On Prayer

Prayer as Incense

The aroma of my favorite coffee fills the living room. My reading lamp casts a faint glow on the pages of my brown leather Bible. A sacred stillness precedes the hustle of getting kids out the door to school. With pen in hand and Scripture open, I anticipate a rich time of communion with God. But even before my pen hits the page, my mind wanders to my to-do list. Anxiety about the afternoon counseling session begins to swell. Email notifications invade what, for a brief second, feels like a holy moment. With every notification comes a reminder of meetings to schedule, things to write, and tasks to accomplish.

In these moments when the relentless inertia of the day tugs at my attention, I have found that I need a bigger vision for prayer, big enough to put my fears, anxieties, and struggles in their proper place.

Recently, I have returned to John’s Apocalypse to gain perspective on prayer. I know, Revelation is not the first place one is likely to turn; however, I have discovered a rich vision for prayer in the heavenly throne room vision in Revelation 4-5. These verses function as a hinge from the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3 to God’s righteous “judgment” and “redemption” throughout the remainder of the book [1]. In these hinge chapters, we catch a glimpse of the focal point of the universe, incomprehensible power, glory, beauty, sovereignty, and mystery—the Triune God. There, “between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders” (Rev. 5:6 ESV) is the “Lion of the tribe of Judah” (Rev. 5:5), who is enigmatically also a slain Lamb (Rev. 5:6). The Lion-Lamb, the Son of God, unlimited in power and exhaustive in wisdom, is completely sovereign over what is to follow.

Then the Lamb takes the scroll representative of God’s divine will, and in response, “the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (Rev. 5:8 ESV). Consider the implications of what John is saying.  In the throne room of the all-powerful and all-knowing God of the universe are the prayers of the saints. Prayer is a participation in the heavenly throne room worship of the all-powerful and all-knowing God. Whether you are on your knees in the stillness of the morning, uttering a prayer as you rush the kids to their activities, or crying out in desperation, your prayers ascend to the throne as incense.

This heavenly throne room vision reinforces that we pray to God, who is infinite in power, indescribable in wisdom, and intimately near.

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We Pray to God, Who is Infinitely Powerful

We pray to God, infinite in power. Perhaps like me, when you hear the word, power, you think of someone with inordinate influence over others and yet is at a distance. Or, perhaps you muster up images of military might. But note the portrait John paints of true power. Jesus has “seven horns” (Rev 5:6). These horns represent Jesus’ exhaustive power [2]. There is nothing and no one that compares. A supernova is only a gentle breeze on a summer afternoon compared to the awesome power of Jesus. But in all his power, he hears and receives the prayers of his people. So, when the anxiety casts a shadow, remember the throne room vision. Recall the incomparable Jesus, the Sovereign Christ.

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We Pray to God, Who is Indescribably Wise

Our oldest daughter is in the stage where she is asking big theological and worldview-oriented questions. There is something about bedtime that draws questions out of kids—anything to delay bedtime. The older she gets, the more complicated her questions about God, life, and challenges at school. She asks because she trusts that I have the answer. Recently, I attended a parenting conference, and one of the speakers noted that the massive difference between a child's and a parent’s knowledge is a parable of the stark contrast between our knowledge and God’s knowledge.

In addition to describing a seven-horned Lamb, John also describes Jesus as having  “seven eyes” (Rev. 5:6). This image represents his perfect knowledge and wisdom. And in his perfect wisdom, he both hears and responds to our prayers.

In my years as a pastor, I have found the wisdom of Jesus to be a helpful place to turn for those struggling with the apparent silence or absence of God amidst suffering. Because we only “see in a mirror dimly” (1 Cor 13:12 ESV), we are incapable of seeing the entire picture. We can’t see around the bend of our own futures, but Jesus knows the intricacies of all of world history. We don’t know what the next second will bring. Jesus is sovereign over our past, present, and future. In those moments when we don’t know what to pray (Rom 8:26-27), we can trust that our feeble words ascend to our faithful Savior, who knows all.

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We Pray to God, Who is Intimately Near

Finally, we pray to God who is intimately near. Consider for a moment that prayer is one of the most intimate activities we can engage in. When I go back and read the words in my prayer journal, I am reminded of just how personal the words are. I wouldn’t want someone to open my journal and begin reading it. But the words we utter from the secret places of our hearts reach the center of the throne room. This Apocalyptic vision assures us that our prayers—even the most intimate prayers—reach the Holy of Holies where there is “a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain” (Rev. 5:6 ESV).  What a beautiful picture of God’s care and intimacy for his people. Whether we utter words through tears, shout words of gratitude, or erupt into praise, we can trust that God is intimately near—he hears and receives our prayers. We can take great comfort in that truth.

This vision of prayer has impacted how I approach prayer. John’s Apocalypse, in particular, his vision of the throne room, has renewed my understanding of prayer, and I pray it does for you, too.  When you pray, you can trust that your words ascend to our Triune God who is infinitely powerful, indescribably wise, and intimately near.

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Works Cited

[1] G. K. Beale, “Revelation (Book),” In New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, edited by T. Desmond Alexander and Brian S. Rosner, Electronic ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 356.

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[2] Leon Morris. Revelation: An Introduction and Commentary. Vol. 20. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1987), 98.

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