Jesus： The Helpless One and The Interceder — Sandeep Poonen

Walking as Jesus Walked in the New Covenant

I wanted to share something that the Lord had blessed me with. It was a memory verse that we had memorized a few weeks ago. It's the one that's on the screen. From 1 John chapter 2 verse 6. We've probably heard this verse a few times.

Because this is an important verse for us in the New Covenant. The one who says he abides in him ought himself to walk as he walked. Walked in the same manner as he walked. To walk as Jesus walked is one of the tremendous privileges of being in the New Covenant.

I looked at that picture and I had a question of how that picture relates to the verse. And so the question that I asked also for the children is on the next slide. Which is can you spot Jesus in the picture?

Because the verse is saying you got to walk as Jesus walked. And in that picture it's showing mountains. You see the sun. You see two people. And where is Jesus in the picture? Now Jesus is probably everywhere.

He made everything. That's probably the Sunday school answer. Where is Jesus in the picture? And where I wanted to first see Jesus is in an unlikely place. Which is the one on the left. And I don't know if we have seen Jesus as this one who came on earth.

Jesus as the Helpless One from Birth

Most of Christendom celebrates December 25th as being the day that Jesus was born. We know that. There's no zero evidence of that. But when we think of Jesus being the helpless one. He did come as a baby.

He was born on some day of the year. And he came as a completely helpless one. And the tendency is to think of Jesus as being the helpless one. And to think of him as a baby being the helpless one. But that's not Jesus the helpless one.

Jesus the helpless one was throughout his life. Of course when he was a baby. And I don't know if you know what is the first words that Jesus ever spoke. I'm absolutely convinced that Jesus babbled in whatever language.

He didn't come out of the womb speaking fluent Aramaic. Whatever that language. He had to learn the language. He was just like us in every way. Except in one area which is he did not sin. So that's the only area where he was different.

So he babbled, he had to learn the language just like every one of us did. What was the first words that Jesus ever spoke that we got recorded? It's in Luke chapter 2 verse 49. And this is when Jesus is a 12 year old boy.

And he goes to the temple and he's without his family for 3 days. And when his family finally finds him in the temple. Jesus says to his parents almost shocked, almost confused. He says to them in Luke chapter 2 verse 49.

Why is it that you were looking for me? Why were you searching and trying to find me? Didn't you know that I'd be with my father? Because I'm the helpless one. Even though I'm 12 years old, didn't you know over the last 12 years that you've gotten to know me?

That this is where you'll find me with the father. Because I needed help from him. I always go to be with him because I need him. That other verse that I put along that slide, John chapter 5 verse 19.

So that was the first words of Jesus. And then during his ministry in John chapter 5 verse 19. He says, I can do nothing except what I see the father doing. For what I see the father doing is what I do in John chapter 5 verse 19.

Because the father loves the son. And shows him all the things that he is doing. And he will show me greater things. And then I'll be able to show you greater things. And you see this dependence and this helplessness on Jesus.

Where he was saying, I'm showing you all the things that I see from my father. And as my father shows me greater things, I'm going to show you greater things. He also had not seen those greater things.

And so he was not able to show the world the greater things. But this was a different picture of Jesus than we've typically seen. As we say, when we say Jesus says, walk as I walked. We tend to think we have to have had life figured out.

We don't recognize that Jesus was saying, I was the helpless one. Then the very last words of Jesus. Luke chapter 23. Luke chapter 23 verse 46. The very last words that Jesus ever spoke. I showed you the words that Jesus first spoke when he was a 12 year old boy.

He died when he was 33 and a half. What were the last words that Jesus spoke? Luke chapter 23 verse 46. He cried out with a loud voice. Didn't have to cry it out. Did he have to? The father could hear him even if he whispered.

Even if he said it in his spirit, the father could have heard him. But he cried out with a loud voice. That was the only way he could underline it. That was the only way he could emphasize it. He cried out with a loud voice.

Saying, Father, into your hands I commit my spirit. I've been holding on to your hand the whole time. That's been my life the whole time. From the beginning, at 12 years old, he tells his parents, didn't you know where you were going to find me?

You were going to find me holding on to my father's hands. So when I was lost, and I was in the middle of the busy streets of Jerusalem, I went to my father's house. It's the only place I would be. Throughout his life, in ministry, he was saying, I'm only going to show you what I see the father showing.

