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Shoulder To Shoulder #1289 -- 5/3/22 ---- "Our Greatest Asset (part three) -- Priestly Intercessors Before the Lord"

#1 · May 4, 2022, 6:53 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on May 4, 2022, 6:53 pm
Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>

"Standing Together, Shoulder To Shoulder, As We Fight the Good Fight of Faith"

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER is a weekly letter of encouragement Bob has written since 1997, covering many topics selected to
motivate people to be strong students of the Word and courageous witnesses of Jesus Christ. It is a personal letter of
encouragement to you, written solely to help "lift up hands that hang down".

    "The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything." -- Albert Einstein

    “There is a common, worldly kind of Christianity in this day, which many have, and think they have -- a cheap Christianity which offends nobody,
    and requires no sacrifice, which costs nothing, -- and is worth nothing.” – J. C. Ryle

Shoulder To Shoulder #1289 -- 5/3/22

Title: "Our Greatest Asset (part three) -- Priestly Intercessors Before the Lord"

My dear Friend and Co-Laborer with Christ:

Greetings again from Yuma, AZ where Spring is steadily giving way to those hot triple-digit Summer days. This week-end our temps will reach 100+ again for a couple of days. Jo Ann and I are busy with several major projects before we head to our Summer ministry with Greer Chapel in about three weeks. It has been good to have Cheri and Bob next door to us. They are also trying to get settled in to their new house.

Our biggest project at the moment is receiving and sending funds for our friends in Ukraine who have great needs. So far we have received somewhere over $13,000 and have already sent out over $10,000 with more going out this week. We feel like a shipping dock -- when a truck comes in with supplies, we unload it, put it on other trucks and send them on their way. We could not do this without the help of those who give, and especially without the help of "Mo" who has an account in Europe that will send funds into Ukraine.

Just today I received messages from some of the folks we are helping. Masha, for example, wrote, . . .

    "Hello, Bob, thank you so much for your prayers! That is what keeps us alive here. There were multiple explosions in Lvov yesterday, and several missiles knocked down near Kiev. So, your prayers are our protection.

    "Regarding finances, sure, if you can send us $500 that would be great. We have children from hospital + family with 3 children we helped to get back home to Chernigov. Very poor family. I will contact their social services to ask what exactly they need , food , clothes , etc. so, all you send will be spent for hospital children + that ones from that poor family , they have 3 children at home + one staying in hospital we visit waiting for kidney transplantation

    "thank you so much once again for your help! God bless you 100 times more for all you do for us. Thank you and a lot of thanks to those people who donate!!!!! God, please bless all those who donate ! It is really important. we could not do many things without help of such people."

Currently we are trying to send funds regularly to Masha in Kyiv, "Mo" (in Italy at the moment), Valya in Borispyl, Pavlo in the Brusilov area, Joel and Ira in Poland who then distribute to others, and another friend with whom I made recent contact, Oles not far from Kaghalik. Oles was one of my students at St. James Bible College around 2001 or 2002 and is helping a ministry house dozens of refugees in two houses and also drive a van into the Donbas area with much needed supplies. We will send funds to him today for the first time.

Just this morning Valya sent this report following her visit to Kyiv yesterday:

    "I have money! Thank you so much! Just heard the news: many supermarkets are closing and leave because of war. It looks like we will not have a choice to buy different food even if it would be cost more. We had many markets from Kharkov/ Dnipro etc., but they are closing their business."

We also received a message today from our friend, "T", who is originally from Uzbekistan but lives in Russia with his Russian wife and children. He was just arrested for trying to distribute "Forbidden" literature and has to pay a $1,500 fine or go to prison. Here is a note I received this morning from him:

    "Our dearest friends! This is Timur.   Wouldn't write this message, if the prayer need wouldn't be so urgent. Matter is that, I was detained by the police at my place of residence in Rus., with 30 New Testaments and other Christian literature on Uzbek language (my mother language), which I wanted to present to some of my fellow countrymen here.

    "So, they issued an administrative protocol, according to which I must pay a fine in Rus rubles, the equivalent of 1,300 euros, by tomorrow (05.05.22). If I do not pay, then a criminal case may be initiated against me under the article of distribution of the type of "forbidden" literature. If a criminal case is initiated, I may face imprisonment of up to 8 years.

    "And this is bad, because I applied for Rus citizenship (since my wife and kids are Rus citizens). And after receiving it, I plan to start the procedure for preparing the departure with my family from Rus to other place. Please be in prayer for us. And if it will be possible to share this need. Our prayer, that the Lord will lead some brothers and sisters to help us, in our important urgent prayer need.

    "Praise Lord, we were blessed with 500$ already. If Lord will lead you to support us, please feel free to send gift to the PayPal of friend of mine. His name is . . ."

So, you can see how easy it is for us to spend three to six hours every day just trying to help these people and others. Right now, our greatest need is for friends to send help to our ministry so we can send it on to these people and others. Jo Ann and I were talking just this morning about how grateful we are for what our parents taught us about generosity and giving. My uncle also had a major impact on my life as a young boy. A farmer, he taught me many lessons about life, but one of them I'll never forget is when he reminded me, . . .

    "You never get a harvest on grain you keep in the bin."

My father was also a great example to us. By the time he died at age 88, he was giving away 50% of his income to other people or needs. He taught us the significance of giving away, among other things, any money that came our way unexpectedly. We have followed that pattern as well. We can't explain it on paper, but in life's experiences we have learned the principle that it truly IS "more blessed to give than to receive." Even though our personal income from retirement sources is less than most people on welfare, we've never missed a meal. We've learned the principle of Paul, ". . . I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am."

God uses different people to meet different needs. If you happen to feel He wants you to partner with us in helping meet the needs of Ukrainian refugees and fellow believers, just drop me a note at [email protected] or text or call me at 417-693-5149.

Well, . . . on to other matters!

Today I want to conclude this little series on our positions as priests before the Lord by returning to the story of Zacharias and Elizabeth and his priestly duties as recorded in Luke 1. And I'll do that right after you consider . . .

THIS 'N' THAT:

+ Links To Current Situation in Ukraine:
    > https://www.kyivpost.com/article/opinion/op-ed/this-is-what-the-russians-do-warning-on-russias-brute-force-in-ukraine.html
    > https://euromaidanpress.com/2022/05/04/ukrainian-counteroffensive-pushed-russians-away-from-kharkiv/

+ Food to the Soul: I cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is to read the Bible -- and read it daily. My father was known for his Bible reading discipline. Following a ministry crisis, he began reading the Bible through each year. Following that first year, he was so blessed that he decided to read it through twice a year -- then four -- then six -- then 12. Using what he called a "Bible break", he would take four or five breaks a day to sit down and read for 10 or 15 minutes at a time. His motto was, "What food is to the body, the Bible is to the soul." When Dad died at age 88, he had read the Bible through over 150 times, the New Testament another 40 times, the Gospels another 50 times, and the Psalms another 40 times. At the time of his death, he was reading the Bible through -- I know this will be hard to believe -- once every 16 days. As a preacher, he never had to decide "what" to preach, but only "Which" to preach.
    > https://www.crosswalk.com/slideshows/10-books-of-the-bible-you-should-read-again-and-again.html

QUOTES FOR THE WEEK:

    > "God has no greater controversy with His people today than this, that with boundless promises to believing prayer, there are so few who actually give themselves unto intercession." -- A. T. Pierson

    > "The church that is not jealously protected by mighty intercession and sacrificial labors will before long become the abode of every evil bird and the hiding place for unsuspected corruption. The creeping wilderness will soon take over that church that trusts in its own strength and forgets to watch and pray." -- A. W. Tozer

    > "No one can get above circumstances unless he knows that he has the ear of God. The power of intercession is a great thing to the servant of God.: -- G. V. Wigram

    > "Prayer opens the way for God Himself to do His work in us and through us. Let our chief work as God's messengers be intercession; in it we secure the presence and power of God to go with us." -- Andrew Murray

