It’s a term we’re commonly more accustomed to reading in a legal complaint, medical file, or arrest report — the detective knew she had a duty to “intercede” when she witnessed her partner’s unethical behavior. The state supreme court chose not to “intercede” in the high-profile lawsuit.
Or perhaps we’ve heard it in a religious application, such as the “Hail Mary” or another intercessory prayer.
For instance, many Christians are familiar with Romans 8:34, which notes that Christ Jesus “who was raised to life — is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us,” or Hebrews 7:25, which says that Jesus “is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.”
Still, the term can be confusing. What does it mean to intercede? And furthermore, what is the purpose of Jesus interceding for us in Heaven?
What Does it Mean to Intercede?
Intercede comes from the Latin words inter, meaning “between,” and cedere, meaning “go.” Translated most simply, intercede means to go between two parties, to serve as what we often term as a “go-between.”
Much like a bridge links two far-distant stretches of land, this go-between serves to join two sides of an argument, persuasion, or difficult situation. It connects the disconnect.
In the olden days, a man wanting to court a woman might seek her hand in marriage by asking her father’s permission. If the father refused, the suitor would then ask a respected friend or mentor to intercede on his behalf in the hopes of convincing the father to change his mind.
Or a person condemned to death might beg a wealthy patron to intercede with the king on his behalf.
It is an ancient practice still widely utilized today — quarreling friends often ask an unbiased party to intercede and help resolve the matter.
Intercession is a strategic act designed to bring about unity, peace, and understanding.
What Does Intercede Mean in the Bible?
Just like today, the Bible contains a number of examples of people seeking intercession in times of conflict or turmoil.
In Genesis 23, Abraham wanted to purchase a tomb in which to bury his late wife, Sarah, when she died in a foreign land, but the landowners offered to give him the use of any tomb he chose.
However, Abraham was intent on buying the burial site, so he asked the Hittites to intercede for him with Ephron the landowner, cementing the sale (Genesis 23:8).
Centuries later in the Promised Land, when God’s people turned back to the Lord after worshipping false gods, the prophet Samuel gathered them all together at Mizpah, where he interceded to the Lord on their behalf with fasting, prayer, and the sacrifice of a suckling lamb for their sins (1 Samuel 7:3-12).
The intercessor would typically offer something — an offering, a sacrifice, even pleasant and soothing words — in exchange for the unity or grace being sought.
But as we know, earthly sacrifices or anything else humans try to do to repent for their sins against God are never enough.
Time and again throughout the Old Testament, God would give His people a new start, and time and again they would turn away, caving to temptations of the flesh or the allure of false gods.
Finally, God sent His Son, Jesus, to pay our ultimate sin-debt and show us the path to forgiveness, redemption, and eternal life.
Why Do We Need Jesus to Intercede for Us?
On our own, we cannot possibly work hard enough to be perfect. Only Jesus, Word become flesh, is truly perfect, sin-free and “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
In a mighty, expansive act of mercy, God sent His Son into the world to show us the way to heaven. As we are told in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
But belief is just the first step. When Jesus described heaven as His Father’s house, a house with many rooms, His disciples asked how they could get there.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him” (John 14:6-7).
That is, Jesus is the way to heaven, the path, the only route. He is the bridge that stretches across the great chasm separating this sinful, imperfect earth from God’s perfect Kingdom in Heaven.
We cannot cross that chasm on our own. It is too far, too deep, and too vast. So, we have a choice:
We can stay on one side surrounded by sin and eternal punishment, forever separated from our Creator God. Or we can cross over to the other side through the only bridge that exists, the bridge that is Christ Jesus, our Savior, and Messiah.
Will Jesus Intercede on Our Behalf?
The Apostle Paul wrote that Jesus, exalted, holy, and blameless, has a forever priesthood in eternity with God the Father.
Unlike other priests, Jesus does not need to offer sacrifices to pay the price of sin — He did that once for all when he offered himself on the cross.
Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them (Hebrews 7:25).
In Hebrews, Paul echoed that notion of our savior, Jesus, there at the right hand of God always interceding for us because He loves us. He loved us enough to die for us, and He loves us still.
It’s a love we never have to doubt. For, as Paul wrote,
I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).
And as Paul wrote further, in 1 Timothy 2:5, “For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.” Jesus is our only hope.
The Apostle John notes in 1 John 2:1 that Jesus is our “advocate” with the Father, bridging the divide made by our sin.
We do have Jesus as our forever mediator when we choose to believe and follow Him. We are imperfect, but He is God who came to earth, lived as a man, and now sits in heaven, the bridge between us and our Creator, our Heavenly Father. He is our hope and our salvation, now and forever.
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