#25 Tabernacle: The Altar of Incense: Prayer

The Name of Jesus

In past church history and also in our recent past, the emphasis of prayer has been upon our needs and what we wanted God to do for us and our assembly. Our prayer time was spent by explaining to God how we felt and how inadequate we were to carry on the work. We may have explained to God our commitment and consecration and how much we wanted to do the will of God and what was hindering us. I am certainly not saying this kind of prayer is wrong but that this has nothing to do with incense prayer or the prayer of cooperation with God to meet God’s needs. Our prayer time may have consisted of praise and worship and exalting God and speaking of the wonderful things that He has done. Incense prayer is still different than all other forms of prayer and will be essential to this next restoration of God within the church.

EXODUS 30:1 “Moreover, you shall make an altar as a place for burning incense; you shall make it of acacia wood. [2] “Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit, it shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits; its horns shall be of one piece with it. [3] “And you shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding all around for it. [4] “And you shall make two gold rings for it under its molding; you shall make them on its two side walls__on opposite sides__and they shall be holders for poles with which to carry it. [5] “And you shall make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. [6] “And you shall put this altar in front of the veil that is near the ark of the testimony, in front of the mercy seat that is over the ark of the testimony, where I will meet with you. [7] “And Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it; he shall burn it every morning when he trims the lamps. [8] “And when Aaron trims the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense. There shall be perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. [9] “You shall not offer any strange incense on this altar, or burnt offering or meal offering; and you shall not pour out a libation on it. [10] “And Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once a year; he shall make atonement on it with the blood of the sin offering of atonement once a year throughout your generations. It is most holy to the LORD.

EXO 30:34 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Take for yourself spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, spices with pure frankincense; there shall be an equal part of each. [35] “And with it you shall make incense, a perfume, the work of a perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. [36] “And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting, where I shall meet with you; it shall be most holy to you. [37] “And the incense which you shall make, you shall not make in the same proportions for yourselves; it shall be holy to you for the LORD. [38] “Whoever shall make any like it, to use as perfume, shall be cut off from his people.”

When we get our first understanding of real incense prayer we are aware that most of our concerns when we pray are for ourselves and what we want. Incense prayer is wholly for the Lord and is what meets His needs and has nothing to do with what man wants. In the recent past, a popular song said “Jesus on the main line, tell Him what you want”. This scripture makes it quite clear that trying to offer up incense prayer for ourselves is not acceptable to God.

God was very precise in His instructions to Moses concerning every aspect of the Tabernacle and the sacrifices and the garments, and the furniture and where it was placed in the Tabernacle. There are hundreds of details that God was very careful to give Moses concerning every aspect of the service of the priests. He doesn’t put specific details upon the water for the laver or what kind of wood was to be used upon the altar but He is very careful to detail the four substances that was used to make incense and that they were to be mixed in equal parts. We see that it takes a skilled person to make the incense and to assemble the mixture so that it becomes a perfume for God alone. If anybody tried to make this specific perfume for himself he would be rejected by God.

What a great honor it would be to be declared by God to be a skilled “perfumer” when we enter into incense kind of prayer. While “prayer” is not uncommon, incense prayer is very rare. This I believe is what is on God’s heart: To restore incense prayer to the church! He must begin with the priests who are consecrated to burn incense.

2CH 26:16 But when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the LORD his God, for he entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. [17] Then Azariah the priest entered after him and with him eighty priests of the LORD, valiant men. [18] And they opposed Uzziah the king and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful, and will have no honor from the LORD God.” [19] But Uzziah, with a censer in his hand for burning incense, was enraged; and while he was enraged with the priests, the leprosy broke out on his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD, beside the altar of incense. [20] And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous on his forehead; and they hurried him out of there, and he himself also hastened to get out because the LORD had smitten him.

For several years we have emphasized that this next restoration will be preceded by a full consecration of the people of God. God requires the consecration offering from those who will burn fragrant incense to the Lord and FOR Him alone. Of course The Lampstand church must be functioning in order to illuminate the Showbread to get the revelations to burn incense.

The problem is this; It is not JUST consecration that is required but the accurate ministry of the revelations of God. For example ; Aaron’s sons were fully consecrated but were not careful about the other requirements concerning fire.

