Introduction To The Altar of Incense

The Kingdom Dimension Of Prayer.

The Priesthood Ministry!

Part of the Next Restoration

 

January 10, 2017

Jesus said" I am the way, the truth and the life, and no one can come to the Father except through Me".

We can interpret that as another cliche or we can see the reality of what He said. Was Jesus saying there are three unfolding revelations of him that lead us to the Father? Is Jesus, the Way, the same understanding as Jesus the Truth. Is Jesus, the Truth, the same understanding as Jesus, the Life? Is Jesus the LIFE the same revelation of Jesus, our Great High Priest?

Those who have studied the scriptures know there are various and diverse revelations of Jesus Christ that are higher and different than the revelation of His birth in Israel.

He may first be seen as the baby king and later as The Savior. Or as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. He may be seen as the Son of Man and also as the Son of God, who is the first of many sons of God that He will bring to Glory. Some understand Him as the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit or as the Healer. He may later be seen as The Lord of highest authority who must be obeyed. He may be seen as the Lord of all lords and The King of all kings. Or the ONE To whom every knee must bow. He may be seen as the captain of the hosts of the armies of God or as the Coming King! Or, as the revelation of Christ Jesus who is our functioning Great High Priest who sits at the Right Hand of God, the Almighty! Each of these represents an unfolding revelation of Jesus Christ. Rarely, would anyone receive a complete revelation of Jesus at his conversion experience. The Revelation for this study is this;

He is the Only way to the Father.

Many of these otherwise confusing statements are brought to light in the Tabernacle of Moses. In the tabernacle of Moses, the three revelations of Christ can be seen within the three veils that separate the worshiper from the manifested presence of God, who dwells over the Ark of the Covenant and ABOVE the Mercy Seat and BETWEEN the Two Cherubim. For example; according to the “gospel of salvation” all three veils are removed and as soon as our sins are forgiven we are seated with Jesus, on His Throne! However, what is revealed in scripture is not even close to that.

The general presence of God was in the entire tabernacle but there was the specific place of God's presence in the Most Holy Place. There was no open access to the Most Holy Place, behind the third veil, during the Old Covenant period. Only the consecrated high priest [who was Aaron or the son of Aaron and of Aaron’s priestly order] had access to the Holy Place, behind the second veil and NO ONE had access to the Most Holy Place and that was limited to the High priest!

That access was only once a year on the Day of Atonement.

Any Israelite, who was not circumcised or have a sacrifice for his sins, had no access even to the Outer Court, behind the first veil. Three separate revelations of God are seen in the three separate divisions of the tabernacle. These three are identified by their separate sources of light by which they were illuminated. Each of the three partitions, that form the three divisions, required different light sources! Natural light from the sun, moon and stars illuminated the Outer Court. The gold lampstand, with it's pure oil and it's seven mounted lamps of gold, illuminated the Holy Place. The manifested presence of God, the glory of God, illuminated the Most Holy Place. These three sections also speak of these three revelation of Christ Jesus. The First, as our all inclusive Savior! The second as our great active and functioning High Priest, building His Church! The Third as our King Eternal, currently building a Kingdom of Priests! The Most Holy Place also is the revelation of the Father and the Location of His Manifested Presence. In other words the Tabernacle exposes multiple Revelations of many Eternal Things!

Light speaks to us of revelation but Light and Life are linked together in John 1. Three levels of light indicate three levels of unfolding revelation of God, and possibly three levels of Eternal Life. The curtains or veils speak two things. First, stay out. Second, with proper preparation, you may enter. In the tabernacle of Moses, the third veil said, there is NO Access under the Old Covenant!

HEB 9:8 The Holy Spirit {is} signifying this, that the way into the holiest

(Most Holy Place) has not yet been disclosed, while the first tabernacle is still standing.

Christ Jesus, by His sacrifice on Calvary, opened up our access to the Most Holy Place. Why? That SACRIFICE and His blood introduced us to a completely New Covenant that was NOTHING like or subject to the Old Covenant! Ignorance of the New Covenant and the Promises of God are the source of the current ignorance and the powerlessness in the visible church!

Of course, in this study, we are not speaking of access to the physical Tabernacle, the one on earth, which no longer exists, but the access to Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle of God in the Eternal Heaven. In other words, to the New Jerusalem.

