Lesson 13 – Prayer is the Key
Tabernacle in the Wilderness Series
The Altar of Incense
By Pastor Jim May
There were two altars in the Tabernacle of Moses, the Brazen Altar and the Golden Altar of Incense. The Brazen Altar was for the Burnt Offering and was located in the Outer Court before the Door of the Tabernacle. The Golden Altar of Incense was for burning Incense and was positioned in the Holy Place before the veil.
Incense was burned upon the Golden Altar as it was placed upon hot coals from the Brazen Altar that were carried in and placed there for that purpose. The rising of the smoke of the incense, as well as its pleasing odor that filled the room, is representative of the prayer and intercession before God.
Since this is a Golden Altar, then it can represent both the “effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man”, and it can also represent the intercessory work of our Lord as our Advocate before the Father in Heaven.
We can see Jesus as our Advocate, who has fulfilled the Law, and who is pleading our case before the Father in Heaven in 1 John 2:1, "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:"
We can also see the altar and the incense in Revelation where John describes the scene like this.
Revelation 8:2-6, "And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound."
Incense begins on the altar with a man acting as a priest, and then burns and rises upwards unto God. The prayers that come from our hearts, as God’s people, a royal priesthood, rises to God in that manner. In that same fashion, the prayers of the man, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Great High Priest, are offered up on our behalf as well.
Hebrews 7:25 says, Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever lives to make intercession for them.
The ministry of the Holy Spirit unto us is also witnessed though this Altar of Incense. We are told that HE makes intercession for US according to the will of God in Romans 8:26, "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."
At this Golden Altar of Incense we can see prayer in operation in many ways as the prayers of the saints arise; as the intercessory prayer of our Savior, Jesus Christ rises; and in the ministry of intercession by the Holy Spirit on behalf of God’s people.
Let us read about this Golden Altar of Incense and what God told Moses to build.
Exodus 30:1-10, "And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon. And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD."
When we check the measurements of the Altar of Incense, we will find that it is the tallest piece of furniture in the Tabernacle tent. Perhaps this is to let us know of the high importance of prayer.
The Golden Altar of Incense was perfectly square, just as the Brazen Altar and the room of the Most Holy Place. Our God is a God of order and perfection. Even the New Jerusalem is described as being a foursquare city in Revelation 21:16.
The fact that the Altar of Incense was foursquare is a reminder to each of us that we are spread the message of Jesus’ intercession unto the four corners of the globe. Prayer is a universal language.
The Altar Of Incense had a horn at each of the four corners. Horns in the Scripture are always significant of power, authority and kingship. The prophet Habakkuk saw God in his vision and this how he described God in Habakkuk 3:4, "And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power."
What could this signify for us? Can it be that there is ultimate power in prayer? As our prayers arise unto the Throne of God, from the four corners of the globe, is it possible that God is really listening and answering those prayers? Since all power is given unto our Lord, what can be accomplished through the power of prayer?
King David knew the power of prayer and that’s why he said in Psalms 55:16-17, "As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice."
The Altar of Incense had a golden crown on it just like the Table of Showbread and the Ark of the Covenant. This crown is symbolic of CHRIST AS THE KING. A crown on the Altar of Incense reveals Jesus as our KING and our INTERCESSOR.
The rings on the Altar of Incense portray the same thing as the rings on the Ark of the Covenant and on the Table of Showbread. The rings were solid gold, showing us that both God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are involved in our prayers as intercessors. Without the work of Jesus upon the cross and the work of the Holy Ghost inside of us , our prayers would never be carried to the Father in Heaven. Everything is about God providing the way. Nothing of man can reach unto Heaven’s throne unless it is covered in the righteousness of Jesus Christ as shown in the gold covered altar and the gold covered staves that carried it as they were passed through the solid gold rings on either side.
Look again at Romans 8:26 and you will see one golden ring in action, "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."
In Hebrews 7:24-25 we see the second golden ring, "But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them."
The two staves of incorruptible wood overlaid with gold were used for traveling through the wilderness. This is another reminder to us that we are strangers and pilgrims on this earth passing through on our way to an eternal home somewhere.
