Throughout life, I have heard and given many explanations about God. Remembering my former explanations, I realize that my insight about God has evolved. The subtle variations of my temporary views lead me to think that our needs and experiences color our perceptions of the Almighty. The image of God, which we form in our mind, says a lot about the beliefs that we hold. The subject of God's love may provoke lavish, sometimes tearful reviews of complimentary adjectives and anecdotes, but when we sober up we may be surprised to discover how contradictory some of our beliefs really are.

Most Christians realize that Christ was willing to risk His life for us preemptively. Far beyond any man's request or any man's imagination, before we ever opened our lips to form a request, Yashua volunteered to go to Calvary! This love is extended to us from all members of the Godhead. Yet, in less demanding situations, where the risk is significantly reduced, we fear God will not extend compassion, until we ask Him to, or wrench it out of Him.

The intercessors reply "We have an injunction from the Word to ask, so what's all the fuss? It says in the Bible ‘Ask and it shall be given you?’"
 

Looking on Calvary it is not hard to conclude that, since God gave His only son to save the world, He will as well do everything in His power to wrest us from the enemy. He gave all that He could already! This axiom leads us into a difficulty, however. For, if God is doing everything He can already, where can He go to find additional resources to answer your plea on the behalf of another? Intercessors reply, "Oh God has all kinds of options!" Ok, but then He has not exercised them all. Consequently, He has not done everything He can do! Oops! Conversely, if He has done everything He can, then there are no more options. Everything that can be done is done already by a God who cares.

If there is anything additional, that God can do for humanity, it is well beyond our wildest guess and no sooner such a situation arises, God reaches out and discharges His duty on time. God is perfect. God anticipates everything and is faithful to His word and to His people. No stone is left unturned by Him. His character is on trial and it will be vindicated before the entire universe. One day the magnitude of His care will be understood clearly.

That awesome exactitude, though, leaves some of us quite distraught and in loss of control. Is there anything left for us to care about? What is there for me to do and ask? We will discuss this shortly.

Because of the sinful nature, sometimes we avoid opening to the Lord and admitting, "Lord how wicked I am, help me to change, put a new heart in me, I am sick of my sickness!", yet that is just what we need. To my consternation I spoke to an eloquent Christian who protested severely to my objections, telling me, "When I pray for someone else, Dennis, I am not willing to be changed myself and I believe that God will hear me and act in the life of the other person. I just want Him to go ahead and help the person I am praying for". My thought was, "how do you know, for sure, that your request is in order?" Surely meeting self is the greatest and first, achievement in the preparation for the work that God has waiting for us. Our attitude should be:
 

Yea, the better question, now, is, "What shall we ask for?" since, He knows everything and does everything He can! Those who expect God to carry out their requests may ask, "Is there any part for me to play here?" Some take the extreme position of being persistent until something gives. Christ's advice to ask is misinterpreted to imply that the Father is somewhat ambivalent and He needs to be persuaded by men. After all, Moses persuaded Him not to destroy the Israelites! Are the Intercessors thinking right, here?

Like alcohol, prayer can become an obsession. These thoughts are natural when we aspire to power. The whole idea of sin is the aspiration to power. It tends to dim the mind and comfort the individual that everything is okay. The trouble is that nothing is okay. Reasoning does not go on, though the comfort is present. Concerning Moses, ask yourself, "Was Moses more merciful than God?"

It is one thing to come to God and ask Him to guide us to help others, and start planning, take action to help them the best way we can. It is another thing to delegate to Him tasks or jobs with our petitions and black mail Him with His promises, which are based on conditions, which he will fulfill faithfully without any reminders. Some would object that God would like to make us partakers of His plan of salvation and thus He shares His burdens with us, but a better question may be asked of such. If you ask God for bread, will He give you a serpent?

If things remained the same and no change took place in the heart of the petitioner, no progress would occur. Progress is dependent on change. Since we are in sin, our need for progress is clearly established. Sin has us in a tailspin where, without God's help, we cannot change self significantly enough. Thus, if we cannot change God or others, and without change there is no progress, it becomes clear that the change needs to be effected in the petitioner. No other conclusion seems reasonable.

