because of his ministry at the Father's right hand, we actually have Christ even better today than the disciples and apostles had when he was walking on the earth. He argues that from a couple of ways. He argues, first of all, that when he was on earth Christ could only be in one place at a time in his human nature. But now in heaven, through his Spirit poured out in us, he's present everywhere. So, he says we have more access to Christ when he's in heaven than the apostles even had with him on earth. In addition to all of that, from heaven he no longer has his own pains and infirmities that he struggled with on earth (although he did it sinlessly, it was still a struggle for him). Now he's so full in his resurrection power and his exaltation that the least whisper, Goodwin says, the least whisper of the smallest cry of one of his children—he has his ear tuned at his Father's right hand to hear him and to bring his worthless name and whisper it in the ear of the Lord of Saboath. He just paints this picture of Christ at the right hand of the Father just ministering to his church by his Spirit, by his preached word, and the servants he sends out. This ministry of Christ in heaven, which is focused on his intercession, is richer than anything the church has ever known. So that's what I think needs to be developed more.

21:24 - Is It Really Better That Jesus Went Away?

Matt Tully
As you think about your own experience with God and Jesus and your own meditation on his intercessory work, do you feel like that is better than him being here? I think sometimes we've all heard something like that. Jesus even said, I'm sending a counselor to be with you and it's better that I leave so I can send him (John 16:7). I think we've all probably experienced a little bit of, Yeah, but I would really love if you could actually be here with me.

Joel Beeke
Of course! We're human and it's the fleshly side of us that wants to be in his presence in a physical way. Like all believers, I long for the day when I can see him face to face and no more through a glass darkly. I think that's okay, but I think you're onto something, Matt, when you talk about Jesus himself saying to us, It's better for you that I go away. He knows our strengths and weaknesses and he knows that some of his people need that instruction. That's what Mary needed: "Touch me not" (John 20:17). But the other women he allowed them to hold his feet. So he carves out for our particular needs—our strengths and weaknesses—his own instructions for us. But I think overall you could certainly say, Yes, of course I'd love to be with Jesus physically, but I've got his word—the whole sixty-six books of the Bible, the library of the Holy Ghost as the Puritans called it—and I've got him at the right hand of the Father. Here I live by faith; there I will live by faith and by sight. Often we hear today in Reformed circles, You won't need faith in heaven because there you'll have sight. To me that's a bunch of nonsense because a heart of faith is trust, and I will trust him. But I won't need that one aspect of faith—trusting him while I cannot see him. That's true; but both will be reality. I will have Christ in an even fuller way because I will be living physically in his presence, but I will also have the element of faith, hope, and love as I have here on earth. But now, I see through a glass darkly.

23:57 - Common Misconceptions about the Doctrine of Christ’s Intercession

Matt Tully
Let's talk a little bit about common misconceptions about this doctrine. This is a doctrine that we've already established as a little bit foreign to many of us. One that comes to mind immediately is that this doctrine can sometimes be spoken of in a way that makes it seem like God the Son, Jesus, has to continually convince God the Father to forgive us, or to not pour out his wrath on us. He's kind of constantly holding the Father back. What would you say to that?

Joel Beeke
That's a serious misconception because the Father is as willing to give his Son as the Son is willing to give himself as the Spirit is willing to work in the hearts of all those whom the Father has given to the Son. I like to put it this way: the Triune willingness is coequal and coeternal, like everything else in the Godhead. Don't forget that it was preeminently ascribed in Scripture to the Father the plan of eternal redemption, to so love sinners and that he would give his only begotten Son. If you're a Father, you know that when your child is in great pain, sometimes you feel that even deeper in some ways than the child does. To make the Father somehow more unwilling or needing to be persuaded is just so unbiblical.

Matt Tully
What are some other misconceptions that you've encountered when it comes to this doctrine?

Joel Beeke
I think the main misconception is that we just simply fail to realize the perfections of this. We think that somehow we need to have perfect prayers or we need to have perfect sanctification. Obviously we strive for perfection, but the beautiful side of this is that Jesus is perfect in not only
meriting our justification and perfect in his character, but he's also perfect in this glorious holiness. The intercession of Christ is a holy intercession. It's a perpetual intercession. It's an authoritative intercession. It's a loyal intercession. It's a legal intercession. It's a personal intercession. It's a particular intercession. It's a complete intercession. It's a compassionate intercession. It's all of that perfectly. I think the biggest misconception is not to grasp the fulsomeness of it all. As complete as we see Jesus's justification through his death and being, and as complete as we see his resurrection guaranteeing our blessed resurrection, so complete we ought to see his intercession—that he will keep us and bring us into the Father's presence, and will not rest until he can say, Here am I, Father, and all those whom Thou hast given me. There won't be one empty chair in heaven, as one of the Puritans put it. His work will be complete. His intercession will be totally victorious. So praise God for the intercession of Jesus!

27:26 - The Impact of Christ’s Intercessory Work

Matt Tully
What a beautiful picture that is. I wanted to read this remarkable quote that you include in your book, and then ask a question. Robert Murray M'Cheyne (he lived in the early 1800s) wrote: “I ought to study Christ as an intercessor. . . . If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million of enemies. Yet the distance makes no difference; he is praying for me.” I just found that remarkable—wherever we're all sitting right now, Christ is literally in the next room praying for us. So as a final question, can you share personally about the difference that this doctrine has made in your life? You shared that it's your ambition to teach this as widely as you can, but how has this impacted your life?

Joel Beeke
You're going to make me cry now. It has impacted me in a mega way. I won't go into details here, but I've been through some pretty heavy trials in my life and also in the Christian church. Without the intercession of Christ, I don't know where I would be today. That reality that M'Cheyne is talking about has become very real for me. It's not everyday, and I wish it were more real, but there have been times in my life—and more than a few—where I've been just crawling on the ground. Thirty-seven years ago at my second church I had shag carpeting. Do you remember those old shag carpets? I would be pulling at those shag carpets just crying out to God for mercy, just desperate for his help. But in those times I've experienced that I could fully believe that Jesus is praying for me. When I came to my wits end and could barely say the word Lord and could barely form any coherent content to my prayers, I would just call out, Lord! Lord! He was taking the intent of my heart and turning those into comprehensible prayers in the ears of the Lord, his Father. I felt strengthened at such times. Samuel Rutherford put it this way, "Better let thy prayers be without words than thy words without heart." I wish I knew more of that too, but I do know something of those groanings within that the Spirit indicts. Sometimes they come out as words, sometimes they just come out in sighs and groans. But behind it all stands our precious Redeemer interceding for us. It's like Bunyan put in The Pilgrim's Progress. There's a beautiful picture where Satan is trying to put out the fires of grace in the Pilgrim, but there's Christ standing on the other side of the wall pouring oil onto the fire and keeping it all alive. Matt, if it weren't for the intercessions of Christ, I would have given up several times in my life. I would have left the ministry. I think I would have abandoned everything. But knowing he's praying for me, knowing he's pouring that oil on there, knowing he's keeping alive the flames of hope and faith and love, that he's keeping me in the palms of his hands so that he'll never let me go, that he's there at the right hand of the Father always, always, always preserving and interceding for me—this is my life. That's my life.

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