LEV 10:1 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it and offered strange fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. [2] And fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD. [3] Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the LORD spoke, saying, `By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be honored.’”

Physical death in the Old Testament speaks to us of spiritual death in the New Testament. The real fire to burn the incense must come in the Holy Spirit and is certainly not a stirring up of the flesh to give a false impression of the anointing. The scriptures don’t say where they got the fire but just that the error was with the fire. God calls it strange fire. The other explanation given is that they were not commanded to offer this incense.

The Bible say they took their respective firepans and placed Incense on them and placed fire on them. This was not the Gold censer that was only used on the Day of Atonement to enter the Most Holy Place.

The only other fire in the Tabernacle was on the Brass Altar for sacrifice or the fire that was being used to boil the flesh of the peace offerings so we may assume that they used that fire instead of the fire on the Gold altar. In Leviticus 16 there may be a better understanding. 12] “And he shall take a firepan full of coals of fire from upon the altar before the LORD, and two handfuls of finely ground sweet incense, and bring it inside the veil. [13] “And he shall put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the ark of the testimony, lest he die. [14] “Moreover, he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; also in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.

The fire in the gold firepan or censer was used only on the Day of Atonement, that is once a year. This was not the season to burn incense in the gold censer. Besides it was only for the high priest to enter behind the veil and burn incense in this way. The fire was placed in the firepan from off the Altar of Incense and the incense was carried in the hand of the high priest until he was just before the ark so that the cloud would cover the mercy seat. It appears that they were burning the incense for themselves and in the wrong way and in the wrong place and on the wrong day. That makes “strange fire”. This incense must be accompanied with the sprinkled blood upon the mercy seat and sprinkled seven times in front of the mercy seat. They were burning the incense without the blood also.

We are not even suggesting that we could even begin to do this ministry because that is reserved for our High Priest alone. What we are speaking about in this study is the incense that is burned upon the gold altar that stands through the torn veil before the Ark of the Covenant.

Now we could relate many other instances from the scriptures that speak of both the proper and the improper use of incense.

During the apostasies of Israel the story of two women was related to Ezekiel by God. These two represented Samaria and Jerusalem who turned from God. In their backsliding they used both the holy oil and the incense for their own pleasure. EZE 23:40] “Furthermore, they have even sent for men who come from afar, to whom a messenger was sent; and lo, they came__for whom you bathed, painted your eyes, and decorated yourselves with ornaments; [41] and you sat on a splendid couch with a table arranged before it, on which you had set My incense and My oil. [42] “And the sound of a carefree multitude was with her;

Our purpose in this study is to continue to speak of effective prayer. The reference to incense is to alert us to the truth that burning incense [prayer] is a very important ministry with emphasis upon obedience and within God’s purpose. In other words; God places great importance upon proper prayer offered up as a sweet perfume in His nostrils.

Incense Prayer is not a blessing centered activity that we enter into in a carefree way but is the training for a ministry in eternity. It is where we stand with God and in the circle of His sovereignty to activate His will upon the earth.

Prayer contains such amazing promises that are so broad that we hesitate to really believe what we are reading. God puts no parameters or limitations upon the answers to prayer but He does give a few requirements to participate. In addition there are different levels of prayer that we have loosely identified as Outer Court Prayer, Holy Place and Most Holy Place prayer. These different levels of prayer seem to have various degrees of requirements. What we are addressing in this paper is “the ministry of prayer” that we are relating to burning incense.

JOHN 14:13] “And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. [14] “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.

JOHN 14:26] “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

JOHN 15:16] “You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask of the Father in My name, He may give to you.

JOHN 16:23] “And in that day you will ask Me no question. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you shall ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My name. [24] “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full.

JOHN 16:26] “In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will request the Father on your behalf; [27] for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from the Father.

This was the last teaching that Jesus gave before His crucifixion and death but He was speaking of a day just ahead that had not yet came. He said “In that day” which had to do with His resurrection and ascension and being seated on the throne of heaven. The first thing that the Father provided for the believers “In His Name” was the Holy Spirit. [John 14:26] After that “whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give it to you” .