I can't do anything on my own initiative. All the way to the very end of his life, his last breath, his last words, he says, I'm committing myself back into your hands. That's all I know how to do. And I'm the helpless one.

And so, that's a much easier Jesus to follow than the Jesus who's walking on water all the time. But the way he walked on water was by being the helpless one. Not by summoning some great life that is so hard for us to follow.

So what I see in Jesus being the helpless one, and Jesus saying, now follow me as I followed, as I walked on this earth, now you follow me. And I said, Jesus, how did you live? Mastering over every sin.

He said, I did it this way. Reaching out for help. He says, walk in my footsteps. And this is the life I have to cover. And this life seems approachable. This seems accessible to me. I realize that I have to beware of a spirit with which I can come into God's presence.

Entering God's Presence with “I Need Help”

That can come into all of us. What is the spirit with which I need to come into God's presence? All of us, children, I'm sure you often want to try to reach your daddy's phone, or mommy's phone. Well, I work in security.

I would encourage you all to have a password. Well, I'm sure the children want to know your parents' passwords. Well, if you got access to my phone, you got access to a lot of things. All my notes are in here.

A lot of my work information is here. My photos, everything is on this phone. All you need to know is the password for this phone. And you got access to a lot of my life. What is the password to enter God's presence?

What is the password to enter God's presence? To enter all of God's riches? Lord, I need help. That's what I'm realizing is the password. And I beware of the password that says, Lord, I had a good day obeying your commandments today.

That's the alternative to I need help. And I look in the stories and I see the older son. On the story of the prodigal son, Luke 15, saying, Father, I've never disobeyed a command of yours. That's the password I'm entering.

So God, Father, I need access to you. And that's not the access. I see the Pharisee in Luke chapter 18. We know these stories well, so I'm not going to turn to all of them. Luke chapter 18, the publican and the Pharisee.

And the Pharisee says, look, I've prayed twice a week. I've fasted twice a week. I've done all these things. I'm not like these other people. That's the password I'm entering in to enter God's presence.

And he says, nope, that's not going to work. The rich young ruler, he too. He comes to Jesus and says, look, I'm going to type in the password. I've obeyed all the commandments since my youth. Not committing adultery, not committing murder, and on and on.

And I find that those passwords don't work to enter God's presence. Meanwhile, I find some other people entering a different password, like the younger son, saying, Father, I've sinned. I'm not worthy to enter your presence.

And he gets rushed into God's wedding feast, the celebration feast. I see the publicans beating his breast, saying, Lord, have mercy on me. He gets ushered into God's presence and is exalted. I see the Samaritan leper saying, Lord, I need healing.

And he gets healed, but he says, no, I'm not going to go and show myself to the priest. He comes back shouting with a loud voice, saying thank you to God. And God says, you're welcome into my presence.

Blind Bart and Mason, on and on. You find the secret password to enter into God's presence of joy is, Lord, I need help. I don't have it figured out. And whenever people came to Jesus saying, I had a good day, I obeyed all the commands, I'm doing great.

They find that they're not very close to God. So I can cherish the I need help cry. I can value it. It's our natural instinct to think when things are not going well, which means I need help. Those are the bad times.

And I find that God says, no, those are the easiest times for you to enter God's presence. The I need help cry is the password to get rushed into God's presence. To find fullness of joy is the I need help cry.

Seeking Christ Rather Than Merely an Answer

And when I'm there, when I enter God's presence, well, what am I there for? Am I there for a prayer to be answered or am I there to know Jesus? And there's this beautiful story. Santos was praying, Lord, help us to have the spirit of the widow.

I didn't know which widow he was talking about. There are a few widows that are commended. But there's this beautiful story that I was was on my heart. And Second Kings, Chapter four. This is a widow.

I believe is a widow. I actually may not have been a widow. No, I actually wasn't a widow. But anyways, this is the story that I thought of. And Second Kings, Chapter four. This is a story of a widow who was sorry, a woman, a woman who didn't have any children.

And then Elisha prayed for her. And he she had a child. But then that child died. And so that's the that's the situation. Second Kings, Chapter four, that her child has died. And so she comes out to meet Elisha.

