Read Revelation 8:1-6.

Introduction⤒🔗

“I don’t ordinarily interfere with God’s weather,” writes a worker for the Salvation Army named Lyell. “When He sends rain, then rain’s my choice. But on one occasion, God stirred my faith with a change in the weather.”

Lyell goes on to recount that occasion:

A few years ago, when the Salvation Army had a big congress in New York City, we were to have a march of witness through Washington Park, a “hippie” stronghold in those days.

The radio predicted heavy rain all day. We certainly had it all morning. After the morning meeting, we all went to 13th Street, where we were to assemble at noon for the march, but the rain was coming down in torrents as we huddled under the eaves.

I thought, “Lord, if You could have one more person agree with me on Matthew 18:19, I believe I could have faith for You to hold up that rain until our march is over.” Jesus said in that verse, “If two of you shall agree on earth concerning anything they shall ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.”

I had no sooner prayed that brief prayer than Bill, (director of the youth center in our corps), rushed up to me. He put out his hand and in a challenging voice, said, “Matthew 18:19.”

I barked back, “I’ll go get the flags.”

I searched backstage and found no flags, so I took the big silk flags from the podium with another prayer in “shorthand,” “Lord, You just can’t let it rain now, or these flags will be ruined.”

When I returned to 13th Street a few minutes later, Bill was waiting for me in the street and our people were forming behind him. There wasn’t a drop of rain!

We had a great march and gave out many tracts. But no more than 10 or 15 minutes after we were sheltered inside, unrelenting rain fell for the rest of the day.

That word “agree” in the verse Bill blurted to me is vitally important. It is “symphoneo” in the Greek, from which our word “symphony” comes. It not only means harmony but many tones harmonizing: everything clicks.¹

Lyell’s experience is an example of how the Lord acts upon the prayers of His people, especially as those prayers are united and focused upon the work of His kingdom.

In the opening verses of Revelation chapter eight, our attention is focused on prayer; in particular, prayer that is focused on the cause of God’s kingdom and its final coming. (Note that Lyell was not praying for clear skies so he and his friends could have a picnic; his prayers were focused on the purposes of God and His kingdom.) We are encouraged to devote ourselves to prayer, especially prayer that focuses on the accomplishment of God’s purposes in the world and the coming of God’s kingdom.

As Christians, we must appreciate the power and the privilege of prayer: God has ordained that the prayers of His people should play a vital part in the accomplishing of His kingdom purposes. Let us devote ourselves to prayer for God’s kingdom, because God has ordained for our prayers to play a vital role in the coming of His heavenly kingdom.

Devote Yourself to Prayer for God’s Kingdom, Because God Pays Special Attention to Such Prayers←⤒🔗

John informs us that when Christ opened the seventh seal, “there was silence in heaven for about half an hour” (vs. 1).

The opening of the seventh seal concludes the previous vision of the Breaking of the Seven Seals. The breaking of the seventh and final seal ushers in the eternal rest of God. It is the silence of rest, much like the rest into which God entered following His works of creation: “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it; because in it he rested from all his work that God had created and made” (Gen. 2:3). Just as God rested upon the completion of His work of creation, so He, together with His people, shall enter into His eternal rest upon the completion of His work of redemption and judgment at the end of this present age.

At the same time, the opening of the seventh seal introduces us to the next vision: the Sounding of the Seven Trumpets. Thus, the “silence” in heaven is not only the silence of rest, it is also the silence of preparation and anticipation; it is the silence of God that precedes His mighty acts of redemption and judgment. The silence “for about half an hour” is a dramatic pause, a striking contrast to the seven piercing trumpet blasts that are about to sound.

Furthermore, the momentary silence emphasizes the fact that God gives His full attention to the prayers of His people. Thus, this silence is also the silence of attentiveness on the part of God; the Lord is attentive to the prayers of His people, He is waiting for those prayers so that He may act upon them. From a consideration of Exodus 2:23-25, it becomes evident that it was when the people of Israel called upon the LORD that He responded to them and provided divine deliverance for them:

In the course of [that long period of] time, the king of Egypt died. The children of Israel groaned because of their bondage and they cried out, and their cry for help because of their bondage went up to God. ²⁴And God heard their groaning and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. ²⁵So God looked upon the children of Israel and God was concerned [about them.]

Note, too, what the LORD says to the Old Testament prophet Samuel: “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him leader over my people Israel; he will deliver my people from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked upon my people, for their cry has reached me” (1 Sam. 9:16).

Here is a spiritual principle: God acts in response to the prayers of His people; and when He is about to act, God moves His people to prayer. This second part of the principle becomes evident from the example of Daniel. When Daniel realized that the appointed time for deliverance from the Babylonian Captivity was at hand, (the seventy years foretold by Jeremiah), he was moved to pray to the LORD for the restoration of the covenant people to the Promised Land of Canaan. Daniel testifies,

I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. ³So I turned to the LORD GOD and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.Dan. 9:2-3

The vision presented in Revelation 8:3-5 vividly depicts the prayers of God’s people being offered up to the Lord their God. Here we find “all the saints” (vs. 3), that is to say, the entire church of the Lord Jesus Christ, united in prayer. It is implied that they are praying for the accomplishment of their redemption and the coming of their Lord and His kingdom in glory; this seems to be a valid assumption based on such passages as the following:

When [the Lamb] opened the fifth seal, I saw beneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain on account of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. ¹⁰They cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'How long, O Master, [you who are] holy and true, will you refrain from judging those who dwell on the earth and avenging our blood?' Rev. 6:9-10

The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!'...²⁰He who bears witness about these things says, 'Yes, indeed, I am coming soon!' Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! Rev. 22:17a, 20

This is how you should pray: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, ¹⁰thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Matt. 6:9-10

We are told, “the smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, ascended to the presence of God” (vs. 4). The accompanying smoke of the incense is the visible assurance that the prayers of God's people are, indeed, ascending into the presence of God and are being received by Him. The imagery is taken from O.T. Israel’s worship, which featured the priest offering incense on the altar of incense at the hour of prayer.