    > "One of the most subtle burdens God ever puts on us as saints is this burden of discernment concerning other souls. He reveals things in order that we may take the burden of these souls before Him and form the mind of Christ about them. It is not that we bring God into touch with our minds, but that we rouse ourselves until God is able to convey His mind to us about the one for whom we intercede." -- Oswald Chambers

    > " We are never more like Christ than in prayers of intercession." -- Austin Phelps

    > "Our prayer must not be self-centered. It must arise not only because we feel our own need as a burden we must lay upon God, but also because we are so bound up in love for our fellow men that we feel their need as acutely as our own. To make intercession for men is the most powerful and practical way in which we can express our love for them." -- John Calvin

    > "In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; . . ." -- Apostle Paul (Rom 8:26)

    > "To be much for God, we must be much with God." -- Leonard Ravenhill

    > "If we truly love people, we will desire for them far more than it is within our power to give them, and this will lead us to prayer: Intercession is a way of loving others." -- Richard J. Foster

    > "Jesus Christ carries on intercession for us in heaven; the Holy Ghost carries on intercession in us on earth; and we the saints have to carry on intercession for all men." -- Oswald Chambers

    > "There is no chasm in society that cannot be firmly and permanently bridged by intercession; there is no feud or dislike that cannot be healed by the same exercise of love." -- Charles H. Brent

    > " I always give all the glory to God, but I do not forget that He gave me the privilege of ministering from the first to a praying people. We had prayer meetings that moved our very souls, each one appeared determined to storm the Celestial City by the might of intercession." -- Charles Spurgeon

    > "God's greatest agency; man's greatest agency, for defeating the enemy and winning men back is intercession." -- S. D. Gordon

    > "Fear not because your prayer is stammering, your words feeble, and your language poor. Jesus can understand you." -- J. C. Ryle

PRAYER PRINCIPLES OF THE INTERCESSORY PRIEST:

    "The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer." So wrote John R. Mott.

This is the principle we find when we return to that old high priest, Zacharias. It was my observation of his experience in the temple that triggered this entire series. Look again at the story (Luke 2:5-26) itself before we move on: ----

    5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.   6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments & requirements of the Lord.   7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.

    8 Now it happened that while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.   10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering.

    11 And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.   12 Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him.

    13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John.   14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb.   16 And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.   17 It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

    18 Zacharias said to the angel, "How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years."

    19 The angel answered and said to him, "I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.   20 And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time."

    21 The people were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute.   23 When the days of his priestly service were ended, he went back home.

    24 After these days Elizabeth his wife became pregnant, and she kept herself in seclusion for five months, saying, 25 "This is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor upon me, to take away my disgrace among men."

THE CHARACTER OF OUR INTERCESSION:

Perhaps this is not the normal application of Zechariah's encounter with the angel, but it seems to me that there is a direct link between what he and Elizabeth had been praying for many years and his current assignment that day in the temple. His duty was to burn the incense. Perhaps it would be good to examine that responsibility with a little more scrutiny. After all, it had been a practice of the Aaronic priesthood since the instruction was first given to Moses some 1,400 years earlier.

For something to be practiced generation after generation for some 1,400 years would seemingly indicate there is some significance to it. In that you and I as Christians and "priests unto the Lord" in our own rights following in the shadow of our Great High Priest, Jesus, its importance takes on a much weightier consideration.

God's instruction regarding the priesthood and the tabernacle begin in Exodus 25, and the altar of incense is first mentioned in Exodus chapter 30 as one of the items inside the Holy Place of the tabernacle. The top of the altar was square -- one cubit on each side. A cubit was about 20" in length -- just under two feet. The altar was two cubits high, or not quite 3 1/2 feet tall.

The altar itself was constructed of acacia wood and was overlaid with a thin layer of gold "sheeting" -- or "gold leaf" we would call it today. Acacia wood is the only wood used in the construction of the tabernacle furnishings. The reason is obvious -- durability and beauty. Acacia wood was a hard wood that lasted for centuries. In fact, the alter of incense survived over 450 years of use in the tabernacle alone, before it was used in the temple in Jerusalem constructed under Solomon's supervision. It continue to be used until the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D.

Gold, of course, represents great value, beauty, and brilliance. All of these characteristics speak to the importance of the alter of incense.

It is not coincidental that the alter of incense had a “horn” at each corner, similar to the altar of sacrifice in the courtyard (Exodus 30:2; cf. 27:2). This will become a little clearer momentarily. There were also rings of gold built into the altar so that it could be carried with acacia wood poles that were slipped through the rings.

The altar of incense was placed in front of the veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. It is not coincidental that the alter had those four "horns" just as the altar of sacrifice in the courtyard. Neither is it mere happenstance that it is located between the alter of sacrifice in the courtyard and the ark of the covenant and the mercy seat atop the ark on the other side of the veil inside the Holy of Holies. Why? Because on the other side of the veil was the Ark of the Testimony, where the presence of God was (Exodus 25:22).

Just as had been instructed to Aaron -- and all high priests thereafter -- Zacharias was to burn incense on the altar each morning and at twilight, every day, as a regular offering to the Lord (Exodus 30:7–8). Even the recipe for the incense and the prohibition of changing it in any way is of great significance -- but will have to wait for another occasion to explore.

God gave the recipe for making the incense and stipulated that no other incense ever be burned on the altar (verses 34–38). The incense consisted of an equal mixture of five basic spices, -- stacte, onycha, galbanum, frankincense, and salt -- and any deviation from this formula was subject to severe consequences (Exod 30:9). This incense mixture was to Never be for private use (Exod 30:37), but only for temple worship. Some scholars indicate that there were as many as eleven different elements that made up the incense burned on the alter of incense.

The Jewishmag.com website carries a very interesting article written by Rabbi Abraham Sutton regarding the incense prescribed by God and used in the temple. In the article, entitled, "     ", Rabbi Sutton described three major archaeological discoveries made in 1988, 1992, and 1994, making the following somewhat lengthy but very significant observations which you might want to seriously study:

    "In April 1992, Vendyl and his team discovered 600 kilos of "reddish-brown organic substance" in a carefully sealed rock silo in another part of the Qumran cave complex. Subsequent palynological analysis determined that this reddish-brown substance contains traces of at least eight of the eleven spices that were used in the manufacture of the Pitum HaQetoret (Incense Mixture) and burned in the Temple.

    "In 1994, the incense spices were presented to Rabbi Yehudah Getz of blessed memory, late Chief Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Places in Israel. A sample was also given to Rabbi Ovadiah Yoseph. Rabbi Ovadiah had his own chemist analyze the mixture to confirm its organic nature. Then both rabbis requested that Vendyl Jones "burn" some of the incense for scientific purposes (not with fire but with hydrochloric acid). At their suggestion, he had the spices combined together with the Sodom Salt and Karshina Lye which were also found stored separately in the cave in Qumran.

   "The results were astonishing. Although the spices had lost some of their potency over the two millennia since their burial, it was still powerful. The residue of its fragrance lingered in the vicinity for several days following the experiment. Several people present reported that their hair and clothing retained the aroma. More amazing, the area in which the spices were burned changed. It had been infested with a variety of flies, ants, moths and other insects. After the Qetoret was burned, no sign of these pests was seen for quite a while. This is reminiscent of the Mishnah in Avot (5:5) which states that there were no flies in the area of the Temple, nor was a snake or scorpion ever able to harm anyone anywhere in Jerusalem as long as the Temple stood.

    "In 1995, I met Vendyl Jones and began working with him. In 1996, I met Avraham Sand of Tiferet International Aromatherapy. Avraham isn't an archeologist, but he is a master perfumer. For the last decade he has been trying to unravel the secret of exactly which ingredients and processes were used to formulate the finely ground Qetoret [Incense]. He has done this working in close association with and under the rabbinical guidance of Rabbi Menachem Burstein, the foremost Jewish authority on the botany and chemistry of Temple artifacts.

