Practicing criminal defense in Smith County, Texas was challenging to say the least. My friend Richard Kennedy used to say that the milk of human kindness was not to be found in the Smith County courthouse. For elected officials who were a part of the criminal justice system mercy and forgiveness were seen as weaknesses that could get you voted out of office. Initially, I hired on as a felony prosecutor and everything seemed to be going well until I decided to exercise some discretion in making reasonable sentencing recommendations. The beginning of the end was when I declined to revoke the probation of a young black male who had tested positive for drugs, a standard condition of probation guaranteed to land you in prison. When word of my recommendation, followed reluctantly by the judge, got back upstairs the elected District Attorney went into a full-blown rant. I soon returned to private practice after securing office space in another attorney’s building.
I then started taking criminal appointments for indigent defendants who could not afford a “free-world” attorney, one who would presumably work harder on your case if they were appropriately paid. I used to have court-appointed clients offer me a little extra money to what the county was paying me if I promised to work a little harder on their case. I assured them that such was not necessary. The first thing I would say upon meeting my client was that they had three options. The first was to enter a plea of not guilty and demand a jury trial. The second was to allow me to work out a plea agreement they could live with. And the third was to plead to the judge without a recommendation should they not like the offer from the State. More often than not they would exclaim: But I am guilty! Great, you’ve accepted responsibility for your actions so now I can get to work advocating for you. The prosecutor is pretty hard-nosed, but I think we can get some mercy from the judge if we give him or her a reason to show some mercy that won’t come back to bite them.
Advocating for the guilty, those who have accepted responsibility for their sins, is what the Apostle Paul is talking about in our scripture reading out of his letter to the Romans. Paul is telling the Roman believers that because they have accepted their guilt that they now have someone who will advocate for them so that they may obtain mercy, put their past behind them, and move forward with their lives into a brighter future not encumbered by sin.
Up to this point in Paul’s letter to the believers in the Roman church they have heard him talk a lot about the Spirit and you’d have to be pretty oblivious not to notice how important this Spirit person must be in the grander scheme of things. Paul continues by saying: In the same way, the Spirit comes to help our weakness. We don’t know what we should pray, but the Spirit himself pleads our case with unexpressed groans. If you think about that for a minute you can really relate. In our weakness we’ve done something or some things for which we are extremely sorry and embarrassed over. We are ashamed of ourselves and are so distraught that we are at a loss as to how to even pray about it. At best, we promise God that if he gets us out of this jam we’ll never do it again and might even throw in some community service for free. Maybe even attend church regularly. He says that the one who searches hearts knows how the Spirit thinks, because he pleads for the saints, consistent with God’s will. He’s talking about Jesus and is reminding us that all three of them, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, all have our best interests at heart.
And then, in probably one of the most oft quoted scriptures in the Bible Paul says: We know that God works all things together for the good for the ones who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose. When you dissect this statement, you realize there are three components to it. It’s for the ones who love God, those called according to His purpose, and that God works all things for their eventual good. Initially, this can be somewhat disconcerting if you are wondering if you are one of the ones called by God. To understand this, you have to realize that God works in all things—not just isolated incidents—for our good, the ones who love him. This does not mean that all that happens to us is good. Evil is prevalent in our fallen world, but God is able to turn every circumstance around for our long-range good. It is also important to note that God is not working to make us happy, but to fulfill his purpose. Additionally, this promise is not for everybody. It can be claimed only by those who love God and are called according to his purpose. So, who are those called? Those who are called are those the Holy Spirit convinces and enables to receive Christ. Such people have a new perspective, a new mind-set on life. They trust in God, not life’s treasures; they look for their security in heaven, not on earth, they learn to accept, not resent, pain and persecution because God is with them. Seems reasonable.
Paul then goes on to say: We know this because God knew them in advance, and he decided in advance that they would be conformed to the image of his Son. That way his Son would be the first of many brothers and sisters. Those who God decided in advance would be conformed to his Son, he also called. Those whom he called, he also made righteous. Those whom he made righteous, he also glorified. This too can be confusing as it has been interpreted by some as God’s plan for predestination. God planned well in advance of time as to who was in and who was out so if you weren’t predestined to be one of God’s chosen children there is nothing you can do to change what has been set in stone. Fortunately, we Methodists don’t follow this reasoning which was big with the Calvinists. God’s ultimate goal for us is to make us like Christ. For many, if not all, we are a work in progress. So, as we become more and more like him, we discover our true selves, the people we were created to be all along. What is clear is that God’s purpose for people was not an afterthought; it was settled before the foundation of the world. People are to serve and honor God.
To prove his point, Paul then asks a rhetorical question: So what are we going to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He didn’t spare his own Son but gave him up for us all. Won’t he also freely give us all things with him? That’s a good point. He underscores it by asking who will bring a charge against God’s elect people? He points out that it is God who acquits them. Who, he asks, is going to convict them? To reinforce his point Paul tells his readers that it is Jesus Christ who sits on God’s right side who also pleads our case. In another oft quoted verse Paul proclaims: Who will separate us from Christ’s love? Will we be separated by trouble, or distress, or harassment, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? It’s a question that needs no answer. Paul closes this part of his letter by telling us that he is convinced that nothing can separate us from God’s love in Christ Jesus our Lord: not death or life, not angels or rulers, not present things or future things, not powers or height or depth, or any other thing that is created. And that’s that.
What the Apostle is assuring us of is God’s eternal purpose to save us without thereby undermining our exercise of human choice or responsibility for our actions. And deciding in advance here means God has determined in advance the pattern into which believers like you and me are to be conformed into the image of his Son. And Paul presents the Spirit as energetically and indispensably working to accomplish God’s purposes. The Spirit does this by inhabiting people and giving them new life and unlike the Law, the Spirit effectively strengthens people to overcome the weaknesses of their fleshly existence. But there’s more. The Spirit pleads our case for us bringing our needs and petitions to God in accordance with God’s desires. As in, this is where Scott is right now, what I think he needs, and how we can help him to help us accomplish our goals.
So, as believers, we are not left to our own resources to cope with our problems. Even when we don’t know the right words to pray, the Holy Spirit prays with us and for us, and God answers. It may not be the answer we were hoping for, but it is the answer that works for the good of all. With God, through the Spirit, helping you to pray you don’t need to be afraid to come before him. When in trouble, when in doubt, when confused and scared, ask the Holy Spirit to intercede for you in accordance with God’s will. Then, when you bring your requests to God, trust that he will always do what is best.
Let us pray.
Gracious and loving God, how we praise you for your unmerited mercy and recognizing the weakness in us. We thank you for your gift of the Spirit who pleads our case to you when we have done something wrong in your eyes. In our shame our words are inadequate, and we feel unworthy of your forgiveness. What comfort we take in the assurance that nothing in this world can separate us from your love. As we have been formed in the image of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, we can only hope that we can live up to such a high standard. We will try and we will fail but we know you are for us so we don’t worry about who can be against us? In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.
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7/26/26
How Do You Plead?
The Spirit pleads our case for us bringing our needs and petitions to God in accordance with God’s desires.