Unlike the weak evidences for intercessory prayers, the need for personal change is widely preached and understood in the Scriptures. Next to the Savior it is the main theme of inspiration. Individual repentance outlines and outshines all other themes. It echoes in all God’s counsels. God made magnificent, extensive and ample provisions for each individual to experience change. Everything that could be, has been supplied through individual relationship with Him.
 

What about Sr. White, why does she not talk about the financial crisis or changes concerning other sinners? It is because the upbuilding of the petitioner's character is the primary purpose of prayer! This is an axiomatic definition of prayer. Why else would Sr. White limit prayer to such a narrow sphere?
 

Which loving parent would omit to clothe his child, with a warm coat in winter? Does a responsible parent ignore the children's needs unless the children explicitly ask? How many children would survive the first 10 years of their lives, if this were true? "Hey dad, we need some food here!" Isn't it the parent's loving voice which cries out: "Did you take your sweater Janet, in case it gets cold?" Indeed which parent would not rejoice and give all the advice possible, to his child's inquiry: "How do I deal with this Mom/Dad?" The first question reflects an obligation while the latter implies a relationship. This distinction needs to be well understood, and should not be confused.

Yet the counsel is clear as the sunlight.
 

With a renewed heart, things which were impossible to be achieved before, are now suddenly within reach. God is our helper. The friends, whom we longed to touch and embrace, now suddenly find room in God's temple, since our oversized egos lose some size and weight. God could bring many more members to us if we were ready to care and illustrate His love.

The difficulty in grasping the implied prayer issues is that God greatly simplified them. He condescends to the lowest, the simple and humble of heart; "Ask and ye shall receive". The inexperienced prays for his friend and God helps him come to terms with his own sins. Indirectly the other person becomes affected and takes a different stand toward the truth. The petitioner sees the results of his own prayers and feels the gratitude toward God. God's plan is proven effective. God worked the petitioner into His own plan for another person. The petitioner, however, does not yet understand all the technicalities and a voice suggests "if you had not prayed for your friend he would not be sitting pretty here." Bang! The shot is fired! Which way do we turn? Believe this voice or not?

Sister White says:

Who has done this work, of bringing a soul to God? Was it our intercession? Was it our efforts? Or, was it God working out His purposes? God influences man. He does not force other men's hearts to undergo spiritual alterations when we ask him to. We are invited to become co-laborers with God, for the salvation of men, but lip service, delegation to God and tricks cannot do. The intercessors need to accept that, if we want to help God, we need to roll up the sleeves, take off the hat and come to Him to be changed, so He can use us, not the other way around.

We cannot change God's disposition toward someone else because, "He sort of, likes us and He will do us a favor". As the intercessors believe,
 

You must understand that God cannot be bribed or sweet-talked by any of us! Nothing that we do can alter the intentions of a God who understands and knows everything that is going on! We have no model to which we could compare a perfect God. Also, we do not come to Him to compel Him to make some legal or illegal changes in the heart or life of the other person. Yes, it may seem that way to an inexperienced or misguided person, looking from the outside. It might seem that way when God accomplishes His will, and the other person free willingly chooses right. Appearances however are not to be taken as facts because we are not in possession of all the facts, which transpire. God does not publish a full report on everything that ever transpired. God invites us to think.

A person is not changed when our free will chooses change to occur in their moral fiber! A person cannot be forgiven sin when we decide to solicit forgiveness for them. There are no mysterious or abstruse reasons. It is sheer madness to suspect such raving delusions. God does not play with the minds and lives of other men to satisfy our fancy or wills. If He could ever accomplish to forcefully alter the character or bypass repentance, He would not wait for us! If He waits for someone else to care, then He is guilty of lack of care. No argument in heaven or on earth can surface above this truth! For this reason no intercessor can supply any reasonable rationalization for why God waits on someone’s requests to do something for another. They make bold efforts to intimate that there are some rules, which prohibit God's direct relationship with the individual. Sometimes they supply unsubstantiated rules that can by no means be verified through reason or Scripture.
 