    "In order to sidestep the strict prohibition against experimentation with the various plant materials in their original form (see below), Rabbi Burstein has advised him that there is no prohibition whatsoever against enjoying the essential oil extracts of these same botanicals. At last report, Avraham has been able to authenticate and obtain nine of the original eleven incense spices, and produce them in the form of essential oils. In essence, he has paralleled Vendyl's discoveries of both the Anointing Oil and the Qetoret in Qumran.

    "The Talmud (Arachin 16a) tells us that the Beth HaMikdash (Holy Temple), the Mishkan (Tabernacle), as well as all their sacred vessels - the Aron HaKodesh (Holy Ark), Menorah (Candalabra), Mizbeach HaQetoret (Incense Altar), the garments of the Cohen Gadol (High Priest), etc. - were not just physical artifacts. They represented spiritual levels of closeness to G-d. The same is true of the Anointing Oil and the Qetoret (incense)."

Hmmmm . . . . It seems that the more we study the alter of incense, the more significant it seems to be.

The fire that was used to burn the incense was always taken from the alter of burnt offering outside the sanctuary (Lev 16:12), although the alter of incense was never to be used upon which to offer a burnt offering, a grain offering, or a drink offering (Exod 30:9). Think about the significance of such restrictions. The only time that blood was allowed to touch the alter of incense was on the Day of Atonement when the high priest put blood on the four horns (elevated corners) of the alter in order to cleanse it. Exod 30:10 tells us that the alter of incense was called, "most holy to the Lord”.

This tells us even more about this very special alter and its meaningful importance.

Of course, God’s primary desire for His people is that they be holy. Simply going through the rituals required by the Law—including the burning of incense on the altar of incense—was not enough to make the Israelites right with God. The Lord wanted their hearts and lives to be right, not just their formalities. During Isaiah’s time, the people were disobedient to God, yet they still maintained the temple rites, and that’s why God said through the prophet, “Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me” (Isaiah 1:13). More important than burning the proper incense at the proper time with the proper fire with the proper implements was having a proper heart before God.

In Scripture, incense is often associated with prayer. David prayed, “May my prayer be set before you like incense” (Psalm 141:2). In his vision of heaven, John saw that the elders around the throne “were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people” (Revelation 5:8; cf. 8:3). As Zechariah the priest was offering incense in the temple in Luke 1:10, “all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.”

The altar of incense, then, can be seen as a symbol of the prayers of God’s people. Our prayers ascend to God as the smoke of the incense ascended in the sanctuary. As the incense was burned with fire from the altar of burnt offering, our prayers must be kindled with heaven’s grace. The fact that the incense was always burning means that we should always pray (Luke 18:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). The altar of incense was holy to the Lord and was atoned for with the blood of the sacrifice; it is the blood of Christ applied to our hearts that makes our prayers acceptable. Our prayers are holy because of Jesus’ sacrifice, and therefore they are pleasing to God.

The altar of incense can also be seen as a picture of the intercession of Christ. Just as the altar of sacrifice in the courtyard was a type of Christ’s death on our behalf, the altar of incense in the Holy Place was a type of Christ’s mediation on our behalf—Christ’s work on earth and in heaven. The altar of incense was situated before the mercy-seat of the Ark—a picture of our Advocate’s standing in the presence of the Father (Hebrews 7:25; 9:24). The incense was to be burning continually on the altar of incense, which shows the perpetual nature of Christ’s mediation. Christ’s intercession on our behalf is a sweet-smelling savor to God.

It is beautiful to know that God considers the prayers of believers to be like a sweet smell of incense. Because of Christ, we can now enter God’s holy presence by faith, with full assurance (Mark 15:38; Hebrews 4:16). We offer our prayers upon the altar, trusting in Jesus, our eternal, perfect, and faithful High Priest (Hebrews 10:19–23).

OUR CONFIDENCE AS INTERCESSORS:

It is not coincidental or simple happenstance that Jesus told His disciples that they could "ask the Father" about anything in His name, and He would respond:

    "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it." (Jn 14:12-14)

If you understand the progression to the holy of holies, you note that the first stop is at the alter of sacrifice, From there you proceed to the alter of incense, and then to the holy of holies. The ritual involved includes offering a sin offering, being washed in the bronze laver, sprinkling blood on the alter of incense, offering up incense, and finally entering the holy of holies and sprinkling blood on the mercy seat atop the ark of the covenant.

Our story of Zacharias shows us that his assignment of the day was to burn incense on the alter of incense. Scripture leaves no doubt that the practice itself represented one fundamental thing -- prayer. However, it represented the prayers of the people, and not just the high priest. Based on the nature of the meaning of the prayers represented in the incense, I believe we can assume that those prayers included praise and worship, and intercession. After all, as a high priest, he was standing before God in behalf of the people. That's what priests do, as we have already noted.

The story as we have seen it in Luke 2 seems to indicate that as he offered up the prayers of the people that he encountered an angelic being. Doubtless it was a startling experience; this was not an everyday experience for any priest, much less Zacharias. While Zacharias was doing his priestly duties of representing his people before his God, the archangel Gabriel represented God before Zacharias. That was not part of the routine; it was not part of the choreography of temple worship; it was not a part of the liturgy. Rather, it was part of God's plan to address Zacharias regarding his personal prayer he and Elizabeth had prayed since they were first married -- to have a son.

The fact that Luke takes time to point out the special situation Zacharias and Elizabeth were facing helps you and me catch a hint as to the great lessons God wants us to discover regarding those times when you and I, as priests unto the Lord, often find ourselves bewildered -- or even discouraged -- when it seems that our own personal longings of the heart are not being met. It's as if, sometimes, that our praying gets no results -- and we even become so downcast and discouraged that we don't even expect God to answer.

Have you ever been there? Most likely.

Whenever I think of this story, I often remember the story of the Sunday school children who were writing to a missionary to tell him they had been praying. But, they didn't want to bother him in his busy schedule, so indicated that it wasn't necessary for him to write them back. In penning their letter, they wrote, . . .

    "We wanted you to know that we have been praying for you all year, but we don't expect an answer."

Sometimes we're that way in our praying. At best our praying is perfunctory or obligatory.

Obviously this is not the kind of praying we need, nor is it the kind God expects from us. We, instead, should pray expecting God to respond. After all, that's what Jesus taught His disciples, as I noted above. It should be no less for you and me. One of my favorite Bible teachers of yesteryear was Ron Dunn, whom I had the honor of knowing. Ron was known for his teachings on prayer. On one occasion he stated, . . .

    "Most of us are more surprised when our prayers ARE answered than when they are not. But we need to get to the place where our surprise is over when they are NOT answered."

In order for us to not be so surprised when God answers our prayers -- and be more surprised when it seems that He doesn't, it might help us to understand five fundamental principles found within the context of Zacharias' encounter with Gabriel. Recognizing them will go a great way to alleviating some of our anxieties -- and even skepticism, doubts, and unbelief in our prayer lives.

The first principle is that of . . .

1. PERFECT TIMING:

It seems that many times when we pray, it seems a long time before we see the answer. Yes, God often answers LATER. -- at lest seemingly!

Zacharias and Elizabeth had obviously been praying for many years -- at least since early in their marriage. But, apparently they had STOPPED praying -- at least for a son to succeed Zacharias. Verse 18 hints at this -- ". . . For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years." It appears that, as their ages began to creep up on the reproductive capabilities, they had begun to assume that their time clock had run out, and therefore it was out of the realm of possibility that their prayers would ever be answered.

An earlier verse (13), though, hits us in the face with divine reality when Gabriel stuns this already startled Zacharias with this amazing statement: -- "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, . . ."

I suspect Zacharias was seriously taken aback by Gabriel's assertion. Zacharias had seen no evidence whatsoever -- for years! -- that God had heard. And yet, Gabriel now makes the outlandish claim that God had, indeed, heard. The statement in the Greek text reveals something even more amazing -- God heard Zacharias' prayer the very first time he prayed it as a young married priest.

