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In this message we will continue to consider the experience and enjoyment of Christ as another Angel in Revelation 8.
Revelation 8:4 says, “The smoke of the incense went up with the prayers of the saints out of the hand of the Angel before God.” The smoke of the incense indicates that the incense is burned and ascends to God with the prayers of the saints. This implies that the prayers of the saints become effective and are acceptable to God. In other words, smoke indicates that the saints’ prayers are effective because Christ has been added to them as incense. The smoke of the incense goes up with the prayers of the saints to the throne of God, and the prayers are answered.
It is incense, not the saints’ prayers, that causes the smoke to rise. In our prayers we need to have Christ as the incense with the smoke that rises. The point here is that to burn the incense actually means to pray Christ. The incense typifies the resurrected and ascended Christ, the unique One who is received by God and acceptable to Him. Thus, He becomes a sweet savor to God. This savor, as the incense, should be in our prayer. Since the incense signifies Christ, to burn the incense means to pray Christ. God’s desire is that when we pray, we pray Christ.
If we see that to burn the incense is to pray Christ, we will be ashamed of the way that we have often prayed in the past. We have prayed many things that are not Christ. Instead of burning Christ as the incense, we have burned strange incense, something other than Christ Himself. However, we should not offer as incense anything except Christ.
In Exodus 30 we first have a picture of the ointment (vv. 22-33); then immediately following is another picture showing us the incense (vv. 34-38). The significance of these two pictures is tremendous. It is that of two-way traffic, the coming and the going; the ointment is coming to us, and the incense is going to God. Christ as the Spirit coming to us is the ointment; Christ ascending from us to God is the incense. The ointment is toward us; the incense is toward God. The ointment is for us to enjoy, and the incense is for God’s enjoyment. Incense is absolutely and entirely for God. But there is an enjoyment for us — the ointment. The priests and all the parts of the tabernacle were anointed with the ointment. This is our portion. The incense is God’s portion. The ointment is Christ for us; the incense is Christ for God. We should have a two-way traffic in which Christ comes to us as the ointment, and He also goes back to God as the incense. After experiencing Christ as the ointment, we must “complete the circuit” by burning the incense. We need the anointing of the ointment, and we need the burning of the incense as well. God anoints us with the ointment, and we burn the incense to God. In short, the ointment brings God to us in Christ and through Christ for our participation in the divine element; the incense is our going to God with Christ and as Christ in prayer for God’s enjoyment. This kind of prayer simultaneously satisfies God with a sweet fragrance and carries out God’s economy, God’s administration.
Revelation 8 clearly shows us two things: the prayers of the saints and Christ as another Angel bringing much incense. The incense refers to the resurrected Christ. This incense is added to the prayers of the saints. Here we need to ask whether the Lord Jesus can simply add the incense to all our prayers. The answer is no. If we wish to have the Lord Jesus in resurrection added to our prayer, our prayer surely must pass through the redemption of the blood and the termination of the cross. The prayers in Revelation 8 are prayers of death and resurrection; hence, once the incense of those prayers is presented before God, immediately thunders and lightnings are poured down on earth. This means that God both hears and answers the saints’ prayers that are in death and resurrection.
Revelation 8 also shows us how God in His administration will judge this age. This judgment is waiting for the prayers of those who have received both the redemption of the blood and the termination by the cross. It is waiting for the prayers of those who have been resurrected to seek after His heart and stand on the position of death, thus allowing the resurrected Christ to be joined with their prayers. They will be tremendous prayers that can judge and end this age. The reason that the saints are able to pray for such high and great things is that they have been terminated at the cross and are able to allow the resurrected Christ to be added to their prayers. This is the meaning of the incense being added to the prayers.
True prayers are Christ in us praying to the Christ in heaven. Since we are men of many opinions, how can Christ find a way to come out of our prayers? To allow Him the way, we need to pass through the cleansing of the blood and the termination of the fire. Terminated ones have no opinions. After we receive redemption and termination at the cross, we can be united with Christ in our prayer. Consequently, our prayer is Christ. When Christ expresses Himself through us, that is the incense being added to our prayers.
