0504 同感性代祷
…我们既因耶稣的血得以坦然进入至圣所…《希伯来书 10:19》
要谨防认为代祷意味着将我们个人的同情和关切带到神的面前，然后要求祂做我们所求的一切。我们接近神的能力完全归功于我们的主对罪的同感或替代性的认同。我们是「因耶稣的血得以坦然进入至圣所。」
灵性上的固执是代祷最有效的阻碍，因为它是基于对我们在自己和他人身上看到事物的同情性「理解」，我们认为那些事物不需要赎罪。我们认为我们每个人身上都有某些善良和美德的东西，那些是不需要以基督十字架的赎罪为基础。正是这种思想所产生的迟钝和缺乏兴趣，使得我们无法代祷。我们不认同神对他人的兴趣和关心，并对神感到恼怒。然而，我们总是准备好有自己的想法，我们的代祷变成只会美化我们天生的同情心。我们必须意识到，耶稣与罪的认同意味着我们所有的同情心和兴趣的彻底改变。同感代祷意味着我们故意用神对他人的关心来替换我们对他们天然的同情。
我是固执还是被替代？我与神的关系是被宠坏了还是完整的？我是易怒还是属灵的？我是决心走自己的路还是决心与祂认同？
来自章伯斯的智慧
安慰者的位置不是传道者的位置，而是那位什么都没说，却为这事向神祷告的伙伴的。对于那些正在受苦的人，你能做的最大之事，不是说些陈腔滥调，也不是提问问题，而是与神联系，「更大的事」将通过祷告做成。（参见约翰福音 14:12-13）《力图更佳战斗》
0504 Vicarious Intercession
…having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus… —Hebrews 10:19
Beware of thinking that intercession means bringing our own personal sympathies and concerns into the presence of God, and then demanding that He do whatever we ask. Our ability to approach God is due entirely to the vicarious, or substitutionary, identification of our Lord with sin. We have “boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus.”
Spiritual stubbornness is the most effective hindrance to intercession, because it is based on a sympathetic “understanding” of things we see in ourselves and others that we think needs no atonement. We have the idea that there are certain good and virtuous things in each of us that do not need to be based on the atonement by the Cross of Christ. Just the sluggishness and lack of interest produced by this kind of thinking makes us unable to intercede. We do not identify ourselves with God’s interests and concerns for others, and we get irritated with Him. Yet we are always ready with our own ideas, and our intercession becomes only the glorification of our own natural sympathies. We have to realize that the identification of Jesus with sin means a radical change of all of our sympathies and interests. Vicarious intercession means that we deliberately substitute God’s interests in others for our natural sympathy with them.
Am I stubborn or substituted? Am I spoiled or complete in my relationship to God? Am I irritable or spiritual? Am I determined to have my own way or determined to be identified with Him?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
The place for the comforter is not that of one who preaches, but of the comrade who says nothing, but prays to God about the matter. The biggest thing you can do for those who are suffering is not to talk platitudes, not to ask questions, but to get into contact with God, and the “greater works” will be done by prayer (see John 14:12–13). –Baffled to Fight Better, 56 R