Pure Worship!

In the book of Exodus, Scripture tells us of the ingredients for the incense that was to continually burn upon the golden altar, in the Holy Place. As this incense burned, the aroma and smoke slowly wafted through that final veil, into the very presence of God. As students of the Word, we know this incense to be clearly symbolic of the prayer and worship of the saints (Rev 5:8; 8:3-4; Ps 141:2; etc).

We know this incense to be symbolic. That much is clear. But do we realize the composition that this incense possesses? It was to be PURE incense:

"And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight: And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy: And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy" (Exod 30:34-36).

In a day and age when worship is often anything but pure, may we ever more cling to the Bible, our guide for any and all approach to God. It was only pure incense that would ever make it's way into the Most Holy Place, and likewise, it is only pure worship that will ever usher the believer into the place of his destination, the Most Holy Place. Many are wondering why they seem to struggle to find God's presence; why they seem to sweat as they strive to enter in. Could it be that our incense of worship is impure? I believe so. Men are mistaking if they assume they can simply waltz into the presence of God. Rather, the heart of man must be prepared (Mk 4:1-20)! The glory of God is carried in upon the shoulders of His priests (1 Chron 15:15)!

Look what the Lord says about His people, when their incense is given over to idols: "I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies. Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts. Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols. But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream. Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel? But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves" (Amos 5:21-26). What a terrible state! What once was a sweet melody to the ears of God has become nothing more than the noise of thy songs! What was once a pleasant aroma has now become a violent opposition to God's nostrils: He will no longer smell! How sad! All because of a petty idol. This unfortunate instance was far too repetitious in Scripture (Isa 1:10-26; Jer 6:20; Mal 1:6-11; Matt 15:8-9; Exod 33:30-33; etc), and I fear it is no different in our own day and age. What is the smell of your incense? What is the sound of your song? One of mixture will always stifle the glory of God, for "know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?" (1 Cor 5:6). A heart and a tongue that do not align will always keep you from God's best!

Malachi reassures us that our worship is to remain pure, free from mixture! "For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts" (Mal 1:11). God is looking for those whose worship flows from a contrite ("collapsed") heart (Ps 51:16-17; Hosea 6:6; Mic 6:6-8; etc). All the more reason to let the fire of God purify us (Heb 12:8-11; Mal 3:2-4)! No wonder the furnace is my friend!

The ingredients of this incense are an important detail too. Each ingredient was either obtained by death, or used for death (burial). These ingredients were stacte, onycha, galbanum, and frankincense. These were to be beaten "very small", thus insisting, once again, upon the utter purification this incense was to possess.

Stacte is the purest form of myrrh available. Myrrh is a burial spice. Who can fail to see the significance thereof? Onycha is an extract that only emits an odor when burned. Once again, we see the burning and purging that must be performed for the odor to be "acceptable". Galbanum is a gum that, when added, makes the incense last longer. Galbanum is only obtained by breaking and stripping the stalks of its plant. The plant's stalk, like the believer, must first be broken down before any good and aromatic use can come of it. Lastly, frankincense is a bitter vegetable resin. To obtain this resin, one must extract it from the core of its tree, thoroughly cutting away the bark. Then, and only then, would the pure frankincense come forth. Who can fail to see the significance here? Do we think it a coincidence that these four ingredients that composed the incense are all obtained in a manner of death and dying, burning and cutting? The incense could only properly be offered as these deadly events took place. Similarly, the believer can only offer his or her own fragrance when utter death is involved. A saint who finds himself in the Most Holy Place, will be a saint who is dead and/or dying to himself.

Paul the apostle is a remarkable example of this. He was a man who made Zion his very home. He was so raptured in glory that he didn't even know whether he was in or out of the body (2 Cor 12:3)! He even said that he had the choice, to stay or to go. And do we think it a coincidence that this was the very same man who died "daily" (1 Cor 15:31)? Of course not, this is no mere coincidence. The purity of one's worship is directly related to the measure of escape upon Zion that is realized. The holiness of one's own personal fragrance is directly related to the glory to be walked in upon the earth! God desires pure incense upon the altar of my heart. Not just for His sake, but for my sake too.

Knowing this, therefore, I can better endure God's furnace (Mal 3:2-4). For I know that real purity is slowly being assimilated into my carnal being. One day, my offering will be purer than pure, whiter than snow, and it will experientially usher me to and through that final veil, once and for all! Amen.