And in verse 28, she tells Elisha, did I not ask her for a son from you? And did you did I not also say you don't deceive me means don't let my hope down. And Elisha had given her a child. And now the child had died.

So here's what Elisha says in verse 29. So then Elisha says to Gehazi, gird up your loins and take up my staff in your hand and go your way. If you meet any man, do not salute him. And if anyone salutes you, do not answer him and lay my staff on the lad's face.

Here's what the mother of the lad said. As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you. And so the widows, the woman said, the mother of the lad, dead child said. You're telling your servant to go with your staff to raise my child from the dead.

I'm not going. I'm staying with you. And so in verse 31, Gehazi passed on before them. And you see what happens is the staff didn't work. The power was not in the staff, the power was with Elisha. And I was reminded of this story.

What would I do if I had a dead son? And a man of God said, here, take my handkerchief and go place that on and the child will live. I'd be like, the son is the most important thing to me. But the answer to the prayer was not the most important thing for this woman.

This woman said, I want to be with the man of God. I want to be with Elisha. And I thought of that as I said, Lord, what is the purpose I come into your presence? The secret to enter God's presence is I need help.

But now that I'm here, what am I trying to get? What am I trying to get? Am I trying to get Christ? Or am I trying to get a solution to my problem? I noticed that in the verse that we memorized, or some of the folks were memorizing this week that we memorized from Jude chapter 1 verse 24.

I come to God because I want to be kept from stumbling. And to stand before his presence, in the presence of his glory, blameless and with great joy. That's why I come into God's presence. But the beginning of that verse says, to him who is able to keep me from stumbling.

The secret is not to get some power from God and then use that power to overcome sin. The secret is to get him because he is able to keep me from falling. And to make me stand in the presence of his glory, blameless with great joy.

The secret is to be with him and to get him. We keep saying that Christian life is a relationship, not a religion. But I find that when I come with a I need help cry, I tend to go to God and say, please help me with my problem.

And I don't say, God, I want you. I come into God's presence saying, God, I need help. But what I'm looking for is you. And that's kind of where, because of my problems, I say, Lord, I need help. But I don't value Christ himself.

That's where I need to say, Lord, I'm here to get eternal life. My son is dead. But I'm not going to follow the staff and the corrupt servant who's going. Ghazi was the corrupt servant who actually loved money.

No, Lord, I see that you are here. And so even the son continues to be dead. I'm going to stay with you. And to know that the problem is that the reason I'm coming to God's presence is not for the problem to be solved, but to gain Christ and to say, Lord, that is the reason I'm here.

Opening my Bible to read God's word today. Here's the reason why I am here praying to you. Not to get a problem answered, but because I'm trying to know you. I'm trying to gain you. How do I know it's time to leave?

How do I know when I'm ready to leave God's presence? This is the mark to me in my mind of how I know I have been filled with the Holy Spirit. We keep seeking to be filled with the Holy Spirit. How do I know I've been filled with the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit Glorifies Christ

The clearest marker for me has been John 16, 14, which says that the Holy Spirit will glorify Jesus. That has been the clearest marker that I've been filled with the Holy Spirit is that Jesus is glorified.

Jesus is magnified. So if I come to God's presence saying, Lord, I'm typing in the password of I need help. When now I'm in God's presence, how do I know I've been filled with the Holy Spirit? How do I know that I have received what I came for?

It's that Christ becomes bigger. Not that my problem gets solved, but that Christ becomes bigger. John 16, 14, and He will glorify me because He will take of what is mine and show it to you. And so the reason I'm coming to God's presence saying, Lord, I am the helpless one, is so that I can see.

That's what Jesus said. I can do nothing without the Father. But what the Father shows me when I see the Father, I show you. And as I see greater things about the Father, I show you. And it was the point was to see the Father.

Jesus wanted to see the Father, what the Father was doing. And when I go to Jesus, I'm not trying to get my problem solved. I'm trying to see Jesus. It's like Elisha, another story of Elisha. When the servant saw all the armies surrounding him, Elisha said, I pray for the servant that your eyes may be open so that you'll see the heavenly hosts.

So now the problem changes because the problem is still there. But I see the heavenly hosts that are encamping around all the mountains. That's what Elijah saw, so he was not worried. The soldiers didn't have to go away.

