And Another Angel Came and Stood at the Altar
Our prayers find acceptance with God through the merit of Jesus' blood and the atonement of our Mediator, our Great High Priest.
Octavius Winslow emphasizes the role of Jesus, our great High Priest, as the Angel of the Covenant who stands at the heavenly altar, presenting the prayers of the saints alongside His divine merits. He illustrates how the incense of our prayers is made acceptable to God through the sacrificial death of Christ, which purifies our imperfect petitions. Winslow encourages believers to approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that their sincere prayers are enveloped in the sweet fragrance of Jesus' atonement. He paints a vivid picture of the incense rising before God, symbolizing the acceptance of our prayers through Christ. This assurance serves as a powerful motivation for believers to pour out their hearts to God.
Text
And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.
Rev. 8:3-4
THIS angel is none other than the Angel of the Covenant, Jesus, our great High Priest, who stands before the golden altar in heaven, presenting the sweet incense of His divine merits and sacrificial death; the cloud of which ascends before God "with the prayers of the saints." Oh, it is the merit of our Immanuel, "who gave Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet--smelling savor," that imparts virtue, prevalence, and acceptableness to the incense of prayer ascending from the heart of the child of God.
Each petition, each desire, each groan, each sigh, each glance, comes up before God with the "smoke of the incense" which ascends from the cross of Jesus, and from the "golden altar which is before the throne." All the imperfection and impurity which mingles with our devotions here is separated from each petition by the atonement of our Mediator, who presents that as sweet incense to God. See your Great High Priest before the throne! See Him waving the golden censer to and fro! See how the cloud of incense rises and envelopes the throne! See how heaven is filled with its fragrance and its glory! Believer in Jesus, upon the heart of that officiating High Priest your name is written; in the smoke of the incense which has gone up from that waving censer your prayers are presented.
Jesus' blood cleanses them, Immanuel's merit perfumes them, and our glorious High Priest thus presents both our person and our sacrifice to his Father and our Father, to His God and our God. Oh wonderful encouragement to prayer! Who, with such an assurance that his weak, broken, and defiled, but sincere petitions shall find acceptance with God, would not breathe them at the throne of grace.
Go, in the name of Jesus; go, casting yourself upon the merit which fills heaven with its fragrance; go, and pour out your grief, unveil your sorrow, confess your sin, sue out your pardon, make known your needs, with your eye of faith upon the Angel who stands at the "golden altar which is before the throne," and the incense which breathes from your oppressed and stricken heart will ascend up before God out of the Angel's hand, as a cloud, rich, fragrant, and accepted.
Sermon Outline
- The Angel of the Covenant
- The Incense of Prayer
- The Assurance of Acceptance
- The Encouragement to Prayer
- Our prayers find acceptance with God
- We can breathe our petitions at the throne of grace
Key Quotes
“See your Great High Priest before the throne! See Him waving the golden censer to and fro!” — Octavius Winslow
“Oh, it is the merit of our Immanuel, 'who gave Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet--smelling savor,' that imparts virtue, prevalence, and acceptableness to the incense of prayer ascending from the heart of the child of God.” — Octavius Winslow
“Who, with such an assurance that his weak, broken, and defiled, but sincere petitions shall find acceptance with God, would not breathe them at the throne of grace.” — Octavius Winslow
Application Points
- We can approach God's throne with confidence, knowing that our prayers will be accepted through the merit of Jesus' blood.
- Our prayers are presented to God as sweet incense, fragrant and accepted, through the atonement of our Mediator.
- We should breathe our petitions at the throne of grace, trusting in the assurance of acceptance that our prayers will find favor with God.