The Golden Altar of Incense was positioned immediately before the veil and directly in front of the Ark of the Covenant. The only thing that separated these two pieces of furniture was a tremendous veil. It sat as close as possible to the very presence of God and the Shekinah of God’s glory in the Holy of Holies, and it was absolutely necessary to go past this altar before any priest could go beyond the veil.
What can we see in the positioning of the Altar? Could it mean that the more we worship God through intercession and prayer the closer we get to God who wants to be so close to us? What was the purpose of the Tabernacle in the first place? Did not we say that God designed it and gave instructions for its operation, so that He could dwell among His own people - not just to visit them once in a while - but to be there always, ever near those He loved?
God wants to inhabit your life, not just come by for a visit once in a while. That purpose was at was the very heart of the Tabernacle. All the furniture was positioned to be in the shape of a cross and the Golden Altar of Incense was at the heart and center in God’s design. The ministry of intercession, prayer and worship are at the very heart of God, and are the nearest things to the glory of GOD!
The Holy Place measured 10 x 10 x 20 cubits which when multiplied together comes to 2000. That’s interesting since we have been in the Church Age, or the Age of Grace, for about 2000 years now.
The Altar of Incense was also placed at the far end of the Holy Place perhaps to remind us of the fact we are nearing the end of the Age of Grace and getting ready to go beyond the veil into an eternal day.
As we draw every closer to the coming of the Lord we must spend more time in prayer, worship, supplications and intercession both for ourselves and for the whole of mankind. I believe that prayer and intercession must increase, as we get closer to the end of time and the full revelation of God’s glory to the church and to the whole world in the end.
Only the High Priest and the priests assigned to the Altar of Incense could minister at the Altar of Incense. At times, other people tried, only to face God’s judgment for making a breach upon His commandments.
In 2 Chronicles 26:16-19, King Uzziah was one of them. He presumed to combine the offices of King of Israel and High Priest of Israel, in an act of rebellion against God, and was smitten with leprosy.
In Jesus these two offices are permanently united. He is the GREAT HIGH PRIEST after the order of Melchisedec according to Hebrews 7:1-4. And He is called King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Therefore, as we stand in Christ, becoming heirs and joint heirs with Him, we also become kings and priests unto God in the same manner.
There was one hard, immutable rule about the incense that had to be burned upon this Altar. It was not be Strange Fire, or Strange Incense.
The first fire on the Altar of Incense was lit directly by the hand of God. On the day of the dedication of the Tabernacle, God showed His approval by lighting the Brazen Altar in the Outer Court with Divine Fire coming out from the Glory of God resting upon the Ark. When the fire on the Brazen Altar was lit, the coals were taken off from the Brazen Altar and used to light the Golden Altar and the Candlestick. It was a divine fire straight from the God of Fire, holy and righteous in all His ways.
Any other fire was "strange fire." Any incense other than the prescribed incense was "strange incense", and anyone attempting to offer these on the Golden Altar would be punished by being cut off from the Presence of God.
There are a couple of examples of men who offered strange fire and incense. Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire and incense and were smitten by the Lord. Korah and his company were offering strange incense and were also plagued during their rebellion.
What is the “Strange Fire”? What could this “Strange Incense” be? They are representative of all types of false worship before God! God is not interested in worship that is excited by the flesh and feelings. He isn’t interested in prayers that are selfish and self-serving like we find in many religions. There is a lot of strange fire and incense being offered today in churches that don’t believe and preach the truth. God’s judgment will fall in due time.
It is the fire of the Holy Ghost that causes the fragrance to arise and ascend beyond the veil. God is only interested in WORSHIP that is rooted in SPIRIT and in TRUTH.
There was to be other kinds of sacrifice or offerings upon this Altar of Incense. There were no sacrifices of blood here. The Outer Court was the place of sacrifice. The INNER COURT was the place of worship and service.
This is to show us that Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law at Calvary when he gave His life upon the cross. The price is paid in full and no more blood sacrifices are needed.
Today we no longer need a literal altar standing before us where we must burn incense. All of the functions of the Golden Altar of Incense are fulfilled in Christ and through the intercessory ministry of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of men.
What we must remember is that we cannot get near to the glory of God without prayer. Prayer is the key that unlocks the veil to the very presence of God.
Do we want to see the glory of God in the midst of the church?
Do we want to see God pour out the Holy Ghost upon His people?
It will only come when we have accomplished our ministry of intercession before the Altar of Incense.