The KJV translation simply says, "Is heard". However, in looking at the Greek word, "eisakouō", we find that it speaks much more. The idea of obeying or acting on the petition is clearly evident, and that the decision had been made the first moment Zacharias and Elizabeth prayed for that son to succeed him in the priesthood. It can easily be translated, – Their initial praying. "was already heard, was already listened to, and was already decided to do."

This always reminds me of a similar story in the Book of Daniel when Michael the Archangel suddenly speaks to Daniel and tells him that God heard Daniel's prayer when he first prayed it, but he had to complete a little unfinished business with Satan, and it took him three weeks of fighting before he was finally able to come and let Daniel know God had heard his prayer.

In Zacharias' and Elizabeth's case, God had heard their prayer and had already answered it when they first prayed. It wasn't until many years later that they realized God had answered -- and then saw the evidence with John's birth. It's an odd principle in God's economy of things -- but one worth understanding. God ALWAYS answers immediately, -- but OFTEN later. The GRANTING of our praying is immediate; the GETTING of the answer is often delayed.

It is not uncommon for God to often provide the answer only AFTER it is beyond the realm of human possibility. This was certainly the case with Zacharias and Elizabeth -- just as it was centuries earlier with Abraham and Sarah.

Why is this so important to us, my friend? It's because Satan inevitably uses delays or the lack of evidence as so-called "proof" that God has not answered -- when, in fact, He already has.

So, now, . . . . it's time to wait -- and trust Him fully -- until affirmation is validated by revelation.

2. DIVINE CONSISTENCY:

Too often we assume when we see no evidence of God's involvement in our intercession or petition that somehow God overlooked it, didn't hear it, or didn't think it was important enough for Him to respond. There are even times when we think God has said a firm "NO!" to our petition. What, however, we need to know -- and must believe -- is that God Always Answers . I am convinced that not one single prayer ever prayed in all of human history was overlooked or not answered. To think so is to be inconsistent with scripture and diametrically opposed to the very nature and character of God.

Rather, God always answers -- always. But, He answers according to several principles that you and I sometimes miss.

    1) First and foremost, God answers on the basis of the authority of His Word. He never answers our prayer in ways that will violate His Word or even his own nature and character. So, when you pray, check it against the truth of Scripture.

    2) Secondly, and more precisely, God answers according to the Promise of His Word. When God makes a promise, it is always in harmony with His Word. He never violates His Word. Any promises from God's Word will be stirred up in your heart and mind by the Holy Spirit's activity in the situation.

    3) Finally, based on the first two principles, you need to pray accordingly. If there IS A Promise, present that promise to God in prayer, "Lord, here is what you said . . ." Praise and thank Him for the promise. Rest on the promise. And, attack the devil with the promise of he has the gall to try to intimidate you or cause you to doubt.

There are times when you don't see the promise. What do you do then? Well, first, pray until you Receive a promise from God. Just keep praying. OR, pray until you get assurance in your heart -- that is usually characterized by a sense of peace in your heart over the matter. OR, pray until you realize it is not God's will. Or, pray until God lifts the burden from you and you feel released from praying about the situation.

In any case, God -- IF you will be patient enough to take as long as you must to hear His Spirit speak to your heart -- will always answer. God always answers -- ALWAYS.

If you pray with that principle in mind, you will always leave your time of intercession with one primary characteristic: -- PEACEFUL CONFIDENCE.

No matter what others may say, and no matter what circumstances may dictate, you will enjoy that quiet assurance, so certain that you will sleep peacefully and have a sense of joy and expectancy lift you in your waking hours.

3. DIVINE QUALITY:

There is a very important fact to keep in mind: ---- God ALWAYS Answers Better. Think about this for a moment: -- If God had answered based on Zacharias' and Elizabeth's desire, what would they have gotten? They'd have gotten just another little boy who would grow up to be a priest following after Zachariah. He'd have gone through the traditional priestly duties -- and might have even become high priest -- but that would have been all there was to the story. Without trying to sound irreligious, it would have been "the same ol' same ol'" for John.

Instead, they got a prophet who was the forerunner to announce the ministry of the Redeemer of the world. Ron Dunn said of this situation with John, "The biggest problem with our praying, is that we usually aim too low."

Years ago while pastoring my first church in southwestern Missouri about an hour from Springfield, my longtime friend, Jeff Floyd stirred me up asking a troubling question -- "What are you praying for that is impossible?"

His question both irritated and convicted me at the same time, because I suddenly realized that most of the things I was praying about either were things that could be resolved without God's involvement, or -- OR -- I wasn't expecting God to answer in the first place.

There is always something about prayer that God answers -- it always has the stamp of "I was here" on it. God was there. It was a God thing. It has a divine quality about it -- even if the human element (such as a doctor's surgical procedure) is present, you know deep down that it was God throughout.

4. HUMAN FUTILITY: --

This is the case with Zacharias and Elizabeth. It was that way with Abraham and Sarah regarding Isaac's birth. It was the same with Mary and Martha and the death of Lazarus. You see, God often waits until it is humanly impossible before He manifests the answer to your prayer. But WHY??? – for Greater Glory.

Think about this: -- if God had answered Zacharias' and Elizabeth's prayer while they were young and of child-bearing age, what would have happened? What significance would there have been? Who would have been praised?

People would have merely said, "Well congratulations! You finally got your boy! That's nice! Now you have a successor." Zacharias and Elizabeth would have gotten a little glory -- and most of the credit. After all, . . . it's a human thing -- to have a baby. It happens all the time.

The fact that God, Who had answered the prayer immediately -- and granted it immediately -- waited until it was humanly impossible did it for that very reason -- to be sure it was humanly impossible. Nobody -- I mean NOBODY -- was to be given praise and glory for this. The birth of John was to go down in the annals of history as a miracle of God just as surely as was the birth of Christ.

Finally, . . .

5. DIVINE NECESSITY: --

This remains a great mystery to me. Often God links our human needs to His divine necessity. He often answers in such ways that not only is our need met, but His sovereign agenda is also carried out.

Think about this for a minute: -- If John had been born 40 or 50 years earlier, what would Zacharias and Elizabeth had? Another priest in the Levitical Lineage. God didn't need just another priest. He needed someone to preach repentance, announce the impending kingdom, and introduce His Son to the culture. In solving Zachariah's problem, God satisfied His own plan.

Both the Old and New Testaments are filled with examples of where God advanced His own agenda by answering the prayers of people. He still does that today. Look through scripture -- sometimes national solutions, sometimes personal -- but always eternally linked to God's agenda. God used Hannah's need to the birth of Samuel. He linked Abraham's need to the birth of Isaac.   In fact, in that case, He used Isaac to answer His own promise He had made to Abraham.

So, sometimes your need actually exists because God has a divine plan in mind, and He's going to use your need to fulfill His plan.

How amazing is that!!!!

FINALLY:

Since, then, intercession is so vital to the work of the Kingdom, and since you and I are, indeed, priests unto the Lord, doesn't it make sense that our primary work as such priests is to stand before Him in behalf of others? No wonder reading the Bible and praying are so disregarded, minimized, and resisted in most of today's churches. In must churches, prayer is nothing more than a perfunctory afterthought with which to begin and end a pointless worship service. Perhaps we should act on John R. Mott's admonition, . . . .

    "Let methods be changed, therefore, if necessary, that prayer may be given its true place. Let there be days set apart for intercession; let the original purpose of the monthly concert of prayer for missions be given a larger place; let missionary prayer cycles be used by families and by individual Christians."