And in the same way, the boy may be still dead, the problem may be still there. But I'm here, Lord Jesus, I need help. And the way I know I get help is I'm filled with the Holy Spirit and I see you in a different light.

That's how my prayers have to be adjusted so that I see Christ more. And one common theme around all these people who met Jesus, the youngest son who met the father, the publican who beat his breast and said, Lord, have mercy on me.

Leaving God’s Presence with Joy and Rest

And the Samaritan leper who was the one who came back to Jesus. It's so important to remember the end of the story. The end of the story for the youngest son was that the father and the son began to celebrate.

That's the end of the story. Not that the son is beating up his breast saying, I'm not worthy to be your son. That's not the end of the story. So when I come into God's presence, I say I need help. But I get the help.

I get the fullness of joy. The end of the story for the publican in Luke chapter 18 is not that he kept beating his breast. But it says in Luke chapter 18, verse 14, that he went home justified. And Jesus says that those who humble themselves will be exalted.

So the end of the story is that you get exalted to God's lap. Sitting in fullness of joy and love. And that's how I leave. Full of courage and gratitude because I have received what I came for. And so often I find, Jesus said that to the leper too who came back.

He said, your faith has made you well. Your faith has saved you. And I find that I have to seek to hold on to get what God promises to give me. At verse Matthew chapter 11 verse 28 has often been a reminder to me.

Come to me you who are weary and heavy laden. Well I am weary and heavy laden, what do I do? I come to Jesus. Well what's the proof that I came to Jesus? I get rest. That's the undeniable proof that I came to Jesus.

That I get rest for my souls. Otherwise I didn't come to Jesus. There are plenty of people who are weary and heavy laden who are claiming to come to Jesus. But there is no proof that they came to Jesus because they didn't get rest.

And so there is a lot of thinking that there is a great virtue in beating my breast saying Lord I am such a horrible sinner. There is no virtue in that if I don't get what I come for. Which is justification.

Which is a greater view of Jesus Christ. And so I find out that Lord, you are not looking at my track record. Because the eldest son also had a great track record. But he didn't get a revelation of the Father.

The Pharisee was not telling a lie. I don't think he was telling a lie. He was saying I pray, I fast, I do all these wonderful things. All obedience to the law. But he didn't get justified. He didn't be called righteous.

Drawing Near to Jesus Rather Than Trusting Convictions

And so I find that I can do a lot of things according to the new covenant. I can do a lot of things that I think are absolutely right. And I can miss Christ. Say for example as I was thinking about this celebration of Christmas.

I believe that there are many, I don't want to say numbers. But there are many people who are remembering Christmas as the day when Jesus came to this earth. And are thanking God for what great condescension Jesus took to go from God to becoming man.

And that there were many people yesterday who took the time to be genuinely grateful to Jesus for doing that. And there were also many people for whom Christmas is a very hard time. Because it reminds them of painful memories.

They were joyous but now painful because loved ones are no longer with them. Or people died around this time. And so these are painful memories but they didn't give in to self pity. They reminded themselves of the sacrifice of Jesus who left his father's glory and came down to us and suffered for us.

And so yesterday was a time where many people were remembering the birth of Jesus in a very special way. And were meeting with Jesus. And who saw Jesus in a more glorified way. And then there were some others.

That's kind of maybe the camp that I could have been closer to. Who said okay I'm not going to celebrate Christmas because of this tradition being that or that. But I never drew close to Jesus. I drew comfort that I wasn't like those heathen people.

All those pagans, Lord thank you that I'm not like them. Who are doing this or not doing that. Meanwhile I never drew close to Jesus. While these other people were drawing close to Jesus. And so who won?

Who had a good day yesterday? Me sitting in my right convictions and holding on to my right doctrines but not drawing close to Jesus. Or some other people who according to their light they have or according to their genuine conviction.

Chose to remember Jesus in a sincere way and drew close to Jesus. And so I find out that I can obey all the commands. And be the older son. And the rich young ruler. And the Pharisee. And what is the secret password I miss is either I need help or I need you.

I want to find you. And I find that Paul had that. In Philippines years after being a whole hearted Christian. He said I consider it all rubbish to find Jesus. That's why I find that I have to find him.

Finding Christ as the Source of Christian Joy

And the wonderful message of the Christian life is that I get him. I receive him. Because many receive him. Such people are called children of God. I must receive Jesus. We must go to God's presence with that I need help cry.