This seems to be a really difficult point for many. Joel Engelkemier exemplifies the grappling to understand this difficulty. In his book on prayer "Whatever it takes" he tries to leave room for intercessions and yet resolve the unfavorable implications of telling God what to do, with perpetual repetitions, as if God was somewhat deaf (a truly difficult task).
 

The plan to guide Israel was framed long before Joseph ever came into the picture. God's plans are not the haphazard, disheveled imitations of care that some men imagine. To underestimate God, this much, is appalling. Pretending to have such great familiarity with God, through prayer, and misunderstanding His will, after the fact, so grossly, brings the coherent student of this material to serious apprehension. To state "The prayers of Moses delivered Israel from Egyptian bondage and made them a great nation" is to be spiritually blind. Moses was an unwilling instrument of God. Before Moses ever realized that God had worked out this plan, the Israelites were awaiting for deliverance. Moses was so shy or inhibited that he feared to speak to the Israelites! God had to appoint his brother, to help him cope. Moses, probably, would have preferred to watch his sheep, rather than to deal with God's plan.

To confuse this amazing parabolic story, that God worked out to impress the story of sin on the future spiritual Israelites, with some man made powers over the Almighty, borders on blasphemy. Let me be clear about this. God delivered Israel from the Egyptian bondage. With or without Moses, this would have been done. He made clear every step of the way. He instructed Moses ahead of time, on what to do. Moses was a participant of God's plan. This was not something like "Hey look I think we are gonna have to kill'em all." This was a master plan that God was carrying out Himself. The parabolic implications of the original Passover, and exodus and the prophecy of Revelation 11:8, have a correspondence. Christ was not crucified in Egypt! Or, was He? Revelation says He was! If you feel confused about this, take time to study it. It will prove to be a most interesting study. God used Israel to paint a picture of future events and man’s prayers had nothing to contribute there.

Similarly, the prayers of Daniel, Ezra and Nehemiah did not deliver Israel from Babylon. God spoke through Jeremiah, to inform the people that they would be in bondage 70 years. They served the king of Babylon 70 years and God, regardless of any imagined intercessory prayers, freed them at the appointed time. By the way, Daniel's famous prayer, as recorded in chapter 9 of his book, occurred after the fact.
 

In the intercessory literature, the statement: "It is the Lord Jesus or the Holy Spirit, which prays through His church or individuals." is often referred to, by intercessors. These are simple words, but the implications are different to what common sense grasps. It takes a good while of thinking to understand the deeper significance of this expression.
 

The listeners who object to the self-aggrandizement of the intercessors are served with this addendum to suggest that humility is present in the story. It is no longer a self motivated action which conveys salvation. In a discordant way God is made a participant of this process and He offers prayers for those in need. This way, prayer will be heard by God.

The more gullible individuals and power seekers, however, leap at the idea of "Personal power and credit through prayer" and never get to question this. To this perplexing assertion no intelligent pastor is able to object, without being embarrassed. If they object, they are accused of not paying enough attention to what is being said, and the road becomes wide open for this monstrous ideology. I have witnessed this bilateral footwork first hand, with awe.

These ideas are standard use, within the intercessors' rationalizations.
 

The intercessory doctrine runs into difficult terrain here, but it is by choice. This is a theological hideout! To impute all credit for salvation to God would dilute the appeal of this doctrine for the power junkies and this strategy might prove detrimental for the survival of these theologies. On the other hand Paul's writings in the Scriptures imply severe constraints on man's self-centeredness. So, who gets the credit? The intercessors can't seem to make up their mind. They do their best to avoid answering the direct question, but if they have to, God is credited.

Yet, within their arguments they resolve the riddle by advancing both ideas, while aggressively asserting that it makes sense. In doing this objections are hard to express. It takes great effort to break through the fog. Each inquest is served with an answer, which soothes the inquirer. The various answers, however, contradict each other. Objecting "Give God the glory!" they reply "We did." Yet, as they proceed, the evidence betrays their portent!
 

Even Christ's victory over Satan seems to be subjected to this schizophrenic incongruence.
 