In His Bond, By His Grace, and for His Kingdom,

Bob Tolliver -- Romans 1:11

    "Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness,
    examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so." -- Dr. Luke (Acts 17:11)

    "A fire kept burning on the hearthstone of my heart, and I took up the burden of the day with fresh courage and hope." -- Charles F. McKoy

Life Unlimited Ministries
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[email protected]

Copyright May, 2022

    "If Jesus had preached the same message that many ministers preach today, He would never have been crucified." -- Leonard Ravenhill

    "The time will come when instead of shepherds feeding the sheep, the Church will have clowns entertaining the goats." -- Charles H. Spurgeon


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"Standing Together, Shoulder To Shoulder, As We Fight the Good Fight of Faith"

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER is a weekly letter of encouragement Bob has written since 1997, covering many topics selected to
motivate people to be strong students of the Word and courageous witnesses of Jesus Christ. It is a personal letter of
encouragement to you, written solely to help "lift up hands that hang down".

"The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything." -- Albert Einstein

“There is a common, worldly kind of Christianity in this day, which many have, and think they have -- a cheap Christianity which offends nobody,
and requires no sacrifice, which costs nothing, -- and is worth nothing.” – J. C. Ryle

Shoulder To Shoulder #1289 -- 5/3/22

Title: "Our Greatest Asset (part three) -- Priestly Intercessors Before the Lord"

My dear Friend and Co-Laborer with Christ:

Greetings again from Yuma, AZ where Spring is steadily giving way to those hot triple-digit Summer days. This week-end our temps will reach 100+ again for a couple of days. Jo Ann and I are busy with several major projects before we head to our Summer ministry with Greer Chapel in about three weeks. It has been good to have Cheri and Bob next door to us. They are also trying to get settled in to their new house.

Our biggest project at the moment is receiving and sending funds for our friends in Ukraine who have great needs. So far we have received somewhere over $13,000 and have already sent out over $10,000 with more going out this week. We feel like a shipping dock -- when a truck comes in with supplies, we unload it, put it on other trucks and send them on their way. We could not do this without the help of those who give, and especially without the help of "Mo" who has an account in Europe that will send funds into Ukraine.

Just today I received messages from some of the folks we are helping. Masha, for example, wrote, . . .

"Hello, Bob, thank you so much for your prayers! That is what keeps us alive here. There were multiple explosions in Lvov yesterday, and several missiles knocked down near Kiev. So, your prayers are our protection.

"Regarding finances, sure, if you can send us $500 that would be great. We have children from hospital + family with 3 children we helped to get back home to Chernigov. Very poor family. I will contact their social services to ask what exactly they need , food , clothes , etc. so, all you send will be spent for hospital children + that ones from that poor family , they have 3 children at home + one staying in hospital we visit waiting for kidney transplantation

"thank you so much once again for your help! God bless you 100 times more for all you do for us. Thank you and a lot of thanks to those people who donate!!!!! God, please bless all those who donate ! It is really important. we could not do many things without help of such people."

Currently we are trying to send funds regularly to Masha in Kyiv, "Mo" (in Italy at the moment), Valya in Borispyl, Pavlo in the Brusilov area, Joel and Ira in Poland who then distribute to others, and another friend with whom I made recent contact, Oles not far from Kaghalik. Oles was one of my students at St. James Bible College around 2001 or 2002 and is helping a ministry house dozens of refugees in two houses and also drive a van into the Donbas area with much needed supplies. We will send funds to him today for the first time.

Just this morning Valya sent this report following her visit to Kyiv yesterday:

"I have money! Thank you so much! Just heard the news: many supermarkets are closing and leave because of war. It looks like we will not have a choice to buy different food even if it would be cost more. We had many markets from Kharkov/ Dnipro etc., but they are closing their business."

We also received a message today from our friend, "T", who is originally from Uzbekistan but lives in Russia with his Russian wife and children. He was just arrested for trying to distribute "Forbidden" literature and has to pay a $1,500 fine or go to prison. Here is a note I received this morning from him:

"Our dearest friends! This is Timur. Wouldn't write this message, if the prayer need wouldn't be so urgent. Matter is that, I was detained by the police at my place of residence in Rus., with 30 New Testaments and other Christian literature on Uzbek language (my mother language), which I wanted to present to some of my fellow countrymen here.

    "So, they issued an administrative protocol, according to which I must pay a fine in Rus rubles, the equivalent of 1,300 euros, by tomorrow (05.05.22). If I do not pay, then a criminal case may be initiated against me under the article of distribution of the type of "forbidden" literature. If a criminal case is initiated, I may face imprisonment of up to 8 years.

    "And this is bad, because I applied for Rus citizenship (since my wife and kids are Rus citizens). And after receiving it, I plan to start the procedure for preparing the departure with my family from Rus to other place. Please be in prayer for us. And if it will be possible to share this need. Our prayer, that the Lord will lead some brothers and sisters to help us, in our important urgent prayer need.

    "Praise Lord, we were blessed with 500$ already. If Lord will lead you to support us, please feel free to send gift to the PayPal of friend of mine. His name is . . ."

So, you can see how easy it is for us to spend three to six hours every day just trying to help these people and others. Right now, our greatest need is for friends to send help to our ministry so we can send it on to these people and others. Jo Ann and I were talking just this morning about how grateful we are for what our parents taught us about generosity and giving. My uncle also had a major impact on my life as a young boy. A farmer, he taught me many lessons about life, but one of them I'll never forget is when he reminded me, . . .

"You never get a harvest on grain you keep in the bin."

My father was also a great example to us. By the time he died at age 88, he was giving away 50% of his income to other people or needs. He taught us the significance of giving away, among other things, any money that came our way unexpectedly. We have followed that pattern as well. We can't explain it on paper, but in life's experiences we have learned the principle that it truly IS "more blessed to give than to receive." Even though our personal income from retirement sources is less than most people on welfare, we've never missed a meal. We've learned the principle of Paul, ". . . I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am."

God uses different people to meet different needs. If you happen to feel He wants you to partner with us in helping meet the needs of Ukrainian refugees and fellow believers, just drop me a note at [email protected] or text or call me at 417-693-5149.

Well, . . . on to other matters!

Today I want to conclude this little series on our positions as priests before the Lord by returning to the story of Zacharias and Elizabeth and his priestly duties as recorded in Luke 1. And I'll do that right after you consider . . .

THIS 'N' THAT:

+ Links To Current Situation in Ukraine:
> https://www.kyivpost.com/article/opinion/op-ed/this-is-what-the-russians-do-warning-on-russias-brute-force-in-ukraine.html
> https://euromaidanpress.com/2022/05/04/ukrainian-counteroffensive-pushed-russians-away-from-kharkiv/

+ Food to the Soul: I cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is to read the Bible -- and read it daily. My father was known for his Bible reading discipline. Following a ministry crisis, he began reading the Bible through each year. Following that first year, he was so blessed that he decided to read it through twice a year -- then four -- then six -- then 12. Using what he called a "Bible break", he would take four or five breaks a day to sit down and read for 10 or 15 minutes at a time. His motto was, "What food is to the body, the Bible is to the soul." When Dad died at age 88, he had read the Bible through over 150 times, the New Testament another 40 times, the Gospels another 50 times, and the Psalms another 40 times. At the time of his death, he was reading the Bible through -- I know this will be hard to believe -- once every 16 days. As a preacher, he never had to decide "what" to preach, but only "Which" to preach.
> https://www.crosswalk.com/slideshows/10-books-of-the-bible-you-should-read-again-and-again.html

QUOTES FOR THE WEEK:

> "God has no greater controversy with His people today than this, that with boundless promises to believing prayer, there are so few who actually give themselves unto intercession." -- A. T. Pierson

> "The church that is not jealously protected by mighty intercession and sacrificial labors will before long become the abode of every evil bird and the hiding place for unsuspected corruption. The creeping wilderness will soon take over that church that trusts in its own strength and forgets to watch and pray." -- A. W. Tozer

> "No one can get above circumstances unless he knows that he has the ear of God. The power of intercession is a great thing to the servant of God.: -- G. V. Wigram

> "Prayer opens the way for God Himself to do His work in us and through us. Let our chief work as God's messengers be intercession; in it we secure the presence and power of God to go with us." -- Andrew Murray

