There is so much more that can be said about the altar of incense and how it relates to prayer. We haven't even touched on the gold which completely covered the altar. So, here are a few facts about gold:
It is precious and costly
It is beautiful, golden, and shimmering
It can be beaten and purified
The word for gold in Hebrew is zahab. The letters are Zayin, hey, bet. If I were to "read the letters" their meaning would be; bet- house, hey, Spirit, and zayin- sword. The picture I get with this is a House of prayer, a place where I can be filled with the Spirit of GOD and fight with the Sword of the Spirit. Is this not what we do in prayer? Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. We become His house when we are born again of water and Spirit (Acts 2:38). When we pray in the Spirit we have the power of GOD flowing through us and the sword of the Spirit can go to work on our behalf. Our time with Jesus in prayer is priceless and beautiful. It is a place where we are purified and sometimes beaten into shape.
Now for a little review. In the past six lessons we have talked about:
1) Prayer opens the aqueduct of the Holy Spirit. The devil and our flesh hate this. We fight the devil and our flesh to get the Spirit flowing.
2) It takes prayer for the light of GOD to shine unto sinners. Only HE can draw souls to Himself.
3) It's up to us to make the time to pray and get connected to God.
4) A regular schedule is a good thing. God keeps a schedule,(the sun comes up every day.) so should we. Meet with God every day, same time, same place.
5) Our regularity in prayer helps the fire of the Holy Ghost burn in us so that we can access that power any time, any place.
6) Prayer is:
a Spiritual battleground
a place of enlightenment
a birthing place
a place to connect with GOD
a daily habit of a child of GOD
a place to receive power and direction from GOD
As a child of GOD we hunger for his nearness, His touch. If we do not have that desire for a close relationship with Jesus, our need of prayer is severe.
Daily prayer is crucial for a saint of GOD. If you have been born again but daily prayer time has slipped or never been established, purpose it in your heart to make time for Jesus every day. Make a start even if it is only a few minutes. See it as an appointment to be kept morning and evening. Jesus is waiting for you and your time together is golden.