Friday, April 04, 2008

One Mother's Intercession

The wounded mother Rizpah moved beyond her own pain and into the role of an intercessor. Her extreme stand on behalf of the nation paved the way for healing and restoration on a massive scale and serves as an example for us as we seek to reverse the curse that’s on our land.

There had been a famine in all of Israel and no one, not even King David, understood the cause. For three years straight this went on until David sought the Lord for insight. A curse had come upon the land, and its source was traced to a broken covenant under the previous leadership. It was because of King Saul’s bloody house, and no one knew what to do about it.

David asked the remnant of the Gibeonites what could possibly be done to make things right. The answer was surprising. They didn’t want money. They didn’t want land. They said, “Give us the seven sons of Saul to be hung before the Lord.” It wasn’t revenge or restituition. It was atonement. And so David delivered seven descendants, two of which were the sons of Rizpah. All of this took place during the Passover season.

What happened next is somewhat perplexing. The famine didn’t end. The scriptures tell us that Rizpah, this distraught mother, stood guard over the bodies from the barley harvest until the first rains came.

10 Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds of the air touch them by day or the wild animals by night. 11 When David was told what Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done, 12 he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead… 13 David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up. 14 They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the tomb of Saul’s father Kish, at Zela in Benjamin, and did everything the king commanded. After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land. (2 Sam 21:10-14 NIV)

Rizpah kept watch over the sacrifice for month after month after month. Presumably, she was there for more than five months before the fall rain came. Commentaries, however, will tell you that the bodies would have fully decomposed after two months and that there would have been nothing left to protect. So why did Rizpah stay? The answer is stunning. Rizpah moved beyond being a grief-stricken mother to being an interessor for the entire nation. Her continued watch sent the crystal clear message, “The sacrifice cannot be in vain. I will not leave until we get rain!”

This intercession moved the heart of the king.

We are faced with a very similar scenario in America today. Perhaps you feel as though abortion does not effect you or that it’s not your responsibility. Jesus’ words bring the fear of God in our hearts as we read Matthew 23.

29 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. 30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers! (Mt 23:29-32 NIV)

This same story is recounted in Luke.

47 “Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your forefathers who killed them. 48 So you testify that you approve of what your forefathers did; they killed the prophets, and you build their tombs… 50 Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all. (Lk 11:47-51 NIV)

We may entertain thoughts like, “I would have stood against the Germans that slaughtered the Jews in WWII.” The reality is that we approve of the legal aborting of innocent children if we do nothing to reverse it. This begs the question, “What will it mean for us if the bloodguilt of 35 years of legal bloodshed is downloaded on one generation?”

A generation has hung on the hill like the seven sons of Saul. And yet we have the promise of a better blood that God’s people can apply. The blood of Jesus speaks better things than the blood of 50 million children crying for justice. If we do not exalt the atoning blood of Christ in the nation, then another generation will have to hang on that hill. We must recognize that the land suffers under the curse of bloodguilt. This is tragic. But we must move even beyond our own pain and into intercession. Who will take a Rizpah stand on behalf of the nation exalting the blood of Christ? It is a determined, extreme stand to take. It is one that says, “The sacrifice must be honored. I will not leave until we get the rains of revival.”

Tags: Abortion, Atonement, Atonement, Blood, Gibeonites, Intercession, Jesus, King David, Passover, Responsibility, Rizpah