This fantastic, anomalous bridge is dearly and jealously protected, by the intercessors. It is the spinal chord of this doctrine, if it indeed has one. In christening this bridge, however, the Adventist is brought face to face with a stupendous difficulty. We are compelled to wonder how sanctification can be effected in the individual, since soul merging works to eliminate identity. Without identity, sanctification loses its validity.

Put on your thinking cap here for a moment. This is rough terrain. Issues about free will can be hard enough, but when merging of identity is involved the difficulty skyrockets. To probe the nature of this proposition "merging of responsibilities" lets ask the following question, "Is it OK to, free willingly, give up one's freedom of will?" Why would we do that, you may ask. The intercessors claim that it allows God to make changes in our character. If we turn our will over to God, we can trust that God will carefully perform the necessary surgery of our moral character and take away the bad stuff. According to them this is what sanctification is about.

Strangely, however, the very answer to this critical question can be found in Mrs. White's writings describing the practice of hypnotism.
 

The convolutions of the intercessor’s theology leave the most profound, dumfounded. It becomes quite difficult to separate reason from nonsense. This type of intellectual disintegration is commonly found in the theological literature of the Roman church, eastern philosophy or Paganism. Surprisingly, however, all of these intercessory prayer books are found in Adventist bookstores. It is good to be open-minded, but in this case it is beginning to hurt us.

The intercessory prayer theories have evolved to the point of great complexity. It has become a patchwork of various doctrines. It employs rationalization, but the complex is not solely based on it. Since the rationale is lacking, the void is filled with emotional appeals. In fact emotional appeals and strumming the chord of guilt are the more important part of the whole. Intercessors strongly appeal to emotional religion. Before thinking, the emotional engine is turned on and though some reasoning does go on it becomes difficult to break through. Fears are aroused and any objection against their view is converted to antagonism against truth. Ad hominems have always been and will always be a great tool for error.
 

The sum of this matter is that the intercessors are divided in their aim. They entice the gullible with the incredible power of prayer, "What power for prayer God offers!" (Carrol Johnson Shewmake, Sanctuary secrets to personal prayer. p. 53-54) and justify the mechanics via "God prays through us!"

The glory of God's truth is that neither "allure to power" nor "soul invasion" defines the nature of prayer or our relationship to God. In the case of power, to lay the responsibility of salvation on man is nothing more than, salvation through the works of man. As any, honest, student can perceive, prayer, like works, can and has been used for self-righteousness. The will of man falls miserably short of being able to contribute to eternal matters, external to one's own soul. I cannot save myself, how then can I save others? Sister White strongly suggests this.
 

Though not readily recognized, this is the sad state of affairs in which Christianity finds itself today. Lip service is lent to placate agitations caused by doctrines, which destroy the Christian foundations. Covertly, ideas of pantheism, mysticism, heathenism etc. are taught in Christian churches. Think about this for a minute. Soul merging and pantheism are really brother and sister. Let’s bring to memory Mr. Kellogg's subtle and aberrant views on Pantheism. Some thought that those were good ideas showing integral links of all creation. "God in all things!" Wow! Today, many will allow for the idea that "God overrides our will and takes control of our lives." When questioned they reply, "Well, He is in charge so why not? After all, sin is not conquerable by other means anyway!" Is this right? Do you see how Adventism falls in that crack?

The gentle influence of the Holy Spirit is not for the purpose of control. It has never been, it is not and it will never be! Adventism recognizes this and endorses the validity of His/Her ministration of sanctification. Clearly, we are to stand before the Father, both, justified and sanctified. To achieve this we must have the full exercise of the free will. The Law, after all, deals with the character of man. It is not designed to deal with a "manipulated" character and will. Subtle manipulation, of man’s character, is not on God’s agenda, dear reader! God values man so much that fallen man’s language and customs are ill equipped to convey it. God goes to great lengths to protect man’s personal choices, whether good or bad. Consequently, we can relax in the awesome wonder of why God would love man so much to give him so much freedom. More importantly, we can safely conclude that the Holy Spirit does not do anything other than influence.