It is for these reasons that every time we pray we say “IN THE NAME OF JESUS” or some say “IN HIS NAME” or others say “ IN YOUR NAME”. To say “in the name of Jesus” has become a cliche that has assumed that “His name” guarantees an answer to whatever we ask. This seems to agree with scripture but in actual practice this seldom carries with it the power and authority we expect. We wonder why! Since Jesus said “whatever you ask” we assume that means exactly what it says so we ask for an abundance of “things” so our joy will be made full. If we lack “anything” then our joy will be less than what He wants and the Father will not be glorified. It seems that the Father is only glorified when we have everything we want and live in abundance. This is the foundation of the “gospel of prosperity”.

James puts some parameters upon this concept of fulfilling our lusts for things. James 4:2 You do not have because you do not ask.[3] You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. [4] You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

Now the Holy Spirit puts a fence around what man interprets as “anything”. He says that because of our wrong motives and lust to spend the answers to prayer upon our pleasure we cannot expect an answer to prayer. However, FIRST he says that they don’t have because they don’t ask. Asking God in prayer is the proper way to receive answers. Asking God is God’s revealed plan to provide for His children. If we don’t humble ourselves and ask we will have to go without. However, our motives and inner desires must correspond with God’s desire for His children and what pleases Him.

With that parameter in mind we are ready to examine this confusing term “IN HIS NAME” that is supposed to release “ANYTHING” we ask.

MATH 1:21] “And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins.” [22] Now all this took place that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, [23] “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD, AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.” [24] And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took her as his wife, [25] and kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

Before Jesus was born an angel appeared to Joseph and commanded him to name this baby Jesus because He would save His people. The Greek word is “Iesous” which is a transliteration of the Hebrew name “Joshua”. Joshua in the Hebrew means “Jehovah is salvation” or “is Savior” (with us). The earthly name of our Savior is JESUS. This name represented “God with us” for 33 years

But just before His crucifixion He announced that He was to receive a new name that would give His disciples access to the Father and would open the windows of heaven to give them whatever they asked. “In that day” had not yet come but it would soon arrive and then so many things would change in their relationship with the Father. This “new Name” was still JESUS. It was the same as His earthly name but it would open whole new frontiers and possibilities for His disciples and be “a new name” that released power and authority in a dimension they had not known before.

This may seem confusing because the Name stayed the same and was such a small change, if any at all. However, this is not just a matter of semantics. The angel announced His first name and He announced His current name and God the Father confirmed “the Name of Jesus” through the disciples ministry. For that reason and in order to emphasize which name we mean I will capitalize “Name” to refer to the Name Jesus received after His ascension and exaltation to the throne of heaven. Because so much has changed I have called this “a new Name” even though the name is the same.

First Jesus was a sacrificial lamb who would take away the sin of the world and through that sacrifice He would become the Savior of those who have faith. This is the meaning of the name the Angel commanded to be given.

PHIL 2:6] Who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, [7] but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond_servant, and being made in the likeness of men. [8] And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. [9] Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, [10] that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE SHOULD BOW, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, [11] and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father..

After His ascension and glorification He is made Lord of greatest stature and highest authority. After His ascension the Father gives Him this tremendous Name which is now above every name in heaven, on earth or under the earth. Now at this new Name God demands that every knee must bow and every mouth must confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Lord means “that much higher than the highest”.

This new Name of Jesus carries with it both authority and power and God demands that every living being must respect that Name and bow before it. Also every living being must confess His absolute Lordship over them. This is the revelation that each of us need to make a full consecration offering. Nothing shall exceed or excel that Name.

This should not be unexpected because even before Calvary the name of Jesus carried with it great authority and power. LUKE 10:17 And the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” [18] And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. [19] “Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall injure you.

The proof that the name of Jesus carried with it power and authority was that they healed the sick and cast out demons in that name. When they went out in the name of Jesus it was the same as He, Himself going out and they carried with them the authority of His name.

LUKE 10:16] “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.” The disciples were acting as His ambassadors and represented him in preaching, healing and casting out demons. Indirectly they were representing the Father also! They were His representatives and were being trained to continue His ministry after He was taken up. This was their apprenticeship training for the church age when they would continue to minister in His higher Name. I hope each of us can see the importance of this apprenticeship training in our own experience and how it will affect our future.