The first veil then speaks to us of Jesus the Way. The second veil speaks to us of Jesus the Truth. The third veil speaks to us of Jesus the Life. Once we have the revelation that Jesus is the only way— and there is and never will be any other Way to the Father— it leads us to a deeper acceptance and a more complete repentance. Since the Third Veil was only TORN, from top to bottom, when Jesus gave up His life, this torn veil represents HIS LIFE!

Matthew 27:50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. 51 And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook; and the rocks were split, 52 and the tombs were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised—.

But, brother, what has that to do with us since we are “already saved.” We need to see that “salvation” is not one experience but a process including several foundational experiences, However, forgiveness of sins is the first in our salvation experiences!

Then, by faith, we may need to “return” to the altar of Calvary and find a much deeper repentance because of our primary ignorance. For example; Our High Priest insisted upon a continuous and deeper repentance in Revelation 2 and 3!

We are not suggesting that we did not have our sins forgiven by the blood of Jesus when we first came to our Savior. However, each succeeding step in our foundational experiences has added to our understanding and revelation Christ Jesus, the Way! The succeeding Foundations mean ; the removal of old garments, then into the death in the Laver (baptism), to the new Garments of Resurrection, to the Anointing by the Holy Spirit, to the giving of ourselves in a total Consecration to God and to His Purpose and up to the Second Veil . Each “Genuine Experience” contributes to an unfolding revelation of " Jesus The Way". There are seven such steps in the Outer Court. It is this last Outer Court revelation of Jesus Christ, the Way, that leads us to becoming a Full Consecration Offering.

My point is this; In the first (earthly) Tabernacle, {the Type and Shadow) the consecration offering was the last thing the priests did before entering into the Holy Place to BEGIN their ministry. Their first ministry was to God, to become His Minister in behalf of and toward the people of Israel!

All that is just the introduction to this study in which we are essentially interested in the Incense and the Altar of Incense! We will not just focus upon the “items” but more upon the “ministry.” Why? That is because the Holly Place Life and Priesthood Ministry will be the Next Restoration. This “ministry” will primarily be Toward God! In other words, a complete renovation of ministry methodology!

Exo_29:44 "And I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar; I will also consecrate Aaron and his sons to minister as priests to Me.

Exo_30:30 "And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister as priests to Me.

Exo_40:15 and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing shall qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations."

That they may minister as priests to Me will be our emphasis in this study of the Incense and the Incense Altar. Why? Incense Prayer is primarily FOR GOD and to further His Purpose.

The Lampstand, the Lamps (the Seven Spirits of God) and the Table of Showbread and the Showbread ministry are covered in other studies of the Tabernacle of Moses which is a COPY of the Tabernacle of God, which is the Ultimate Reality!

However the foundations for all the Holy Place ministries, which we are guessing must be restored, must begin with the second veil which we have identified as the Veil of TRUTH. This Begins with our revelation of Jesus Christ who IS TRUTH. It is not just that Jesus preached to us a message that was "true," He, Himself, is ultimate and absolute TRUTH. In the world and too often in the church, truth is relative.

Current Truth is somewhat like doctrines that vary from church to church. In some churches baptism is essential while in others baptism is considered as a Jewish ritual (a ritual washing) that provides nothing in our experience as Christians. In some churches the Loed’s Table or the communion service is practiced each Sunday while in others, the communion is considered as a Jewish ritual of Passover that was done away with at Calvary. That kind of truth is popular but is not stable or Absolute so it is relative. The Lord Jesus Christ is God's absolute TRUTH.

People have a lot of foolish doctrines that only get straightened out when they get the Revelation of God's absolute TRUTH. In my opinion, that only happens when we approach the Second Veil. For example;

Isaiah prophesied with power for five chapters. Then he saw the Lord. When he saw the Lord he was devastated and was finished as a prophet of God because he saw the reality of himself and the uncleanness of his own lips. With that revelation of ultimate truth, Isaiah saw his own need for cleansing. In other words; Ultimate TRUTH revealed the lie that was in Isaiah and in his ministry. Of course this revelation of God brought Isaiah to the place where God could correct the problem and to continue to use him as God's prophet. We could say that Isaiah 9, and his future ministry as a prophet of God, was the result of the Isaiah 6. With that “uncleanness” could he have continued his ministry as a prophet? NO! However, many of us still try today. This is NOT a matter of sin but of uncleanness and requires a different dimension of repentance.

