Plead Your Case
//Kenneth E. Hagin
The believer today has covenant rights just as much as the Old Testament saints did. In fact, the Bible says we have a better covenant established upon better promises (Heb. 8:6). Because of that, we ought to be able to do all they did and more.
Here is a challenge from a covenant-keeping God to Israel under the Old Covenant to plead their case with Him. How much more, then, is it His challenge to the Church today!
Isaiah 43:25–26
25 I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
26 Put me in remembrance: LET US PLEAD TOGETHER: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.
Come Boldly to the Throne
First, God said, “I am He who blots out your transgressions, and I will not remember your sins.” Thank God for that! As a believer, you can confess your sins and you will be cleansed of all unrighteousness by the blood of Jesus (1 John 1:9).
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God has no knowledge that you ever did anything wrong. Do you see what confidence that gives you? When you understand that fact, you can come to the Lord without a sense of sin-consciousness. You can come with faith and boldness and get your prayer heard and answered.
As long as a person comes to the Lord in prayer under condemnation and with a sense of spiritual inferiority, though, he will be tongue-tied and fear-filled in His Heavenly Father’s presence. And he will be hindered from receiving answers to his prayers. For instance, many times when people pray, they say, “I don’t know if the Lord will hear me, because I’ve missed it and failed. I’m such a failure!”
If you’ve confessed your sin to Him, God doesn’t know you are a failure, so don’t tell Him you are. He plainly said in Isaiah 43:25, “I will not remember your sins.” Since He doesn’t remember your past sins and failures, don’t you remember them either. Instead, come with confidence and boldness before the throne of grace, knowing that you have been made the righteousness of God by the precious blood of Jesus (Heb. 4:16; 2 Cor. 5:21).
Put Him in Remembrance
Second, God said, “PUT ME IN REMEMBRANCE: let us plead together: declare thou [or set forth thy cause], that thou mayest be justified” (Isa. 43:26).
What does it mean to put God in remembrance? It means that as a covenant believer, you can stand before the throne of God when you pray and remind Him of His promises. You can lay your case legally before Him and plead your case as a lawyer would plead his case before a judge.
A lawyer is continually bringing up law and legal precedent. In the same way, you should bring God’s Word to His attention. That’s what He is inviting you to do in Isaiah 43:26. So put Him in remembrance. Lay your case before Him and plead your covenant rights as His child using the legal precedence of His Word.
If you need healing, if your children are unsaved—whatever it is you are praying about—find scriptures that cover your case. Then lay the matter before your Heavenly Father. As you stand on the Word and plead your case based on His promises, He will work on your behalf.
The Word Will Not Return Void
Isaiah 55:11 is an important scripture you should continually use in prayer as you stand on God’s Word: “So shall MY WORD be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it SHALL NOT RETURN UNTO ME VOID, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”
This verse should be the very backbone of your prayer life. No word that has gone forth from God can return unto Him without accomplishing the purpose for which He sent it!
God said, “I will hasten my word to perform it” (Jer. 1:12). A marginal note in my King James Version reads, “I will watch over My Word to perform it.”
These scriptures are in perfect harmony with John 15:7, where Jesus said, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”
Hallelujah! As a partner, a worker-together with God, you can lay your case before Him. You can call His attention to His part in your life. And because His Word abides in you, you can ask according to that Word and receive answers to your prayers. God will make His Word good if you dare to stand by it!
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[Editor’s Note: This article was adapted from Kenneth E. Hagin’s book Classic Sermons.]