The incense refers to the resurrected Christ with His merits — all that He is, all that He has accomplished, and all that He does. The resurrected Christ with all His work and fruits is the incense. As long as we receive the redemption of the blood and are in the termination of the cross, Christ is joined with us. Then when we pray, it is Christ who prays. At such a time our prayer is the expression of Christ. As a result, before God these prayers are the incense that is acceptable to God and will be answered by Him.
As we saw in the previous message, in order to pray at the altar of incense, we must first experience the altar of burnt offering. In our experience of the altar of burnt offering, we need to have a full realization concerning the blood and the ashes. Although there are numerous aspects of the cross, with relation to prayer there are mainly two aspects. One aspect is signified by the blood shed on the altar, and the other is signified by the fire burning on the altar. When anyone offers a sacrifice at the altar of the burnt offering, and it is accepted by God and consumed by fire, there are only two things in front of him. These two things are the blood round about the altar and the coals upon the altar. As the ashes and the coals of fire are mixed together, eventually, what the offerer sees is just the blood and the fire.
The blood and the fire are the two important aspects of the cross in relation to prayer. The ability of a priest to enter the Holy Place to burn incense and pray before God is based on two things. First, he has brought with him the blood from the burnt offering altar outside and put it on the incense altar. Second, he has brought with him the fire, which consumed the sacrifice offered on the burnt offering altar outside, and has put the fire on the incense altar to burn the incense. The blood on the incense altar inside and the blood on the burnt offering altar outside are one and the same. The coals of fire on the incense altar and the coals of fire on the burnt offering altar are also one and the same. In other words, the blood on the incense altar inside is based on the blood on the burnt offering altar outside. The fire on the incense altar inside is based on the fire on the burnt offering altar outside. The blood is for redemption; the fire is for termination. Anything that is put into the fire will be terminated. The most serious damage done to anything is caused by fire. Whenever something passes through fire, it is consumed. On the cross the Lord shed His blood for redemption. Through His death He also brought in a great termination. Every sacrifice that is placed on the altar of the burnt offering not only sheds blood but also becomes ashes. The cross results in both redemption and termination.
If a person has not been sprinkled by the blood, before God he is just like Cain, who could neither be accepted by God nor pray. Everyone who is acceptable to God and able to pray has been sprinkled with the blood. But a person who goes before God to pray not only needs the redemption of the blood; he also needs to be one who has been consumed at the cross. Nadab and Abihu fell dead before God due to a problem concerning the fire, not concerning the blood (Lev. 10:1-2). Spiritually speaking, Nadab and Abihu went before God to pray according to their natural man, without having been consumed and terminated by the cross. Consequently, not only were their prayers not accepted by God, but even they themselves were struck dead by God. Hence, everyone who learns to pray must not only be redeemed by the blood but also be terminated and become ashes. Our natural life needs to be completely terminated by the cross.
Without the blood and the fire, no one could enter into the presence of God. Without the redemption and the termination of the cross, no one can have access to God. A man may be able to pray a great deal before God, but he should not be overconfident that all his prayers are acceptable to God. A person who knows how to pray is always one who has been both redeemed under the blood and terminated on the cross. When we go before God to pray, we first need to ask whether we have been terminated. Suppose we wish to pray concerning the gospel, our family, the giving of material things, or the matter of marriage. In each case we need to ask if we have been terminated in that particular matter. We must ask whether we are praying with any self-interest. Whatever we pray for, we need to have a termination in that matter.
We need to keep in mind that the fire that burns on the burnt offering altar is the same fire that burns incense on the incense altar. Only the fire that burns the sacrifice into ashes can be the fire that burns the incense. If the fire is brought to the incense altar to burn the incense without having burned the sacrifice into ashes, then that fire is called strange fire. If we have not been terminated in a certain matter yet bring that matter into the presence of God in prayer, it is a great offense to God.
