Even the casual observer of the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy is impressed with the intercessory skill of Moses. This man knows how to pray. Especially are we overwhelmed by the servant of the Lord as he prays in a crisis. Moses is at his best on his face in a clutch. Moses connects with heaven when it really counts. Never did it count more than when God threatened to annihilate the Hebrew nation and replace them with a new nation raised from Moses’ loins (14: 12).
Not infatuated by God’s flattering promise, the voice of intercession began making its case. Its every breath reminded God of His own words and His own deeds. Prayer is not about man but about God; therefore, the best praying is all about God. In effective prayer it is not our trite and trivial requests which are uppermost but the unrivaled majesty of God. “Lord, if You do this”, Moses passionately pled, “The Egyptians will hear about it….the inhabitants of this land….have heard that You…are among these people…how Your cloud stands over them….the nations that have heard of Your fame will declare, ‘Since the LORD wasn’t able to bring this people into the land…He has slaughtered them in the wilderness’” (14: 13 – 16).
Moses reached the apex of his plea when he repeated back to God His very own words taken from Exodus 34: 6 – 7. If we want to pray perfectly, we must pray perfect Scripture. That’s precisely what Moses did. “So now, may My Lord’s power be magnified just as You have spoken: The LORD is slow to anger and rich in faithful love, forgiving wrongdoing and rebellion. But He will not leave [the guilty] unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers’ wrongdoing on the children to the third and fourth generation. Please pardon the wrongdoing of this people in keeping with the greatness of Your faithful love, just as You have forgiven them from Egypt until now” (14: 17 – 19).
This awesome statement lies at the heart of the national confession in the time of Nehemiah (Neh. 9: 17) and the saga of Jonah (Jon. 4: 2). Potent praying knows well the rich, faithful love and His proven record of forgiving sin. Potent praying recognizes the impotence of prayer lathered up in human frenzy and punctuated with earthly wishes. Potent praying breathes the air of heaven because it operates on the premise that prayer is all about God. Potent praying kneels so that it may stand on the promises of God and reach into heaven’s throne room to receive what only heaven can give.