Arguing with God

Arguing with God seems wrong - it seems disrespectful.

But Abraham did it.  And Moses.  And other great men and women of the Bible.

In fact, God wants us to plead our case before him. 

“Presenting your case and detailing your arguments not only pleases God,” says Wesley Duewel, “it helps you understand the need more completely, moves your compassion, strengthens your determination, and arms you with greater holy hunger.”

But there is a catch: We must come before God with clean hearts and seeking his glory and his will.  The Holy Spirit and the Word of God can show us what God wants.

James Goll in his book The Lost Art of Intercession says that “as intercessors of the Lamb, we serve as assistant advocates of the kingdom (of God), charged with defending the King’s people and prosecuting the King’s enemies in the spirit realm”.

In other words, we come before God the Father to argue our case through Jesus who is always interceding for us.

Abraham came before God to ask for mercy on Sodom and Gomorrah and the Lord agreed to do so if there were 10 righteous people in these dark places. Unfortunately, there were not; but the incident shows that God listened and was prepared to act if the right conditions were met.

Moses told God he did not want the children of Israel to go any further unless God was with them.  He argued on the grounds of God’s glory.  And the Lord acquiesced to Moses’ request.

In his book Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Duewel suggests we should prepare our case carefully, listing several different steps:

• Plead the honour and glory of God: God’s name “is at stake in most needs”;
• Plead God’s relationship to you: You have the right to plead because he is your redeemer and you are his child;
• Plead God’s attributes: For example, ask God to act because of his righteousness and mercy and love;
• Plead the sorrows and needs of the people: Nehemiah and Daniel intervened on behalf of their suffering people, asking God to act on their behalf;
• Plead past answers to prayers: Remind God of what he has done in the past in your circumstances or for your nation and that the task is unfinished;
• Plead the Word and the promises of God: Quote to God his promises in the Bible; and
• Plead the blood of Jesus: We have no merit of our own - but we come before the Father on the basis of Christ’s sacrifice for us.

This helps focus my mind as I pray for others.

But, more important, it helps bring me in line with what God wants to do in the lives of the people I am praying for.