Regardless of what argument is advanced and how well it is backed up with Scriptural misinterpretations, God does not have the power to make a man good or bad. Think about this. Rather than save man, that type of power would destroy man and defeat the purpose of the endeavor! Many hope to place the responsibility of personal character modification in the hands of God. How many sermons have we heard to that effect? Yet, such hopes are ill founded.
 

For the intercessor's theology, the problem is immense. Though they do not always recognize it, there is no way out. Yet, they cannot teach any other way. Power over others is the only solution for power seekers. Indeed, looking at prayer through the power perspective brings us to this impossible schizophrenic dead end.
 

Assuming that, "Prayer is power", or that power is involved in the prayer domain, is certainly a difficult conclusion. With such beliefs it becomes impossible to hit the mark. Further explorations into the idea of prayer become impossible. Prayer remains, as some call it "a mystery." In the mean while, the aspiration to power is dearly sought for, while personal responsibility is subtly undermined. The teaching that God is in control of the situation, and He uses force in this manner is taught worldwide, but it does not describe the God I know.

Understanding of the issues of prayer requires a disposition. It is not a matter of logic, though God's truth is extremely logical and overflowing with reasonability. From my experience with many intercessors, the soundest argument will be met with retorts or inappropriate replies. As noted before, we understand truth with the heart and not exclusively with the mind. No amount of words or intellectual exercise can assure to bring man to the understanding of truth.

With God's assistance and some humility, however, the avenue of understanding opens up and we suddenly realize how great and thoughtful God really is. God's solutions are truly simple and glorious. The simplest mind can grasp them and lay hold on them.

So, how does an intercessor give up the urge to control? Believe it or not, God has made provisions, for such a man. This whole issue comes down to the element of control. The power to control is very appealing to the inexperienced as well as the wicked. Man's way, to resolve difficulties, is usually prescribed through the avenue of power. Overpowering the will of the opponent appears to gain victories. Yet, there is a simpler way.

But, first we need to understand a little more about this "Power" issue. That we are talking power in the intercessor's theology is very evident. Most of their literature deals with power and pushiness.
 

Yet we need to think a lot about why the Savior gave up, power. Rather than take up power and intimidate Lucifer with His overwhelming omnipotence, God gave it up to settle the issues of sin. Have you ever wondered about that? How strange it is, for the Omnipotent God, to do that. What a peculiar choice! I would never have thought of solving a problem that way. Furthermore, I would never engage in such a perilous endeavor. But God is not that way. God’s character is foreign to most of us. Born on this impoverished planet many have a difficulty encapsulating how omnipotence and righteousness are entwined in God. It would seem as if no one has ever told us that God is that way. Many may protest and assert that this is not descriptive of God. God, however, speaks about this issue clearly. He tells us a lot about Himself and His aspirations.
 

As expected, along with the invitation, this incentive provides an incredible defense. It consumes all the fiery darts of the antagonists. The immensity of God and His ways are beyond the wildest imagination of man. God finds unusual ways to revive a dead heart. Who can reach so deep and with so few words touch the heart? Read it again. I know it is simple, but it has depth. "Seek to do the will of my Father."

As Adventists we may encounter many objections to why we observe the Sabbath. So often we are accused of trying to make it to heaven by works. Yet, reading the Savior’s counsel, a most appropriate reply comes to mind. "I observe the Sabbath because the Father expressed it as His will for me. He made His will known to us. Some of it was inscribed on tablets of stone so that we would remember it forever. I seek to do the will of my Father because I want to please Him. Why? Well, I do it with faith, when I cannot understand His requirements, because He understands things much better than I. Not to work my way into heaven, since, it comes free. I am grateful to Him for His great Gift and I seek to do things that please Him, since, He has done and seeks to do the things that are best for me." Have you considered that God wants to make man happy?
 

There is no argument left for the antagonist. If I am wrong in keeping certain laws to please God, then, I have done it of faith, and it will be acceptable to God, even though I was wrong! If I am actively seeking His will, sooner or later more truth will be revealed. My efforts are accepted. They were invited. I have a hope and am in no need of extraneous advisors. No intellectualizing, rationalizing or surmising on how to have the last word or give proper, rational defense. After all, I have the right to love the Father! Love involves a sacrifice on both sides or the relationship is not based on love.