But I must find him. I must recognize that that's what makes the Christian life a happy life. A blessed life. The first miracle that Jesus did was turning water into wine. And he replaced old good wine with way better wine.

And so the new covenant life is a much richer much more delightful life. And that is only found if I find Christ. All my I need help cries are worthless. If I don't find Christ. All my death to self is worthless.

If I don't taste the resurrection life of Jesus. I'm as Paul says to be most pity. If I believe in the death but not in the resurrection. So I find that I must work hard to say Lord I'm not going to leave you till I find the resurrection life of Jesus.

To find the justification that the tax collector found. To enjoy the celebration that the prodigal son enjoyed. To enjoy the salvation that the woman in the city compared to Simon the Pharisee or the Samaritan leper.

What did they find? Lord Jesus I want to find that. I want to find you. And the rest and the peace and the joy that you're going to give me. If not I'm just passing on doctrines. I need to find the joy.

Whether it's celebrating Christmas or not celebrating Christmas. What's the point if I don't have the joy of finding him. And that's what I find that we can stand on so many doctrines. Maybe very accurate.

But if I miss the joy and the peace. I don't have the life of the spirit. Because the kingdom of God and the life of the spirit is not right doctrines. But righteousness, joy and peace in the Holy Spirit.

I must keep fighting for that. That's how I can walk as Jesus walked. The other part of that picture that I also wanted to point out was. Jesus as the one helping. And the top side. And I don't know if you know what Jesus is doing now.

Jesus as the Interceder

And that's in Hebrews chapter 7 verse 25. And that was also a very helpful picture or verse to go along with the picture. Because when we think of helping people. We think I need to be there with that person.

I need to have my hand being able to touch that person. And maybe because of COVID it's made it harder for us to be able to touch other people physically. Or we're separated from loved ones or different people who are in need.

And Jesus is like that. He also separated from us. He's not with us here on this earth. He's up in heaven. The Holy Spirit is down here on us. So how does Jesus help us? I find a beautiful ministry that Jesus says.

You know just imagine this. It says in Hebrews chapter 2 and Hebrews chapter 10. That Jesus completed his work here. And then he went and sat down. He went and sat down at the right hand of the Father.

So what do you think of when you think of he sat down? Well he's done. He's now relaxing. But that's not what Jesus is doing. Jesus did sit down. He did complete the work. But Hebrews 7 .25 says what he's doing full time.

Hebrews 7 .25 it says that he is able to save Jesus. We shall call his name Jesus because he will save his people from his sins. Well that salvation didn't complete on the cross or in the resurrection.

It continues now in the ministry of Jesus that he's doing now. Otherwise he wouldn't be doing it. If it was not necessary. If it was a dead work. You'd be sure Jesus wouldn't be doing it. But it says in Hebrews 7 .25 that the salvation work of Jesus continues now.

Past the birth. Past the death. Past the resurrection. To now he's doing something to help save me to the uttermost. Completely. Forever. How does he do that? His heart throbbing is now doing something.

He's like I'm not sitting around doing nothing. I'm here to intercede. I'm here to stand in the gap on behalf of others. That's how he's helping me. And Jesus says walk as I have walked. Walk as I'm walking.

You abide with Jesus. You can do that too. Well I can't send them an email. You don't need to send them an email. Well I can't send them a gift basket. You don't need to send them a gift basket. You don't have to share them some great encouraging word.

You don't have to. You can intercede though. Jesus says you can intercede from a million miles away. What's stopping me from interceding? And I just wanted to share. When I think about the word interceding.

It is a greater word than forgiveness. Just think about it. Think about it dear brothers and sisters. Somebody who has hurt you. You ask yourself have I forgiven them? Sure maybe I have forgiven them.

But what does it mean to intercede for them? It means I'll take the bullet. I'll take the bullet for them. That's very different from forgiving. I forgive you. Stay away from me. And I'm not saying that we just keep interceding for everybody.

But what about the brothers and sisters in the church? Can I have a spirit of intercession? But I think it goes further than just saying yeah I've forgiven them. I don't mean harm on them. I don't mean evil on them.

But to me intercession means I want their eternal good. Now their eternal good may mean me staying away from them. But Lord I really am rooting for their eternal good. And I see that there's a difference more than just forgiveness.