> "One of the most subtle burdens God ever puts on us as saints is this burden of discernment concerning other souls. He reveals things in order that we may take the burden of these souls before Him and form the mind of Christ about them. It is not that we bring God into touch with our minds, but that we rouse ourselves until God is able to convey His mind to us about the one for whom we intercede." -- Oswald Chambers

> " We are never more like Christ than in prayers of intercession." -- Austin Phelps

> "Our prayer must not be self-centered. It must arise not only because we feel our own need as a burden we must lay upon God, but also because we are so bound up in love for our fellow men that we feel their need as acutely as our own. To make intercession for men is the most powerful and practical way in which we can express our love for them." -- John Calvin

> "In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; . . ." -- Apostle Paul (Rom 8:26)

> "To be much for God, we must be much with God." -- Leonard Ravenhill

> "If we truly love people, we will desire for them far more than it is within our power to give them, and this will lead us to prayer: Intercession is a way of loving others." -- Richard J. Foster

> "Jesus Christ carries on intercession for us in heaven; the Holy Ghost carries on intercession in us on earth; and we the saints have to carry on intercession for all men." -- Oswald Chambers

> "There is no chasm in society that cannot be firmly and permanently bridged by intercession; there is no feud or dislike that cannot be healed by the same exercise of love." -- Charles H. Brent

> " I always give all the glory to God, but I do not forget that He gave me the privilege of ministering from the first to a praying people. We had prayer meetings that moved our very souls, each one appeared determined to storm the Celestial City by the might of intercession." -- Charles Spurgeon

> "God's greatest agency; man's greatest agency, for defeating the enemy and winning men back is intercession." -- S. D. Gordon

> "Fear not because your prayer is stammering, your words feeble, and your language poor. Jesus can understand you." -- J. C. Ryle

PRAYER PRINCIPLES OF THE INTERCESSORY PRIEST:

    "The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer." So wrote John R. Mott.

This is the principle we find when we return to that old high priest, Zacharias. It was my observation of his experience in the temple that triggered this entire series. Look again at the story (Luke 2:5-26) itself before we move on: ----

    5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.   6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments & requirements of the Lord.   7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.

    8 Now it happened that while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.   10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering.

    11 And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.   12 Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him.

    13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John.   14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb.   16 And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.   17 It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

    18 Zacharias said to the angel, "How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years."

    19 The angel answered and said to him, "I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.   20 And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time."

    21 The people were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute.   23 When the days of his priestly service were ended, he went back home.

    24 After these days Elizabeth his wife became pregnant, and she kept herself in seclusion for five months, saying, 25 "This is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor upon me, to take away my disgrace among men."

THE CHARACTER OF OUR INTERCESSION:

Perhaps this is not the normal application of Zechariah's encounter with the angel, but it seems to me that there is a direct link between what he and Elizabeth had been praying for many years and his current assignment that day in the temple. His duty was to burn the incense. Perhaps it would be good to examine that responsibility with a little more scrutiny. After all, it had been a practice of the Aaronic priesthood since the instruction was first given to Moses some 1,400 years earlier.

For something to be practiced generation after generation for some 1,400 years would seemingly indicate there is some significance to it. In that you and I as Christians and "priests unto the Lord" in our own rights following in the shadow of our Great High Priest, Jesus, its importance takes on a much weightier consideration.

God's instruction regarding the priesthood and the tabernacle begin in Exodus 25, and the altar of incense is first mentioned in Exodus chapter 30 as one of the items inside the Holy Place of the tabernacle. The top of the altar was square -- one cubit on each side. A cubit was about 20" in length -- just under two feet. The altar was two cubits high, or not quite 3 1/2 feet tall.

The altar itself was constructed of acacia wood and was overlaid with a thin layer of gold "sheeting" -- or "gold leaf" we would call it today. Acacia wood is the only wood used in the construction of the tabernacle furnishings. The reason is obvious -- durability and beauty. Acacia wood was a hard wood that lasted for centuries. In fact, the alter of incense survived over 450 years of use in the tabernacle alone, before it was used in the temple in Jerusalem constructed under Solomon's supervision. It continue to be used until the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D.

Gold, of course, represents great value, beauty, and brilliance. All of these characteristics speak to the importance of the alter of incense.

It is not coincidental that the alter of incense had a “horn” at each corner, similar to the altar of sacrifice in the courtyard (Exodus 30:2; cf. 27:2). This will become a little clearer momentarily. There were also rings of gold built into the altar so that it could be carried with acacia wood poles that were slipped through the rings.

The altar of incense was placed in front of the veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. It is not coincidental that the alter had those four "horns" just as the altar of sacrifice in the courtyard. Neither is it mere happenstance that it is located between the alter of sacrifice in the courtyard and the ark of the covenant and the mercy seat atop the ark on the other side of the veil inside the Holy of Holies. Why? Because on the other side of the veil was the Ark of the Testimony, where the presence of God was (Exodus 25:22).

Just as had been instructed to Aaron -- and all high priests thereafter -- Zacharias was to burn incense on the altar each morning and at twilight, every day, as a regular offering to the Lord (Exodus 30:7–8). Even the recipe for the incense and the prohibition of changing it in any way is of great significance -- but will have to wait for another occasion to explore.

God gave the recipe for making the incense and stipulated that no other incense ever be burned on the altar (verses 34–38). The incense consisted of an equal mixture of five basic spices, -- stacte, onycha, galbanum, frankincense, and salt -- and any deviation from this formula was subject to severe consequences (Exod 30:9). This incense mixture was to Never be for private use (Exod 30:37), but only for temple worship. Some scholars indicate that there were as many as eleven different elements that made up the incense burned on the alter of incense.

The Jewishmag.com website carries a very interesting article written by Rabbi Abraham Sutton regarding the incense prescribed by God and used in the temple. In the article, entitled, " ", Rabbi Sutton described three major archaeological discoveries made in 1988, 1992, and 1994, making the following somewhat lengthy but very significant observations which you might want to seriously study:

    "In April 1992, Vendyl and his team discovered 600 kilos of "reddish-brown organic substance" in a carefully sealed rock silo in another part of the Qumran cave complex. Subsequent palynological analysis determined that this reddish-brown substance contains traces of at least eight of the eleven spices that were used in the manufacture of the Pitum HaQetoret (Incense Mixture) and burned in the Temple.

    "In 1994, the incense spices were presented to Rabbi Yehudah Getz of blessed memory, late Chief Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Places in Israel. A sample was also given to Rabbi Ovadiah Yoseph. Rabbi Ovadiah had his own chemist analyze the mixture to confirm its organic nature. Then both rabbis requested that Vendyl Jones "burn" some of the incense for scientific purposes (not with fire but with hydrochloric acid). At their suggestion, he had the spices combined together with the Sodom Salt and Karshina Lye which were also found stored separately in the cave in Qumran.

   "The results were astonishing. Although the spices had lost some of their potency over the two millennia since their burial, it was still powerful. The residue of its fragrance lingered in the vicinity for several days following the experiment. Several people present reported that their hair and clothing retained the aroma. More amazing, the area in which the spices were burned changed. It had been infested with a variety of flies, ants, moths and other insects. After the Qetoret was burned, no sign of these pests was seen for quite a while. This is reminiscent of the Mishnah in Avot (5:5) which states that there were no flies in the area of the Temple, nor was a snake or scorpion ever able to harm anyone anywhere in Jerusalem as long as the Temple stood.

    "In 1995, I met Vendyl Jones and began working with him. In 1996, I met Avraham Sand of Tiferet International Aromatherapy. Avraham isn't an archeologist, but he is a master perfumer. For the last decade he has been trying to unravel the secret of exactly which ingredients and processes were used to formulate the finely ground Qetoret [Incense]. He has done this working in close association with and under the rabbinical guidance of Rabbi Menachem Burstein, the foremost Jewish authority on the botany and chemistry of Temple artifacts.

