Why Pray?... Why Now?... by Doug Fortune

I guess I was under the impression that God is sovereign, that He holds the destiny of all things in His hands. It appears that He has a purpose and a plan, and He is going to do what He is going to do. In fact, some of us are beginning to gain a deeper understanding that He has ALREADY done what He is going to do; "Declaring the end and the RESULT from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I WILL DO all My pleasure and purpose..." (Isaiah 46:10 Amplified Bible), "Then said the Lord to me, You have seen well, for I am alert and active, watching over My word to PERFORM it." (Jeremiah 1:12 Amplified Bible)

If then, this is indeed the case, why on earth should I pray!?! Perhaps it is just a good exercise?... perhaps something to keep me busy so I don't get into mischief? Why on EARTH should I pray if Father is sovereign?

That is the key... it is because we are on EARTH; "The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S: but the EARTH hath He GIVEN to the children of MEN." (Psalms 115:16) The wording translated as "hath He given" is nathan in Hebrew. It's meanings include- to give, bestow, grant, permit, ascribe, employ, devote, consecrate, dedicate, commit, entrust, give over, deliver up, requite to, put upon, appoint, assign, designate. Yes, Father is indeed sovereign, but in His sovereignty He has entrusted the affairs of the EARTH to US.

With this in mind, there is much talk in the Church these days about going to the next level, the next dimension in God in order to impact the earth. If we are going to the next dimension in God, then let's ask the question, What IS IT and how do we get there?

What Is It?-
Some have called it the Third Day, Beyond the Veil, the Kingdom Age, the Holy of Holies, Mature Sonship, the Deeper Life, the Christ-Life, the Parousia, the Feast of Tabernacles, the Melchizedek Priesthood, etc. All of these terms point to the same basic spiritual principle. Personally, I like the analogy of the Tabernacle and going Beyond the Veil into the Holy of Holies, as it is easy to understand.

The Outer Court of the Tabernacle, containing the Brazen Altar and the Brazen Laver, speaks of our initial salvation experience in God, as it is all about the shedding of blood, dealing with sin, and washing in the Water of the Word. This could be likened to the Evangelical experience. This experience could also be foreshadowed in the Feast of Passover.

The Holy Place, which contained the Golden Candlestick, the Table of Shewbread, and the Golden Altar of Incense, speaks of our being baptized in the Holy Spirit. In this dimension we come into the revelatory realm (the prophetic, word of knowledge, word of wisdom, etc.) through the illumination of the Golden Candlestick, which speaks of the Holy Spirit. As we are baptized in the Holy Spirit, we receive a new "language" for prayer, which the Golden Altar of Incense speaks of. One of the things the Table of Shewbread speaks of is our receiving a revelation of divine healing as the "children's bread." These are experiences we come into in this dimension of the Holy Spirit. This could be likened to the Pentecostal/ Charismatic experience. This experience could also be foreshadowed in the Feast of Pentecost.

This is where many Christians have come to rest in their spiritual growth. We know however, that there is another dimension in the Tabernacle- the Holy of Holies. There is another feast- the Feast of Tabernacles. There is something beyond the Pentecostal/ Charismatic experience in our spiritual growth that we are moving into. This is the next level, the next dimension in God that is to impact the earth.

The Holy of Holies contained the Ark of the Covenant. This was the place of God's manifest Presence, His Shekinah Glory; "And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel." (Exodus 25:22) As we experientially move into this next level, this next dimension in God, it is His manifest Presence, His Shekinah Glory in a people that impacts the earth.

How Do We Get There?-
In keeping with our analogy, since the Golden Altar of Incense was located in the Holy Place, it would seem that prayer falls in the dimension of the Pentecostal/ Charismatic realm. There is a verse we need to consider, however; "But [inside] beyond the second curtain or veil, [there stood another] tabernacle [division] known as the Holy of Holies. It had the golden ALTAR OF INCENSE and the Ark (chest) of the Covenant, covered over with wrought gold." (Hebrews 9:3-4 Amplified Bible) This verse clearly states that the Altar of Incense was in the Holy of Holies, but we know that the Altar of Incense was in the Holy Place. Either we have a contradiction or there is an explanation for this discrepancy.

For the explanation, we must refer to the Mishnah, which is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the Oral Torah. According to the Mishnah, the Golden Altar of Incense was taken into the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement. This is the ONLY piece of furniture in the Tabernacle that was moved from one part of the Tabernacle to another. On the Day of Atonement, the Golden Altar of Incense transitioned from the Holy Place to the Holy of Holies. It transitioned from one "dimension" to the next... are you beginning to get a picture? It is also significant that the Day of Atonement happened right before moving into the Feast of Tabernacles.

I believe that if we are truly going to impact the earth by moving into this next "dimension" in God, foreshadowed by the Feast of Tabernacles and the Holy of Holies, there is one thing that will serve as the catalyst to transition us there- PRAYER! Prayer IS the Golden Altar of Incense!

Yes, we have talked about going to the next level, transitioning into the next dimension in God for a long time, but I don't know that we have seen a great deal in the way of results! Why is that?... because talking about it won't get us there. Prayer is the KEY!... and not just any kind of prayer, either.

The incense in this Golden Altar was lit on fire by coals that came from the Brazen Altar, and the fire came out from God initially to light the sacrifice on the Brazen Altar. This fire that originated with God was to be kept burning continually; "And the fire upon the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be allowed to go out. The priest shall burn wood on it every morning and lay the burnt offering in order upon it and he shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings. The fire shall be burning continually upon the altar; it shall not go out." (Leviticus 6:12-13 Amplified Bible) These coals from fire that originated with God were used to light the incense; "He shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the [bronze] altar before the Lord, and his two hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil [into the Holy of Holies], And put the incense on the fire [in the censer] before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon [the ark of] the Testimony, lest he die." (Leviticus 16:12-13 Amplified Bible)

Just as with the natural incense in the Tabernacle, the "incense" of our prayer must be lit with a fire that originates with Father. The prayer that will transition us into the next dimension must be the "prayer" that is burning in the heart of God! How many times have we come before Father with our list of things we want Him to do? Perhaps it is time to declare the "prayer" that is burning in Father's heart!

I believe we are living in the fulfillment of this Day of Atonement and Father is beckoning us inward, as the Golden Altar of Incense transitions us into a new dimension! We can continue to talk about it with little results, OR we can enter into His plan and become that moving Altar of Incense!

So, why prayer?... because is Father's PLAN to transition us into the next dimension! Why now?... because it is TIME to transition into the next dimension!

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