Unpacking Intercessory Prayer: What It Is, How It Works and How to Do It

Remember what it felt like when your mom or dad stepped in to pay a traffic ticket you couldn’t afford? Or that feeling when you discovered your college scholarship covered all of your fees for a semester? Those are great examples of how someone or something intervened—or interceded—on your behalf. As a result, a burden or debt was removed from your shoulders. That’s a picture of what intercessory prayer does. It allows someone else to carry the burden, or intervene, on another’s behalf through prayer, and it’s a well-documented theme throughout Scripture.

What Is Intercessory Prayer?

Intercessory prayer is not a prayer of praise, an unloading of one’s own burdens, or a “daily bread” prayer. Instead, it is a pointed, persistent pleading on behalf of someone else for a deep need. Specifically, in the New Testament, we read that Jesus and the Holy Spirit interceded on behalf of God’s people for various reasons, but the most prominent were these—ability and access.

The Role of Jesus and the Holy Spirit

Ability: Jesus interceded to bring us salvation because we did not have the ability or strength to save ourselves. Hebrews 7:25 explains this: “Therefore he [Jesus] is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.” This scripture teaches that Jesus “lives forever to intercede.”
Access: Romans 8:26-27 tells us that “the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.” The Holy Spirit intercedes for us by bringing our requests into the throne room of God, where we cannot yet physically go.

Biblical Examples of Intercession

The Bible provides numerous instances where individuals stood in the gap for others:

Abraham interceded on Lot’s behalf to save him from the destruction of his home town (Genesis 18-19).
Jonah (though begrudgingly) interceded for the town of Nineveh (Jonah 3).
Jesus, in the greatest act of intercession, came down to earth to live as one of us, and interceded for our salvation (John 17:20-26; Luke 23:34).

How Does Intercessory Prayer Work?

Intercessory prayer is not about getting God to follow our plan, but actively praying for the strongholds in other people’s lives to line up with God’s Word. It’s a battle against evil spiritual powers that requires courage and diligence. As you actively speak against the enemy’s designs, stand on the promises of God, and remind God of His Word, the enemy’s attacks are thwarted. Light flows into areas where there was previously darkness (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).

Persistence and Vigilance

Paul reminded the church to “pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere” (Ephesians 6:18). This type of persistent intercessory prayer opens the door to bring about deliverance and deeper growth. Follow the example of the Apostle Paul who said, “So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you” (Colossians 1:9).

One word of caution: As you pray for others, it’s important to not take on the burden of the problem yourself, as that can be spiritually damaging. In the book of Proverbs, Solomon cautions believers to guard our hearts above all else (Proverbs 4:23). So be vigilant to intercede for the rebellious, but do not give up even when the answer is not yet visible.