This example reveals the nature of TRUTH in our personal experience. It not only reveals the truth about Jesus but it reveals the truth about ourselves. A normal revelation of the truth about Jesus puffs us up and makes us proud. We want to write books about our experience and get on the talk show circuit. However the true revelation of Jesus brings to us the true revelation of ourselves. Another realm of repentance, that doesn't puff us up, but humiliates.

That “second Veil” Truth devastates and humiliates us but it brings a new balance into our lives for a Holy Place Priesthood function. Anyone who sees himself in the light of Jesus Christ can never be the same again. Anyone who has seen Jesus Christ and has not seen his own uncleanness and foulness, hasn't see the Exalted and Glorified Christ of scripture. When John the Revelator saw Jesus in Revelation 1, he fell like a dead man. That is normal! However, this cannot be taught as another doctrine or can it be experienced as a new study. This is a Holy Place experience that BEGINS at the Second Veil, which has not been TORN.

REV 1:17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as a dead man. And He laid His right hand upon me, saying, "Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last,

From this we can see the second veil can be a very dramatic and devastating experience. Some people have the mistaken idea they can just stroll through the second veil and on through the third veil because the third veil is torn from top to bottom and Jesus has made the way for us. Remember, the “torn” third veil is still part of the New Covenant Experience!

Whatever the condition of the third veil, the veil of truth still confronts us with Ultimate TRUTH. First, the truth about Jesus, and then, the truth about ourselves, which is the result of the TRUTH about Christ Jesus. The devastating part for us is when we see ourselves in the light of Jesus Christ, the Ultimate and Eternal Truth.

The Holy Place life and ministry, and each successive experience, produces a progressing revelation of Jesus Christ. Whenever we see Him, in His different revelations in the Book of Revelation, we should also see ourselves in that progressing Light. In the Holy Place, there is the Pure Gold Lampstand, The Gold Lamps, the Golden Oil, AND the Special Illumination from the Seven Spirits of God. Then the Wood Table covered with Gold on all sides! This “TABLE” held the Special Showbread which the Priests ate. Then the Gold Altar for the burning of Incense. This is a WOOD TABLE that is covered on all sides with Pure Gold! However, this Essential Table was for the specific purpose of burning this detailed and specific Incense. Burning any other incense on this altar invited disaster.

Not only do each of these items of furniture represent a Holy Place Life and Ministry function but each of these items represents a clear revelation of Jesus Christ, our High Priest, taken from among men to mediate the New Covenant! It is in this Holy Place that ( I am guessing) we will understand that HE IS absolute TRUTH.

Most everyone, who has eyes to see, has seen the extreme superficiality that is in the church today. So much that is passed off as Christianity is just cosmetic. An outward form but inwardly shallow, full of spots and wrinkles. When we compare the visible church today with the Church He is in the process of Building – The Lampstand Church of Pure Gold, holding and manifesting the Seven Spirits of God, illuminating a Priesthood ministry, we should see the visible church today, is frivolous, lukewarm, casual, impractical and insignificant. In so many ways, the visible church today is just, plainly speaking, irrelevant. This is also the world's criticism and the evaluation in much of the media. It is just not seen as force to be reckoned with.

The contrast is this; Jesus said he would build His church and it would be a force to be reckoned with. What then has gone wrong?

If we could see the preparation of the church {for a Holy Place Ministry} from the picture, the type and the shadow from the Tabernacle of Moses and the Preparation of the Priests, it will give us some insight of what God intended for the church, which is His body. This Church He is Building is pictured as the PURE GOLD LAMPSTAND. Our Great High Priest is pictured as personally rebuking, correcting, threatening and teaching the Seven Churches of Asia in Revelation 2 and 3. Why? He is revealing to them the advancement to the NEXT dimension of Pillars, Throne and Authority over the nations.

REV 1:20 "As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches. One church in each geographical location is represented by one lampstand. REV 2:1 "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:

Jesus is the one who is walking among the Seven Golden Lampstand Churches who knows what is happening in thoes churches and every Lampstand church in every age!

REV 2:5 'Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lampstand out of its place-- unless you repent.

From this it is clear that if Jesus removed the lampstand from the church at Ephesus, the Holy Place Life and Ministry would go into darkness.

Since the “darkness” is obvious in the visible church, is it possible that is what has happened, over the church age, in the visible church?

But, brother, why are you concerned since we are “already Saved?”

It is clear that the church at Ephesus was “already saved” , as was the other six churches, but now, in the Holy Place dimension, {following preparation} this is NOT about forgiveness of sins but about God’s Eternal Purpose!

