"Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now."
(Numbers 14:19)

Moses is praying in our verse, and it is a very wise and noble prayer. It came at a very critical time in the travels of Israel. Israel had rebelled against God and refused to enter the promised land. Judgment threatened to wipe them all out on the spot. But Moses’ prayer spared Israel.

There are four things in Moses' prayer which we want to note from this verse which made it such a wise prayer and which makes it a good lesson on prayer for all of us. These four things involved problems, pardon, pity, and performance.

Problems. The first thing we can learn here is that Moses went to prayer when problems came. Problems were serious here. The people wanted to stone Joshua and Caleb, the ones who gave a good report of the promised land; and they wanted to replace Moses as their leader.

Problems may overwhelm us, but we can still pray. And if we can pray, we can do much in regards to our problems. No problem is too big for prayer. Lack of prayer will only make our problems worse.

Pardon. Moses prayed for pardon for sin. We need pardon for our sin. Today, however, many folk instead want permission to sin and lobby legislatures to make their evil legal. But Moses knew better. He knew that sin brings Divine judgment and earnestly entreated God for pardon.

Pity. Moses prayed for mercy. Moses asked God to pardon the people according to the "greatness of thy mercy." That is wise praying.

One of the most valuable lessons we can ever learn is that we will get so much more from God when we come through the gate of mercy than any other gate. Do not seek blessings on the basis of merit - you will not get much that way. Seek them on the basis of God's mercy.

Performance. "As thou has forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now." Moses based his prayer on the performance of God in the past.

The past performances of God showed His power and mercy and inspired Moses to pray. God's performance in the past promotes prayer in the present.

adapted from the book Daily Bible Reading Sermonettes 2 by John Butler, 2004

Hope we can get together again tomorrow, God willing.
Meanwhile, have a great day walking with the Lord!

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