Strictly speaking, if a person has not been terminated by the cross in a certain matter, it is not possible for him to truly pray for that matter. If we have not been terminated by the cross concerning a certain person, then we are not qualified to pray for him. Many times the Lord does not hear our prayers for our own families because we have not become ashes. Those prayers are merely natural prayers, prayers of strange fire. Many times when we pray for the church of God and for the work of the Lord, the Lord does not answer. We pray for the Lord’s blessings, yet we do not see the blessings. We pray for years, asking the Lord to make the church grow, but the church still may not have growth. Many of our prayers have not been answered, because they are prayers of strange fire, natural prayers.
It is erroneous to believe that God will surely hear our prayers because He is merciful and gracious to us. God often does not hear our prayers, because we, the praying ones, have not passed through the altar. Some bring with them only the blood of the altar but not the fire; they pass through the redemption but not through the termination of the altar. We need to remember that whenever man goes to burn incense at the incense altar, he must fulfill two basic conditions. First, he must experience the blood; that is, he must be redeemed and cleansed. Second, he must experience the fire; that is, he must be consumed and become ashes.
When the light of the Lord shines on us strongly, we will not be able to pray for a great number of things. The decrease in the number of our prayers may prove that we are being purified. If we recognize that many prayers are prayers of strange fire, we will see that those prayers are neither necessary nor right. We will not dare to pray those prayers which are for ourselves and not for God’s sake, because they are initiated by us, not by God. After we have been terminated by the cross, there is a great purification of our prayer.
Ashes mean that everything has been terminated, yet the fire that burns the ashes is still there to burn the incense before God. The incense refers to the Lord’s resurrection and the fragrance of the Lord in His resurrection. Where the Lord is, there is resurrection. Wherever we have been terminated, there is the manifestation of Christ. We first pass through the redemption of the cross before God, accept the termination of the cross, and truly become ashes before God. Then, immediately, Christ becomes the incense which we burn before God.
Genuine prayer is both Christ Himself and the expression of Christ. A prayer that is good, right, proper, true, and acceptable to God is the expression of Christ. If we are terminated on the cross, Christ will live out of such a termination. Christ then will be lived out in our prayer. Only such a prayer can be acceptable before God and be considered a prayer of sweet-smelling savor. This is a prayer of one who has passed through the cleansing of the blood and the termination of the fire, thus allowing Christ to come forth from within.
If we truly have a vision of this, we will prostrate ourselves before God, confessing our filthiness and naturalness. Initially we will not be able to utter any other prayer. We will see the need to be cleansed by the blood and consumed by the fire. We will say to God, “I am an unclean person, and I am also a natural man. To this day I am still in my natural self. I need Your blood to cleanse me and Your fire to consume me. I need the cross to redeem and also to terminate me.” When we thus allow the cross to terminate us, in a practical way we can experience Christ’s coming forth from us. It is this resurrected Christ who becomes our prayer, the incense which we burn before God. We may not pray many prayers, but those that we do pray will be answered by God.
We need to see the necessity for prayer to be in resurrection. In spiritual experience the outer court of the tabernacle denotes the earth, the earthly aspect, whereas the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies denote the heavens, the heavenly aspect. Whatever is heavenly is in resurrection. The table of the bread of the Presence signifies that the Lord is our bread of life. This is of the heavenly aspect and is therefore in resurrection. The golden lampstand indicates that the Lord is our light of life. This is also of the heavenly aspect and in resurrection. Man’s prayer before God, signified by the incense altar, should be entirely in resurrection. Man may go before God to burn incense, that is, to utter prayers before God by drawing near to God and contacting God. Such prayer must be absolutely in resurrection.
Among the spices that are burnt on the incense altar, the principal one is frankincense (Exo. 30:34). In the Bible frankincense specifically signifies resurrection, just as myrrh denotes death. The frankincense which is burnt on the incense altar is a symbol of resurrection. When the sweet-smelling savor ascends, there is altogether an atmosphere in resurrection. Hence, according to the type in the Old Testament, man’s going before God to burn incense is entirely a matter in resurrection. This indicates that man’s prayers before God must be in resurrection. Although we who pray are human beings, every prayer needs to be in resurrection. Furthermore, although we are praying on earth today, every prayer must be in the position of ascension. For our prayer to be acceptable to God and be considered by God as a sweet-smelling savor, it must be in resurrection and ascension.