The Savior’s disposition "I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me" makes us curious. We wonder who that Father is. Why is there such a great, unwavering, implicit faith involved. In a convincing way it charms the onlooker. If we adopt it the heart hardened antagonists must walk away without a place to hang a hook. This is at the heart of our relationship with the Father. This faith points out our dependence on Him. It prevents us from assuming that we have some inherent powers over Him, or authority, control over others. It delineates between our wills and that of God. Seeking to do the will of the Father is not the same as doing something because you have to. It demonstrates a disposition, trust in Him, respect for Him, hope in Him and much, much more. In this world of sin, as demonstrated by Yashua, it is our only safety.

This simple advice is as powerful as an atomic bomb, and it comes straight from the example and lips of Yashua. Who else could arm us so well? Who could say so much with so few words? Which of us could have thought this through better and extended to us such non-invasive aid or support? There is no need for hypnosis or intellectualizing and having to understand the intricate details of sanctification immediately. It does not involve any methodology. Tradition plays no part. And most importantly, it does not tamper with the thirst for power.

In the words of a Christian who has gained this insight:
 

On the average, sanctification is poorly understood. Intercessors, as well as many others, invariably fail in their reasoning on this point. Once sanctification is understood, however, intercessory prayer ideas vanquish without difficulty. The nexus of this confusion lies within the aforementioned dichotomy of not knowing whom to credit. Intercessors do both. Sometimes man is credited and other times God is credited for works or prayers. We already talked about that earlier. The problem, however, comes in where it is least expected. When we credit God for the good works. If God is the originator of good works or prayers, then where does the exercise of the individual’s will come in? Intercessors reply, "We can of ourselves do nothing good". "God is the only one who can change us and when He decides…" Everything depends on God. Yet, if we read some of Sister White’s counsels, we get a radically different idea.
 

Salvation has a lot to do with the individual and his personal choices. God has done His part, but there are two parts to the theme. Though God may be extremely willing the outcome depends very much on the individual. How one embraces the influence of the Holy Spirit makes a great difference. The individual’s voluntary changes of the state of the heart make the real difference of being saved or being lost. Character modification does not depend on the imposition of God or other people's wills on God. It, also, does not depend on, the imposition of other people's wills, on that individual! Such efforts are akin to intimidation or force. "God, please change the heart of this man…" is a prayer of the kind "Ye know not what ye ask…!" No! Individuals do not change as a result of the decision of another good willing individual. God does not offer remote manipulations of the court nor is His judgement clouded and in need of soothing pleas or diplomacy.

As so well stated by EGW, since God is doing everything He can to save man, "Everything depends on the right action of the will." The exercise of our will, however, may be troubling, since it may not be tamed. What we need to keep in mind is that we all have two natures within. God influences us in His own way and we develop a newly imparted character and this character has a "will" of its own. This character or "will" is what Sister White is talking about. It has a lot to do with Salvation. God values man and He does not intend to override man’s will.

How great it is to discover that God dearly values man and his individuality. Let’s remember that individuality is meaningless if the will is given away! Yet, the freedom of will is found, and not lost, through seeking to do "the will of the Father". Now, how could that be? That, sure, sounds like a contradiction to me!

The trouble in understanding this lies in some faulty assumptions. Freedom of will is confused with pleasing self. Pleasing self, however, would not be so bad if it would please us to make others happy. So, why do we do things that please us and hurt others, at times? The reason is that in sin we esteem ourselves higher than others. We forget about "Love your neighbor as you love yourself". This personal megalomania, however, goes beyond the neighborhood. It extends to the very throne of God. In the moment of sin we put down God, His counsels and His holy will. We rise above God, though our conscience may prick us. We decide that what we want is the right thing for us. This is what gives us the confidence to wrongly believe that we need to ask and extract from God our wants and desires. This is what makes us disregard and devalue the will of others and insist that our prayers did this and that.