The prayer at the incense altar issued in the numbering of the children of Israel for the formation of an army to fight for God’s interest on earth; we need to be those praying at the incense altar for the growth and maturity of the believers so that an army can be formed.
The Lord today wants to gain an army that would be one with Him to fight with Him and for Him on earth; for us to be part of the army, we need the growth in life unto maturity.
On one hand God wants to gain a group of people who receive Him as life and experience Him to be transformed in the image of Christ and express God corporately; on the other hand, He needs His people to represent Him with His dominion on the earth for the subduing of the enemy and the bringing in of the kingdom of God.
When it comes to the matter of dealing with the enemy, we cannot preserve anything for ourselves – we need to be absolutely for God and obey Him fully.
The work of God is that the church would cause Satan to suffer fatal loss; the church as a whole is in degradation, but the Lord wants to gain His overcomers in the churches, those who have reached the spiritual age of twenty and are formed into the army to fight for His interest on earth.
When we do any other kind of activity in the church, including reading the Bible, preaching the gospel, caring for the saints, and even raising up churches – we may be able to preserve something of our self, but in doing the work of God, the self has to be fully denied.
For us to engage in spiritual warfare to deal with Satan and recover the earth for God requires that we are wholly and absolutely for God, and that we obey Him completely.
We cannot preserve ourselves or leave even one bit of ground for ourselves, for when we do this, the enemy knows. It is not so much the words we say and the work we do, but it is our very being – we fight by what we are, our constitution, our being.
What God wants is not spiritual superheroes or giants in Christ; He wants normal believers who are faithful before the Lord to deal with the self, the flesh, and the natural man, and who leave no ground in their being for the enemy.
Such ones arrive at maturity and know the Body, live in ascension, reign in life, and fight the spiritual warfare together with others who have reached spiritual maturity.
Such ones also pray at the incense altar for the formation of the army; they do not look down on others or despise or criticize them but rather pray for them at the incense altar that an army would be formed in all the local churches for the Lord’s move.
Growing unto Maturity to be Formed into an Army and Praying at the Incense Altar
As believers in Christ we need to advance in our spiritual experience, in our growth in life, and in our experience of Christ.
We start with experiencing Christ as the embodiment of God (the reality of the tabernacle) and then we go on to experience Christ as the light of life (the reality of the lampstand), the supply of life (the bread of the Presence), and then we advance to pray at the incense altar for God’s interests and His move.
As we grow in life unto maturity, we ourselves are formed into an army to fight with God and for God’s interests, and we pray at the incense altar for the formation of the army of the Lord, an army that would fight for God’s move on earth.
In Exo. 30 there was a census made right after the description of the incense altar, and in vv. 11-16 the emphasis was more on the census than on the ransom silver (the propitiation silver).
The numbering of the people of Israel was for the formation of the army.
How can we believers in Christ become an army that fights for God’s interest on earth? For us to be in the army we need to grow unto maturity; we need to advance in life and experience until we come to the spiritual age of twenty.
Then, we will spontaneously be formed into the army that fights for God’s interest, and we will arrive at the incense altar, where we pray for others to grow in life unto maturity so that they may be formed into God’s army.
There’s an urgent need for us to growth and reach maturity so that we may be qualified to be formed into an army; only when such an army has been formed can God move on earth for His purpose.
God wants to move; He wants to release His blessing, He wants to deal with His enemy, and He wants to bring His kingdom into many parts of the earth, but He is waiting for a group of people who would grow unto maturity to be formed into an army to cooperate with Him.
Our need is to grow; we need to grow in life unto maturity, and once we reach spiritual maturity, we will cooperate with the Lord both to fight with the enemy and to pray for the growth unto maturity of our fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord.
We all need to grow in life until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ (Eph. 4:13).
Amen, we need to grow! Amen, all saints need to grow! When we reach spiritual maturity, when we reach the spiritual age of twenty, we will be formed into the army who can fight for God’s interest on earth, and we will pray at the incense altar for many others to grow in life unto maturity to join the army!
Lord Jesus, grow in us unto maturity so that we may be formed into Your army to fight one with You for Your interest on earth and for the defeat of Your enemy. Amen, Lord, we want to cooperate with You by daily growing in life unto maturity, advancing in our spiritual experience, and praying at the incense altar for the formation of the army. Oh Lord, may we and all the saints grow in life unto maturity for You to gain Your army to cause Satan to suffer loss and bring in the kingdom of God on earth!