Today, if we would be genuine priests, we must burn the incense. A priest is a person who burns the incense inwardly to contact the Lord. Priests are a people of incense. The work of the priests is not mainly to make offerings but to burn the incense. Day by day they burn the incense, which is to pray. We need to learn how to burn the incense in a fine way to offer a sweet savor to God.
The proper way to pray is to apply Christ as all the offerings, to feed upon and take in Christ as our full nourishment, and then to utter something of Christ from deep within. These three items are the three stages of real prayer. In our prayer to the Lord, we must first apply Christ as all the offerings. This includes our confessions to God. When we begin to pray, we may have the deep conviction that we are sinful. Immediately, we need to apply Christ as our trespass offering or as our sin offering. We should pray, “O Father, I am so sinful, but how I thank You that Christ today is my sin offering and my trespass offering. I simply come to You with Christ as my sin and trespass offerings.” If we do not pray in this way, we cannot enter into our spirit, which is the practical Holy of Holies. Many Christians are praying outside the spirit because they do not apply Christ as all the different offerings.
Second, we need to enjoy Christ in the presence of God. Sometimes we may enjoy Christ before God by reading His Word, and we may take Christ in by pray-reading the Word. When we feed on Christ to enjoy Him and take Him in as nourishment, it is by this Christ with His redeeming blood that we can go into the presence of God.
Third, we need to utter and express something of Christ from deep within our spirit, not from our mind. This expression of Christ is the sweet incense ascending to God. It brings us into God and God into us. As a result, we will not only be mingled with Christ but also mingled with God. When we pray in this way, it is not only we who are praying but Christ who is praying within us. We and Christ, Christ and we, become one by praying. Then our prayer to God is the sweet incense ascending to Him. The more we pray by offering the ascending incense in this way, the more the glory of God will come down. The incense goes forth, and the glory comes down. This is the real communication, the real communion, and the real fellowship. Prayer as the incense ascends to God, and the glory, the light of God, shines down into us. Eventually, we will be full of Christ and saturated with the shekinah glory of God.
This kind of prayer needs time. We must spend time in the presence of the Lord to offer the offerings and to burn the incense. It takes much time to burn the incense. What we need is the priesthood with the priestly function, that is, to burn the incense through all the offerings. If we practice this priestly office daily, the entire situation of the church today will be changed. We need to convert our times of discussion into the burning of the incense. We must learn to apply Christ, to enjoy Christ, and to utter something of Christ. This is the proper prayer of the priesthood.
Today the church’s urgent need is for all believers to practice the priestly office of burning the incense in the presence of God. The only way to carry out the Lord’s recovery is to spend an adequate amount of time — at least half an hour daily — to apply Christ, to enjoy Christ, and to express Christ. In this expression of Christ, we will commune and converse with God in order to bring ourselves into God and God into us. Something very sweet ascending to God and something very glorious descending into us will saturate us and make us the genuine priesthood. The recovery of the church life depends on this priestly office.
We should attend this priestly office not only individually but more often corporately. For example, if we come together with some saints every day for half an hour to an hour to apply Christ, enjoy Christ, and express Christ corporately in our prayer to God, this will help the building up of the church very much. We should simply spend time in the presence of God to burn the incense. If we attend to this kind of priestly office individually and corporately, there will be a great change in life and expression among us. May the Lord be merciful to us so that we may carry out this commission.
Revelation 8:5 continues, “The Angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar and cast it to the earth; and there were thunders and voices and lightnings and an earthquake.” Here the altar in the expression the fire of the altar refers to the altar of burnt offering, from which the fire was taken. In Leviticus 16:12-13 Aaron was instructed to burn the incense with the fire that burned the offerings on the bronze altar in the outer court. The incense was burned with the fire from the altar in the outer court, signifying that Christ’s being burned as the incense for our acceptance before God depends on His death on the cross for our sins. Christ first became the offerings to take away our sin; then, in His resurrection, with His death on the cross as the basis, He became the incense for our acceptance. This indicates that our prayers should be based upon Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, with Himself added as incense in order that they will be effective and thus be heard by God.