Intercession as Loving Enemies and Seeking Their Good

Jesus said be perfect as I am perfect. And we know that's in the context of mercy. But in the context of Matthew 5. He's saying be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect. And he's talking in that context of loving your enemies.

And blessing those who persecute you. That's more than just forgiving those who persecute you. It's blessing. And to me I say Lord I want to understand what that means to intercede. And interceding is even more than sacrificing.

Because I could sacrifice for others but not be rooting for them. I can get a lot of gift baskets. I can make a lot of food for them. But I could still despise them in my heart secretly. And I have found release from negative thoughts towards people.

By seeing Jesus as being an interceder. And Jesus saying follow me. Don't stop at just forgiving them. Intercede for them. You don't have to send them an email. You don't have to preach them a sermon.

You don't have to send them a verse. But when that negative thought comes into your heart. Don't just say Lord I release them. I forgive them. Can you intercede for them? Say Lord don't hold it against them.

They don't know what they're doing. And subtle spirits of vengeance can come in. Even though I think I've forgiven them. But intercession is deeper than that. And richer than that. I have found that when God tells me to command intercede for others.

I find it difficult to obey the command. But when Jesus is my hero. And I see him interceding. It makes it easier for me to intercede. I'll give you a little story about that. That I've shared before.

Making Jesus Our Hero

When you're speaking you like to have your hands free. If you're speaking a lot. And if you're standing up and speaking. You're holding your Bible in one hand. If you don't have a pulpit. You like to have one free.

So I liked having the mic. Where I don't have to hold it. And so I also like a mic where it's on a stand. Or sometimes they give you a lapel mic. Where you can just clip it on here. And you can walk around on stage.

So a lot of speakers like to speak that way. And it picks up the mic really well. One of the most, the worst option. Is for me to hold a mic in my hand. Because then you see my mic is in my hand like this.

And I'm holding the Bible. And then I have to turn to a different passage. And so then the mic is, where do I put the mic? So I'm kind of going like this. Trying to get it like that. And the mic is picking up all the sound of all that stuff.

It's not a very preferred way for me to do that. And I don't have any place to put the mic down. So I always didn't like. I never liked the holding the mic option. That was the least preferred option.

Until one day. I noticed that one of my Christian preacher heroes. Always held the mic. David Wilkerson. Even though he was standing on the pulpit. He always held the mic as he was speaking. And I noticed something.

Ever since then whenever I held the mic. I used to think. I'm holding the mic like David Wilkerson is. And it became a positive thing. Because David Wilkerson was one of my heroes. Since I was a little child.

My hero holds the mic like this. I can do it too. It went from being the least preferred option. To being a wonderful compliment. Now I still am not going around saying. Please give me a mic to hold. But when I'm asked to hold the mic.

And there's no other option. It's become a beautiful badge of honor. Even though it is still the least preferred option. David Wilkerson had made it cool. Not cool to many other people. But since David Wilkerson was my hero.

It became cool. And I discovered that. What I need. Is for Jesus to be my hero. Then intercession becomes easier. Then being the helpless one becomes easier. Because my hero was like that. So the problem is not that I'm such a horrible person.

I have trouble interceding. The problem is Jesus has not become my hero. That is why I need to come into Jesus. God's presence. As the helpless one. And say Lord Jesus. Nick. You my hero. I need you to be my hero.

You're not. That's why it's very difficult for me to take the least preferred options. Of trials and sufferings. But when I see how you did it. And when my hero went through it. I can do it too. And when I see my hero interceding for others.

I'll copy my hero. I don't want to wake up at 4 in the morning. To go shoot 500 free throws. But if. Steph Curry is my hero. And he says meet me at the gym at 4 o 'clock. To shoot 500 free throws with me.

I'll wake up. The 500 free throws are still very very difficult for me. As difficult as it was before. But my hero is there with me. And I'm copying my hero. And I find that the problem has a lot to do with.

I don't have the right hero. A lot of times myself is my hero. Or the people who go on the vacations. And have the great jobs. And are in the news. They are my subtle heroes. And self is my hero. That is why.

I don't intercede as easily. But if Jesus becomes my hero. Then intercession becomes easier. Because that's what he lives to do. Morning and night. He lives. To intercede. And to save forever those who draw near to God through him.