American Reformation Church Prayer Journal 63
ARC Prayer Meeting:
God established incense as a part of the ecclesiastical system which we discover in Exodus 30:1–10 when Moses was told to build the altar of incense. Incense, even in the Old Testament, was associated with prayer. Psalms 141:1, 2 states, “Lord, I cry out to You; Make haste to me! Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You. Let my prayer be set before You as incense, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.”
Throughout scripture there is this symbolic connection between incense and prayer. You may recall when Zacharias was in the Temple performing his priestly duties. He was called to burn incense on the Lord’s altar. Interestingly, as he is fulfilling this divine task, a multitude outside was praying at the hour of incense. It was during this sacred time an angel of the Lord decided to appear before him to announce to him that his prayers were answered. The barrenness of his wife Elizabeth was coming to an end and God was going to grant to this aging couple a special son, John. He would turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God and “go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:17).
It is in the book of Revelation that the connection between incense and the prayers of the saints find another connection. We are first introduced to this symbolic bond in Revelation 5:8. When Christ takes the sacred scroll and the four living creatures and the twenty four elders fall down before the Lamb having each a harp, it is then the golden bowls full of incense are introduced. John relates these bowls to the prayers of the saints.
As soon as these prayers goes forth, heaven breaks out in a new song, “You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth” (Revelation 5:9, 10).
The next time this theme is addressed is in Revelation 8. When the Lord opened the 7th scroll an angel having a golden censor was given much incense. This angel was called to mix the incense with the prayers of the saints. Once the smoke of incense and the prayers of the saints came before God, then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. All kinds of happenings took place on earth as a result. In this case, there were “noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake.”
In the worship song, “He is worthy of it all,” part of the lyrics state, “Day and night, night and day, let incense arise.” To this day, in high formal liturgical churches they use a censor, fill it with incense, and swing it to permeate the sanctuary with the sweet smelling smoke.
Hope to see you there as we let the incense rise with our prayers and intercession.
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