Lev.16:12,13 – Then he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before the LORD, with his hands full of sweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil. And he shall put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest he die.
The censer givers us a glimpse of the heavenly ministry of Jesus, specifically His role as the heavenly High Priest. This shows the earthly high priest bringing the incense into the holy of holies and filling the holy of holies with the smoke of this incense. This is a picture of the prayers of our High Priest, Jesus Himself, Who lives forever to make intercession for us. There are some obvious differences here between Jesus and the levitical high priest. The levitical priest went in sideways and he also had to leave the holy of holies. Jesus went in once and for all face to face with the Lord and abides there forever praying for His people. Paul said that we are saved to the uttermost because of these prayers. He also said that no enemy could stand before us because of the intercession of Jesus. Here is how Matthew Henry describes this.
“He took in one hand a censer of burning coals which would not smoke, and in the other a dish full of fragrant incense, and then went into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain and went up toward the ark, set the coals down on the floor, and scattered the incense on them, so that the room was immediately filled with smoke. The Jews say that he was to “go in sideways,” that he might not look directly at the ark where the divine glory was, till it was covered with smoke; then he must “come out backwards,” out of reverence to the divine Majesty; and after a short prayer, he was to come quickly out of the sanctuary to show himself to the people, so that they might not suspect that he had disobeyed God in some way and died before the LORD.”
Think for a moment about the power of the prayers of Jesus. They are prayed continually in the immediate presence of the Lord. It is impossible for these prayers not to be answered. Jesus is praying continually for me, what are the results? As it says in Romans 8, “It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
So you and I are protected, securely covered by the love of God.