"In order to sidestep the strict prohibition against experimentation with the various plant materials in their original form (see below), Rabbi Burstein has advised him that there is no prohibition whatsoever against enjoying the essential oil extracts of these same botanicals. At last report, Avraham has been able to authenticate and obtain nine of the original eleven incense spices, and produce them in the form of essential oils. In essence, he has paralleled Vendyl's discoveries of both the Anointing Oil and the Qetoret in Qumran.

"The Talmud (Arachin 16a) tells us that the Beth HaMikdash (Holy Temple), the Mishkan (Tabernacle), as well as all their sacred vessels - the Aron HaKodesh (Holy Ark), Menorah (Candalabra), Mizbeach HaQetoret (Incense Altar), the garments of the Cohen Gadol (High Priest), etc. - were not just physical artifacts. They represented spiritual levels of closeness to G-d. The same is true of the Anointing Oil and the Qetoret (incense)."

Hmmmm . . . . It seems that the more we study the alter of incense, the more significant it seems to be.

The fire that was used to burn the incense was always taken from the alter of burnt offering outside the sanctuary (Lev 16:12), although the alter of incense was never to be used upon which to offer a burnt offering, a grain offering, or a drink offering (Exod 30:9). Think about the significance of such restrictions. The only time that blood was allowed to touch the alter of incense was on the Day of Atonement when the high priest put blood on the four horns (elevated corners) of the alter in order to cleanse it. Exod 30:10 tells us that the alter of incense was called, "most holy to the Lord”.

This tells us even more about this very special alter and its meaningful importance.

Of course, God’s primary desire for His people is that they be holy. Simply going through the rituals required by the Law—including the burning of incense on the altar of incense—was not enough to make the Israelites right with God. The Lord wanted their hearts and lives to be right, not just their formalities. During Isaiah’s time, the people were disobedient to God, yet they still maintained the temple rites, and that’s why God said through the prophet, “Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me” (Isaiah 1:13). More important than burning the proper incense at the proper time with the proper fire with the proper implements was having a proper heart before God.

In Scripture, incense is often associated with prayer. David prayed, “May my prayer be set before you like incense” (Psalm 141:2). In his vision of heaven, John saw that the elders around the throne “were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people” (Revelation 5:8; cf. 8:3). As Zechariah the priest was offering incense in the temple in Luke 1:10, “all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.”

The altar of incense, then, can be seen as a symbol of the prayers of God’s people. Our prayers ascend to God as the smoke of the incense ascended in the sanctuary. As the incense was burned with fire from the altar of burnt offering, our prayers must be kindled with heaven’s grace. The fact that the incense was always burning means that we should always pray (Luke 18:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). The altar of incense was holy to the Lord and was atoned for with the blood of the sacrifice; it is the blood of Christ applied to our hearts that makes our prayers acceptable. Our prayers are holy because of Jesus’ sacrifice, and therefore they are pleasing to God.

The altar of incense can also be seen as a picture of the intercession of Christ. Just as the altar of sacrifice in the courtyard was a type of Christ’s death on our behalf, the altar of incense in the Holy Place was a type of Christ’s mediation on our behalf—Christ’s work on earth and in heaven. The altar of incense was situated before the mercy-seat of the Ark—a picture of our Advocate’s standing in the presence of the Father (Hebrews 7:25; 9:24). The incense was to be burning continually on the altar of incense, which shows the perpetual nature of Christ’s mediation. Christ’s intercession on our behalf is a sweet-smelling savor to God.

It is beautiful to know that God considers the prayers of believers to be like a sweet smell of incense. Because of Christ, we can now enter God’s holy presence by faith, with full assurance (Mark 15:38; Hebrews 4:16). We offer our prayers upon the altar, trusting in Jesus, our eternal, perfect, and faithful High Priest (Hebrews 10:19–23).

OUR CONFIDENCE AS INTERCESSORS:

It is not coincidental or simple happenstance that Jesus told His disciples that they could "ask the Father" about anything in His name, and He would respond:

"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it." (Jn 14:12-14)

If you understand the progression to the holy of holies, you note that the first stop is at the alter of sacrifice, From there you proceed to the alter of incense, and then to the holy of holies. The ritual involved includes offering a sin offering, being washed in the bronze laver, sprinkling blood on the alter of incense, offering up incense, and finally entering the holy of holies and sprinkling blood on the mercy seat atop the ark of the covenant.

Our story of Zacharias shows us that his assignment of the day was to burn incense on the alter of incense. Scripture leaves no doubt that the practice itself represented one fundamental thing -- prayer. However, it represented the prayers of the people, and not just the high priest. Based on the nature of the meaning of the prayers represented in the incense, I believe we can assume that those prayers included praise and worship, and intercession. After all, as a high priest, he was standing before God in behalf of the people. That's what priests do, as we have already noted.

The story as we have seen it in Luke 2 seems to indicate that as he offered up the prayers of the people that he encountered an angelic being. Doubtless it was a startling experience; this was not an everyday experience for any priest, much less Zacharias. While Zacharias was doing his priestly duties of representing his people before his God, the archangel Gabriel represented God before Zacharias. That was not part of the routine; it was not part of the choreography of temple worship; it was not a part of the liturgy. Rather, it was part of God's plan to address Zacharias regarding his personal prayer he and Elizabeth had prayed since they were first married -- to have a son.

The fact that Luke takes time to point out the special situation Zacharias and Elizabeth were facing helps you and me catch a hint as to the great lessons God wants us to discover regarding those times when you and I, as priests unto the Lord, often find ourselves bewildered -- or even discouraged -- when it seems that our own personal longings of the heart are not being met. It's as if, sometimes, that our praying gets no results -- and we even become so downcast and discouraged that we don't even expect God to answer.

Have you ever been there? Most likely.

Whenever I think of this story, I often remember the story of the Sunday school children who were writing to a missionary to tell him they had been praying. But, they didn't want to bother him in his busy schedule, so indicated that it wasn't necessary for him to write them back. In penning their letter, they wrote, . . .

"We wanted you to know that we have been praying for you all year, but we don't expect an answer."

Sometimes we're that way in our praying. At best our praying is perfunctory or obligatory.

Obviously this is not the kind of praying we need, nor is it the kind God expects from us. We, instead, should pray expecting God to respond. After all, that's what Jesus taught His disciples, as I noted above. It should be no less for you and me. One of my favorite Bible teachers of yesteryear was Ron Dunn, whom I had the honor of knowing. Ron was known for his teachings on prayer. On one occasion he stated, . . .

"Most of us are more surprised when our prayers ARE answered than when they are not. But we need to get to the place where our surprise is over when they are NOT answered."

In order for us to not be so surprised when God answers our prayers -- and be more surprised when it seems that He doesn't, it might help us to understand five fundamental principles found within the context of Zacharias' encounter with Gabriel. Recognizing them will go a great way to alleviating some of our anxieties -- and even skepticism, doubts, and unbelief in our prayer lives.

The first principle is that of . . .

1. PERFECT TIMING:

It seems that many times when we pray, it seems a long time before we see the answer. Yes, God often answers LATER. -- at lest seemingly!

Zacharias and Elizabeth had obviously been praying for many years -- at least since early in their marriage. But, apparently they had STOPPED praying -- at least for a son to succeed Zacharias. Verse 18 hints at this -- ". . . For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years." It appears that, as their ages began to creep up on the reproductive capabilities, they had begun to assume that their time clock had run out, and therefore it was out of the realm of possibility that their prayers would ever be answered.

An earlier verse (13), though, hits us in the face with divine reality when Gabriel stuns this already startled Zacharias with this amazing statement: -- "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, . . ."

I suspect Zacharias was seriously taken aback by Gabriel's assertion. Zacharias had seen no evidence whatsoever -- for years! -- that God had heard. And yet, Gabriel now makes the outlandish claim that God had, indeed, heard. The statement in the Greek text reveals something even more amazing -- God heard Zacharias' prayer the very first time he prayed it as a young married priest.