Praying at the Incense Altar for the Saints’ Growth unto Maturity for the Formation of the Army
Regarding the formation of the army, what is needed the most is prayer; we don’t need “prayer warriors” but normal believers who pray in the spirit of the Body for the formation of the army.
We don’t need “prayer heroes”; rather, we need saints who pray under the authority of the ascended Christ and in the order of the Body for the army to be formed.
God needs a group of people who intercedes at the altar of incense, pray prayers of authority and of warfare; such ones are one corporate warrior offering the prayer that God needs for the formation of the army.
It is very much in the Lord’s heart to uplift this kind of prayer in all the prayer meetings all over the earth.
The prayer at the incense altar issued in the numbering of the children of Israel for the formation of an army to fight for God’s interest on earth (Exo. 20:11-16; Num. 1:45-46).
As a result of the prayer at the incense altar, the Lord conducts a “military census” of the saints in the churches; those who are numbered are qualified to go to war for God’s move on the earth (Num. 2:32; 4:23; 2 Tim. 2:3).
The intercession offered at the incense altar is for the growth and maturity of the believers so that an army can be formed (Eph. 4:13; 6:10-12).
Growth unto maturity is our desperate need in the church life today; for the Lord’s recovery to go on and for the Lord’s move to advance, there’s the need for us on one hand to advance in our growth in life unto maturity and, on the other hand, to be those praying at the incense altar for the saints’ growth unto maturity for the formation of the army.
We need to arrive at maturity and be formed into the army, and we also need to pray at the incense altar for others to arrive to maturity.
After we arrive at the incense altar and stay there for a period of time, we will realise that nothing is as important as the growth unto maturity of the saints for the army to be formed; we will then pray only for the Lord’s move, for His testimony all over the earth.
At the incense altar we do not mainly pray for our needs, for we know that when we seek the kingdom of God all other things will be added to us (Matt. 5:33), so we pray for the Lord’s testimony, for His move on earth, and for many saints to grow unto maturity to be formed into the army God needs for Him to advance on earth.
At the incense altar we leave matters such as our health, our job, our family, etc into the Lord’s hand, and we join ourselves to Christ be those praying at the incense altar for the saints’ growth unto maturity for the formation of the army.
Even though outwardly we may still have some prayer for personal matters such as our health, our family, our relatives, etc, inwardly our real concern is for the Lord’s move, His recovery, and His testimony.
As we are praying at the incense altar for the saints’ growth in life for the Lord to gain His army, the Lord will have a census among His people so that an army can be formed to fight for His move.
Amen, as a result of the saints’ prayer at the incense altar, the Lord conducts “a military census” in the churches, and He numbers those who are qualified to go to war.
Amen, the more we pray at the incense altar, the more we will realise that the need for maturity is desperate, and the greater will be the urgency to pray for the growth in life unto maturity (1 Cor. 2:6; 3:1-2; 14:20; 16:13; Heb. 5:14—6:1; Eph. 3:16).
Only when God gains His army is He able to move on earth for His purpose, for apart from an army formed of mature ones, there’s no way for God to move (Eph. 4:13; 6:10-12).
Oh Lord, we call on You for Your move on earth today. We look to You for our advance in Your recovery. Where is Your testimony, Lord? Where are the overcoming ones, the saints who are mature to be formed into the army You need to fight with You for Your interest? Amen, Lord, we pray for the growth and maturity of the saints so that they may reach the spiritual age of twenty and be formed into Your army. Amen, Lord, may we all grow in life more every day until we all arrive at a full grown man. Release the prayers at the incense altar. We want to be those praying at the incense altar one with You for Your saints to grow unto maturity and be formed into Your army on earth!
Read this article in the Romanian language / citiți acest articol în limba română la următorul link, Rugăciunea de la altarul tămâii pentru creșterea înspre maturitate pentru formarea armatei.
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, the message by bro. Ron Kangas for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Exodus, msg. 154 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Numbers (2), week 2, The Growth and Maturity Required for the Formation of the Army to Protect God’s Testimony and Fight for His Move on Earth.
- Hymns on this topic:
# Yes, Lord, impress our heart / That we must take You in each day; / The seed will have its way; / Your growing brings the kingdom here to stay— / Lord Jesus, grow in us. (Hymns #1132)
# Coming forward to the Holiest, / Through the incense altar’s prayer; No more veil of separation, / We may boldly enter there. (Hymns #1217)
# Let us move together with the Lord through prayer; / For His move on earth we must prepare. / Lord do grow in us ’till we’re matured in life, / As Your army fully qualified. (Song on, Let us work together with the Lord through prayer)
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