ACTS 3:4] And Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze upon him and said, “Look at us!” [5] And he began to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. [6] But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene ---walk!” [7] And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened. [8] And with a leap, he stood upright and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.

ACTS 4:5 And it came about on the next day, that their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem; [6] and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of high-priestly descent. [7] And when they had placed them in the center, they began to inquire, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?” [8] Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people, [9] if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, [10] let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead__by this name this man stands here before you in good health.

Both power and authority were manifest through the Name Of Jesus and healing took place through the declaration of that Name and by faith in that Name. They not only had Jesus’ authority to use His (new) Name but they had power to also heal in His (new) Name.

The point is this; Peter and John, following Jesus’ exaltation, used effectively His revealed Name. We don’t have to search for some hidden name or guess or use different names until we see that one works. We know for certain what “the Name” is and it is the Name of Jesus. In the scriptures from the book of John, that we listed, it is revealed that the disciples should use His Name, expect results and receive THE answer they asked for. In Peter’s discourse following the healing of the lame man it is clear that he fully expected the man to rise up and walk and be made whole.

ACTS 3:12] But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people, “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this, or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk? [13] “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you delivered up, and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him. [14] “But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, [15] but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses. [16] “And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all.

The disciples didn’t just have a doctrine about the name of Jesus but they had the revelation that at the Name of Jesus the lame will walk, the sick will be healed and the demons will be cast out. He has such a clear revelation of this NAME that he was wondering why the people marveled at the power in that Name.

If we review what we saw in John 16 we will see that a day was coming when Jesus was gong to receive a new Name (of Jesus) and then He was going to commit this Name (of Jesus) to His disciples to use by His authority. When they invoked that Name it was the same as Jesus standing there in His authority which was exactly the same as the Father being there. They had access to the Father in His Name.

JOHN 15:16] “You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, THAT whatever you ask of the Father in My name, He may give to you.

Receiving answers directly from the Father produces fruit that remains. Receiving answers to prayers is directly related to “fruit”.

Before Calvary Jesus’ name had horizontal power and authority to heal the sick and cast out demons and overcome all the power of the enemy. After His exaltation to the throne His Name has much more significance, power and authority. His name is not just a Christian cliche or a matra that we say but His Name carries with it the power, the authority, the Lordship and the government of the kingdom of Heaven.

LUKE10:3] “Go your ways; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. [4] “Carry no purse, no bag, no shoes; and greet no one on the way. [5] “And whatever house you enter, first say, `Peace be to this house.’ [6] “And if a man of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him; but if not, it will return to you. [7] “And stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house. [8] “And whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat what is set before you; [9] and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, `The kingdom of God has come near to you.’

He sent His disciples out to preach the Kingdom, and heal the sick and demonstrate the Kingdom. They were to carry no purse, no bag, no shoes, no food , no drink and no shelter. They were to stay in the house that was available and eat what was set before them. They carried nothing with them except the Name of Jesus and that was all they needed for success. When they returned they gave all the credit to the Name of Jesus.

In the past we may have had a doctrine concerning the name of Jesus but now we should see that doctrine is not enough and now we require a revelation of His Name. In the same way that we have authority horizontally in His Name we also have access vertically to the Father and may ask Him for anything. What I’m suggesting is that each of us ask the Father for a clear revelation of the NAME OF JESUS. According to the scriptures the Father will give what we ask for in His Name. It appears that Paul had this exact revelation from the Father that he recorded in Phil. 2:5-11. While he may have received this revelation when he was taken up to the 3rd heaven we also should expect the same “God imparted revelation” that Paul received.

Incense prayer and the Name of Jesus must go hand in hand. Our access to the Father and the knowledge of what is on God’s heart that He wants to accomplish is in His Name. This is Showbread. Coming to the Father at the Incense Altar in His Name with our request for God’s will to be done on earth is incense.

I couldn’t even guess at how many times I have used the name of Jesus in the last 34 years without even understanding what I was doing or saying and certainly not knowing the power that should have been released. I must repent of this ignorance but now I have to seek the proper revelation because our success in the immediate future depends upon it.

My suggestion is that each of us ask, seek and knock for an accurate revelation of the Name of Jesus! His New Name!