“The twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.”
Revelation 5:8 (NIV)
It’s good to have an occasional glimpse of heaven to meditate on.
Each of the twenty four elders in heaven are holding a golden bowl filled with prayers, our prayers. In their other hand, they are holding a harp, and then they all bow down before the Lamb, who is Jesus.
These twenty four elders probably consist of the twelve apostles plus the twelve sons of Jacob, who are the twelve tribes of Israel. As they hold these golden bowls, they bow down before the High Priest of Heaven, who is Jesus. The entire image confirms the idea that worship goes hand in hand with prayer.
This image of heaven describes a vivid combination of sights, scents and sounds. All of our senses are stimulated in heaven. There will be golden bowls to see, fragrant incense to smell and harp music to listen to. These elders hold our prayers within their bowls, and present them to Jesus, who told us to pray, asking anything in His name.
While we face times of adversity in our lives, it can be a struggle to believe that God still hears our prayers. John’s vision of heaven revealed that God not only hears us, but He values our prayers enough to put them in golden bowls, which are then lit up to become a fragrant incense, permeating heaven.
There are no boundaries of time or space in heaven, so our prayers are ever present before Him. We may forget what we asked for a year or two ago, but Heaven never forgets. Every prayer we pray, endures in His eternal presence through the smoke of fragrant incense. He answers us in due time, according to His plan and purpose. Whatever we ask for in Jesus’ name, carries the aroma of Christ with it, all the way to God’s throne. (2 Corinthians 2:15)
Knowing this, we put our hope and faith in God, through Jesus, and offer Him praise along with every petition.
He loves us for who we are, and not for what we do. Therefore, we praise Him for who He is, even before He does what we ask.
David knew this truth and he offered praise to God with every petition, as we can see by reading his Psalms. I find it is very therapeutic to praise God for who He is, even before He answers our prayers.
Since my son’s motorcycle accident in September of 2023, after being in a coma for two weeks, he has been awake and moving ever since, but still isn’t responding cohesively to any questions. There is no doubt that he has a long road of recovery ahead.
God has really kept me in peace, and I attribute that peace to living in a state of constant praise. Praise is truly the secret to inner peace. When people ask me how I stay calm through all that has happened, I believe it’s because of praise. Not a day goes by that I don’t listen to christian contemporary praise and worship music. Each day I say something that praises Jesus, even if it’s only telling Him I love Him.
A situation may be really bad, but God is really good. When we keep that in mind, and His praise is on our lips, He keeps us in perfect peace. There is something supernatural and amazing that happens deep within us, when we live in an attitude of praise.
I know my son is receiving good medical care, but my hope is founded on more than the field of medicine. I believe in those golden bowls in heaven, filled with prayer requests, and that is the vision I keep before me. I thank each one of you for the prayers you have added to those bowls.
God is good, and whatever His plan is, He considers every single prayer that is offered up to Him. He collects our prayers in golden bowls, which are then lit with fire, spreading a fragrant incense of our petitions, all throughout heaven. That image alone deems Him worthy of praise.
Lord, we praise you and thank you that all of our prayers come before you as fragrant incense in golden bowls. We believe that you will hear, smell and answer all that is asked in the holy name of Jesus. Amen