Our continuing thesis is this; God has called ALL of us to be a Kingdom of Priests. It was the “priests duty” to keep the lampstand full of oil and the wicks trimmed.

Praying that God would keep the lamps full of Oil and burning brightly, to illuminate the Holy Place, was, is, and will be, a BIG WASTE OF TIME? Why? That duty is given to the priests! This ignorance is demonstrated in most “prayer meetings.”

Here is a Scriptural example:

Eli and his sons let the lampstand go out, the Holy Place went into darkness. The

Holy Place ministry stopped. No Showbread could be set out and no Incense could be offered.

It was just a short time until the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant. The Glory of God departed from the Tabernacle.

If the Lampstand is the church and the Lampstand is removed, the church, in the Holy Place dimension of the Seven Spirits of God, is in darkness and can no longer be a church. However, the visible church, like Eli and his sons, may not recognize that NOTHING was happening in the Tent of Meeting. Why? The Lampstand had gone out and the Ark of the Covenant was GONE from the Tabernacle! No Incense was burning! This was the situation for about 60 years but the priests were still performing their duties at the bronze altar of sacrifice and continuing the other Outer Court rituals.

Today, it seems normal to continue to hold "church services" Sunday after Sunday even if “the Lampstand is gone out and the Ark of the Covenant ” is missing!

It should be obvious that if the “ARK” is gone, the whole religious ritual will be superficial, shallow and mostly cosmetic and just more theater. Today, it seems, most of the visible church has no idea that anything is wrong. Why? The ministries are not aware so no one is concerned.

The main point in what I want to share about the Lampstand Church is it is not in the Outer Court. There is no Lampstand in the Outer Court. The Fullness of the Seven Spirits of God ONLY function and provide illumination in the Holy Place. Looking for the Seven Spirits of God in the Outer Court is a big waste of time. Why? There is NO fullness there! That is the place of the Down-payment of the Spirit dimension.

God has only designed one place for the Lampstand Church to function and that is Beyond the Second Veil and in the Holy Place. If there is such a thing as a counterfeit church, it would have to be in the Outer Court. It is just not possible for a superficial church to be in the Holy Place where Our High Priest is building His Church. There is no such thing as a superficial Lampstand Church made out of plastic, wood, bricks or be cast in plaster or even made of brass. What God recognizes is a PURE GOLD Lampstand Church, hammered out of one piece of gold.

Our conclusion from this type is this: It cannot be Jesus Christ who has built this aberration, casual and superficial visible church, therefore, what we see must be the work of uninformed men.

The Lampstand Church will have passed through all the unfolding revelations and experiences of "Jesus the Way" and will have been confronted with Jesus Christ the Lord, the Ultimate Truth and our King / High Priest. Since the Lampstand is made of pure gold, it is apparent the church must have experienced the process of refining the gold ore, to remove everything from the dirt realm! This requires the work of fire and requires that all the dross be removed. Why? What is required for His Church is PURE GOLD!

This process BEGINS at the Consecration Offering. Why?

That is where all hypocrisy, carnality, casualness, superficiality and religious trappings are removed. What was only cosmetic for theater is transformed into real Christianity and made transparent by the fire consuming the Sacrifice, the Whole Burnt Offering! The church that Jesus builds, which is a power to be reckoned with, will be A PURE GOLD LAMPSTAND CHURCH. We should not confuse what we see in the visible realm with what Jesus is building in the Holy Place.

The “ministry” in the Holy Place is not revealed by one item of furniture or by two but is revealed by a combination AND the function of all three. Regularly refueling the Lampstand Church, being Illuminated by the Seven Spirits of God, setting out and maintaining the Table of Showbread and eating regularly from the Showbread, continuously maintaining the fire and the Incense upon the Altar of Incense is the RESPONSIBILITY of the Active and Corporate Priesthood Ministry.

This is only presented as an INTRODUCTION to the Ministry of Prayer and the burning of INCENSE. Hopefully, The next study will be clearer about the Incense, the Fire and the Incense Altar.

It should be clear that I am NOT presenting this as “from my experience” but just from the TYPE revealed within the Tabernacle of Moses!

I have never been able to burn the real incense! What is my excuse? This is reserved for Priests after the Order of Melchizedek! What I am writing is ONLY doctrine!

I believe this “doctrine” of burning incense is true and real but beyond my present experience! What is the purpose of this document then?

This is part of the NEXT restoration and certainly must be the Experience of the Lampstand Church that He is Building