The KJV translation simply says, "Is heard". However, in looking at the Greek word, "eisakouō", we find that it speaks much more. The idea of obeying or acting on the petition is clearly evident, and that the decision had been made the first moment Zacharias and Elizabeth prayed for that son to succeed him in the priesthood. It can easily be translated, – Their initial praying. "was already heard, was already listened to, and was already decided to do."

This always reminds me of a similar story in the Book of Daniel when Michael the Archangel suddenly speaks to Daniel and tells him that God heard Daniel's prayer when he first prayed it, but he had to complete a little unfinished business with Satan, and it took him three weeks of fighting before he was finally able to come and let Daniel know God had heard his prayer.

In Zacharias' and Elizabeth's case, God had heard their prayer and had already answered it when they first prayed. It wasn't until many years later that they realized God had answered -- and then saw the evidence with John's birth. It's an odd principle in God's economy of things -- but one worth understanding. God ALWAYS answers immediately, -- but OFTEN later. The GRANTING of our praying is immediate; the GETTING of the answer is often delayed.

It is not uncommon for God to often provide the answer only AFTER it is beyond the realm of human possibility. This was certainly the case with Zacharias and Elizabeth -- just as it was centuries earlier with Abraham and Sarah.

Why is this so important to us, my friend? It's because Satan inevitably uses delays or the lack of evidence as so-called "proof" that God has not answered -- when, in fact, He already has.

So, now, . . . . it's time to wait -- and trust Him fully -- until affirmation is validated by revelation.

2. DIVINE CONSISTENCY:

Too often we assume when we see no evidence of God's involvement in our intercession or petition that somehow God overlooked it, didn't hear it, or didn't think it was important enough for Him to respond. There are even times when we think God has said a firm "NO!" to our petition. What, however, we need to know -- and must believe -- is that God Always Answers . I am convinced that not one single prayer ever prayed in all of human history was overlooked or not answered. To think so is to be inconsistent with scripture and diametrically opposed to the very nature and character of God.

Rather, God always answers -- always. But, He answers according to several principles that you and I sometimes miss.

1) First and foremost, God answers on the basis of the authority of His Word. He never answers our prayer in ways that will violate His Word or even his own nature and character. So, when you pray, check it against the truth of Scripture.

2) Secondly, and more precisely, God answers according to the Promise of His Word. When God makes a promise, it is always in harmony with His Word. He never violates His Word. Any promises from God's Word will be stirred up in your heart and mind by the Holy Spirit's activity in the situation.

3) Finally, based on the first two principles, you need to pray accordingly. If there IS A Promise, present that promise to God in prayer, "Lord, here is what you said . . ." Praise and thank Him for the promise. Rest on the promise. And, attack the devil with the promise of he has the gall to try to intimidate you or cause you to doubt.

There are times when you don't see the promise. What do you do then? Well, first, pray until you Receive a promise from God. Just keep praying. OR, pray until you get assurance in your heart -- that is usually characterized by a sense of peace in your heart over the matter. OR, pray until you realize it is not God's will. Or, pray until God lifts the burden from you and you feel released from praying about the situation.

In any case, God -- IF you will be patient enough to take as long as you must to hear His Spirit speak to your heart -- will always answer. God always answers -- ALWAYS.

If you pray with that principle in mind, you will always leave your time of intercession with one primary characteristic: -- PEACEFUL CONFIDENCE.

No matter what others may say, and no matter what circumstances may dictate, you will enjoy that quiet assurance, so certain that you will sleep peacefully and have a sense of joy and expectancy lift you in your waking hours.

3. DIVINE QUALITY:

There is a very important fact to keep in mind: ---- God ALWAYS Answers Better. Think about this for a moment: -- If God had answered based on Zacharias' and Elizabeth's desire, what would they have gotten? They'd have gotten just another little boy who would grow up to be a priest following after Zachariah. He'd have gone through the traditional priestly duties -- and might have even become high priest -- but that would have been all there was to the story. Without trying to sound irreligious, it would have been "the same ol' same ol'" for John.

Instead, they got a prophet who was the forerunner to announce the ministry of the Redeemer of the world. Ron Dunn said of this situation with John, "The biggest problem with our praying, is that we usually aim too low."

Years ago while pastoring my first church in southwestern Missouri about an hour from Springfield, my longtime friend, Jeff Floyd stirred me up asking a troubling question -- "What are you praying for that is impossible?"

His question both irritated and convicted me at the same time, because I suddenly realized that most of the things I was praying about either were things that could be resolved without God's involvement, or -- OR -- I wasn't expecting God to answer in the first place.

There is always something about prayer that God answers -- it always has the stamp of "I was here" on it. God was there. It was a God thing. It has a divine quality about it -- even if the human element (such as a doctor's surgical procedure) is present, you know deep down that it was God throughout.

4. HUMAN FUTILITY: --

This is the case with Zacharias and Elizabeth. It was that way with Abraham and Sarah regarding Isaac's birth. It was the same with Mary and Martha and the death of Lazarus. You see, God often waits until it is humanly impossible before He manifests the answer to your prayer. But WHY??? – for Greater Glory.

Think about this: -- if God had answered Zacharias' and Elizabeth's prayer while they were young and of child-bearing age, what would have happened? What significance would there have been? Who would have been praised?

People would have merely said, "Well congratulations! You finally got your boy! That's nice! Now you have a successor." Zacharias and Elizabeth would have gotten a little glory -- and most of the credit. After all, . . . it's a human thing -- to have a baby. It happens all the time.

The fact that God, Who had answered the prayer immediately -- and granted it immediately -- waited until it was humanly impossible did it for that very reason -- to be sure it was humanly impossible. Nobody -- I mean NOBODY -- was to be given praise and glory for this. The birth of John was to go down in the annals of history as a miracle of God just as surely as was the birth of Christ.

Finally, . . .

5. DIVINE NECESSITY: --

This remains a great mystery to me. Often God links our human needs to His divine necessity. He often answers in such ways that not only is our need met, but His sovereign agenda is also carried out.

Think about this for a minute: -- If John had been born 40 or 50 years earlier, what would Zacharias and Elizabeth had? Another priest in the Levitical Lineage. God didn't need just another priest. He needed someone to preach repentance, announce the impending kingdom, and introduce His Son to the culture. In solving Zachariah's problem, God satisfied His own plan.

Both the Old and New Testaments are filled with examples of where God advanced His own agenda by answering the prayers of people. He still does that today. Look through scripture -- sometimes national solutions, sometimes personal -- but always eternally linked to God's agenda. God used Hannah's need to the birth of Samuel. He linked Abraham's need to the birth of Isaac. In fact, in that case, He used Isaac to answer His own promise He had made to Abraham.

So, sometimes your need actually exists because God has a divine plan in mind, and He's going to use your need to fulfill His plan.

How amazing is that!!!!

FINALLY:

Since, then, intercession is so vital to the work of the Kingdom, and since you and I are, indeed, priests unto the Lord, doesn't it make sense that our primary work as such priests is to stand before Him in behalf of others? No wonder reading the Bible and praying are so disregarded, minimized, and resisted in most of today's churches. In must churches, prayer is nothing more than a perfunctory afterthought with which to begin and end a pointless worship service. Perhaps we should act on John R. Mott's admonition, . . . .

"Let methods be changed, therefore, if necessary, that prayer may be given its true place. Let there be days set apart for intercession; let the original purpose of the monthly concert of prayer for missions be given a larger place; let missionary prayer cycles be used by families and by individual Christians."

In His Bond, By His Grace, and for His Kingdom,

Bob Tolliver -- Romans 1:11

"Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness,
examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so." -- Dr. Luke (Acts 17:11)

"A fire kept burning on the hearthstone of my heart, and I took up the burden of the day with fresh courage and hope." -- Charles F. McKoy

Life Unlimited Ministries
LUMglobal
[email protected]

"If Jesus had preached the same message that many ministers preach today, He would never have been crucified." -- Leonard Ravenhill

"The time will come when instead of shepherds feeding the sheep, the Church will have clowns entertaining the goats." -- Charles H. Spurgeon

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