Christ took the censer, filled it with the fire of the altar, and cast the fire to the earth. The Lord’s casting of the fire became the judgment upon the earth. As a result, there were thunders, voices, lightnings, and an earthquake. This indicates that God’s coming judgment on the earth will be the answer to the saints’ prayers. In Revelation 6:9-11, underneath the altar the souls of the martyred saints prayed for vengeance, crying with a loud voice, “How long, O Master, holy and true, will You not judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” In chapter 8 the Lord added Himself as incense to the prayers of the martyred saints, and the prayers went up to the throne of God and were answered. The answer to the prayers was Christ’s casting of the fire of the altar to the earth, which fire became God’s judgment upon the earth.
Thunders, voices, lightings, and an earthquake imply the answer to the prayers of the saints, including the prayer mentioned in Luke 18:7-8. The prayers of the saints in Revelation 8 must be for the judgment of the earth, which opposes God’s economy. To cast fire to the earth is to execute God’s judgment upon the earth. Therefore, the thunders, voices, lightnings, and the earthquake come as signs of God’s judgment.
God’s judgment upon the earth is the answer to the prayers of the saints with Christ as the incense. Although the sixth seal has been opened and the seven trumpets are ready to be sounded, nothing happens until Christ comes to offer the saints’ prayers to God with Himself as the incense. At that time, there are thunders, voices, lightnings, and an earthquake. This indicates that while God has the intention of executing His judgment upon the earth, there is still the need of the saints to cooperate with Him with their prayers. God needs His saints to pray so that He might execute His judgment. If we read Luke 18, we will see that the Lord Jesus says that at a certain time the saints on earth will cry to God to come in to deal with the situation and to vindicate Himself. At the end of this age, people will be so rebellious against God that some will even declare to the whole universe that they are God. While God has been tolerating this, some of the faithful saints will no longer bear it and will pray, “O sovereign Lord, how long will You bear with this? Will You tolerate this rebellion forever? How long will it be before You come in to vindicate Yourself and avenge us? How long will it be until all the earth will know that You are the Lord?” Eventually, there will be a need for this kind of prayer. The time is coming when we will all be pressed to pray like this. This will indicate that the end is at hand, because our spirit will not tolerate the situation any longer. Then we will pray to the Lord to vindicate Himself and to let all the rebellious ones know that He is God. When we pray like this, the Angel sent by God will minister to God with our prayer, adding to it Himself as the incense. God will certainly answer this prayer, and there will be thunders, voices, lightnings, and an earthquake. That will be the beginning of God’s judgment upon this rebellious earth. This will take place at the opening of the seventh seal when Christ, another Angel, will minister as our High Priest to bring our prayers mingled with His incense to God and will be the One sent to execute God’s judgment on earth.
Revelation 8:6 says, “The seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to trumpet.” The seven trumpets were given to the seven angels (v. 2). But it is after the prayers of the saints in verses 3 through 5 have been answered that the seven angels are prepared to trumpet. The answer to the saints’ prayers is the execution of God’s judgment upon the earth by the seven trumpets that followed. In other words, the seven trumpets are the answer to those prayers. God’s will in heaven requires the saints’ prayers to carry it out on earth. The offering of the saints’ prayers to God by Christ brings in the seven trumpets.
In Revelation 8 Christ is depicted as another Angel, offering the prayers of the saints to God (vv. 3-5). For His administration He needs our prayers. Our prayer is the response to His heavenly ministry. As we pray, He administrates. As He administrates, we are praying. He offers these prayers to God, and then He pours out God’s answers to them on this earth. The pouring out of God’s answers to our prayers is equivalent to His universal administration. This Administrator is qualified in every way, yet He needs our prayers. We may say that Christ is administrating the whole universe through our prayers. The executing of God’s administration is motivated by the prayers offered to Him from the incense altar. The prayer offered at the incense altar governs the universe.
