“The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings with their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat were the faces of the cherubim.”
– Exodus 37:9
We have seen this before in Exodus, we talked about our need for God’s mercy in Christ and others’ need for God’s mercy in Christ and prayed for others to know and receive God’s mercy. But as we come to it today in Exodus 37:9, my mind, and my heart are drawn, specifically even beyond our need for mercy and salvation, which is huge, fundamental, and foundational. I just was thinking about my need for mercy in my life today in fresh ways that I need that are different than yesterday.
We are in need of the mercy of God in every aspect of our lives.
Exodus 37:9 Remind us Us of How Much We Need God’s Mercy
I think about God’s promise and his word that his mercies are new every morning. I think about new circumstances in my life that cause the need for new mercy; new challenges, and new temptations that cause the need for new mercy. Think about them in my own life and then in the lives of others who are listening to this.
Ask Yourself Where You Need God’s Mercy in Your Own Life
Where do you need mercy today? And where do you need help from God? Where do you need his gracious hand to reach down and meet your need in a way that might be different from yesterday, a week ago, or a month ago? Every day we need just mercy from God in Christ. It’s what salvation is built on. We need the gospel every day, the good news that God has made a way for our sins to be covered. So we need that every day.
But then just in special, unique even ways, we need mercy on a daily basis. So I would just encourage you to think about what’s going on in your life right now and think about where you need mercy and just to ask God for it, to come to him for it. That’s the picture here in Exodus 37:9. His presence is pictured by this seat of mercy.
Exodus 37:9: Asking God for His Mercy
So we pray, God we are freshly in need today. I think about a couple of things going on in my kids’ lives, my parenting is a result. I think about some things going on in my life in work that I need wisdom for. And I think about just needing physical mercy in a couple of specific ways. And I can only imagine as others are praying right now, like the specific need for mercy in their lives and our lives together.
So God we pray for mercy right now in those specific ways. We come to you and we praise you that we find mercy waiting for us in you. Help, strength, and grace are ready to shower down upon us. God we receive it right now. We need your mercy in our lives, in our marriages, for your mercy God in our families. We pray for your mercy God in our churches, have mercy oh God in specific ways that come to our minds for our churches, for our community.
Asking God to Have Mercy on the Communities in Which We Live
God have mercy in the communities and cities where we live. God show, shower your mercy. We pray God for the nations we pray for your mercy. Have mercy oh God among unreached people who have yet to hear the gospel. God please rain down your mercy on them. Show mercy to them oh God. Don’t let them continue without hearing the gospel.
God we pray for your mercy, your mercy on the lost, on people around us who don’t know Christ. We just pray for new mercies today and we praise you that we get to do this today and tomorrow and the next day and the next day and all day long for that matter that we find mercy every time we come to you. All glory be to your name for your mercy. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