According to Exodus 30:1-3,6-8, the altar of incense was placed immediately in front of the ark of the covenant, with only the curtain separating the two. Every day the priest was to burn incense upon this altar on behalf of the people. The offering up of the incense coincided with the hour of prayer, as is seen from the account of Zechariah’s performance of his priestly duties in Luke 1:9-10, [Zechariah the priest] “was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.” The fact that this was done at the hour of prayer shows that the altar with its burning incense was representing the prayers of God’s people, which are precious to the LORD, as Proverbs 15:8b indicates, “the prayer of the upright is [the LORD’s] delight.”

Let us devote ourselves to prayer for God’s kingdom. Let us pray for the accomplishment of God’s purposes on the earth, the redemption of His church, and the final coming of His kingdom. Let us devote ourselves to prayer for God’s kingdom, with the assurance that the Lord pays special attention to such prayers: “The sacrifice [offered] by the wicked is detestable to the LORD; but the prayer of the upright is his delight” (Prov. 15:8).

Devote Yourself to Prayer for God’s Kingdom, Because God will Act upon Such Prayers←⤒🔗

In verse three, John sees an angel come and stand beside the altar; in his hand he has “a golden censer.” There is now given to this angel “much incense,” which he mixes with “the prayers of the saints.” The offering of this incense upon the altar and the resultant aromatic smoke ascending from the altar unto God is vividly depicting the prayers of God’s people and the fact that they are, indeed, precious to the LORD.

The angel is seen filling his censer with incense, (representing the prayers of the saints). In verse four, the smoke of the incense, (i.e. the prayers of the church), ascends into the presence of God. In verse five, the angel fills his censer with “fire from the altar” and hurls it to the earth.

What is the result of the angel’s action? We are told that there followed “peals of thunder and rumblings and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.” That is to say, the LORD is asserting Himself in awesome power and majesty in response to the prayers of His church, as the worldwide body of believers prays for the accomplishment of God’s purposes, the spread of the gospel, and the coming of God’s kingdom.

Let us devote ourselves to prayer for God’s kingdom, because God will act upon such prayers. We need to appreciate the “accumulative weight” of prayer: much prayer over much time finally resulting in a dramatic act of God. Consider our Lord’s parable on prayer recorded in Luke 18:1-8,

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not lose heart. ²He said: In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor had regard for men. ³And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.' ⁴For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I do not fear God nor regard men, ⁵yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she will not eventually wear me out with her coming!' ⁶And the Lord said, Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and swiftly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?

In the parable, the widow’s persistent plea finally resulted in the rendering of a just verdict by the unrighteous judge. Jesus asks, “And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night?” Our Lord Himself provides the answer: “I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and swiftly.”

But the question is, How are we to understand Jesus’ assurance that God will act “swiftly”?

An overall survey of the parable shows that we cannot interpret the term “swiftly” in the sense of the event taking place in the immediate future, an instantaneous response to the disciples’ prayer. This becomes evident from the fact that the whole parable is intended to emphasize the necessity for continuous prayer on the part of the disciples: they “ought always to pray” and they should not give up hope, they ought not to “lose heart.”

This exhortation presupposes that our prayers for the coming of the kingdom are not immediately answered, as a matter of fact, the apparent “delay” in the answer would even tempt us to give up hope. This perspective is confirmed by the detailed description of the widow’s plight before the unjust judge: she must repeatedly implore him to act on her behalf, since “for a while” he makes no response, and it is only “afterward” that he addresses her righteous cause. The point of comparison between the widow in the parable and the disciples’ situation is clearly the matter of persistent petition, even in the face of apparent unresponsiveness.²

A tension is presented between the redeemed crying out to God “day and night” (vs. 7) and the assurance that God will avenge them “swiftly” (vs. 8). It seems that the key to a proper understanding of this parable, and especially what Jesus means when He assures us that God will, indeed, avenge His elect “swiftly,” is to be found in such an Old Testament passage as Isaiah 60:22b.

In that passage, with reference to the LORD asserting Himself to act on behalf of His people and for their salvation, we read, “At the [appointed] time, I, the LORD, will cause it to happen suddenly.” The point being made is that there is an appointed day for the fulfillment of all these things, and the LORD will see to it that nothing prevents the coming of that day. When that appointed day has come, the LORD will act suddenly, without any further delay, to bring to fulfillment the promises He has made to His people.

We should also consider Habakkuk 2:3, “the vision is for the appointed time, and it races [literally, “it pants”] toward the end [i.e. toward the time of fulfillment], and it shall not lie [i.e. the vision shall not prove to be false]; though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not delay.” The two apparently antithetical phrases, “though it tarry,” and “it will not delay,” are making the point that although the fulfillment may not take place for an extended amount of time, from a human perspective, nevertheless, the fulfillment will not be unnecessarily prolonged from the divine perspective, nor will anything hinder it from its fulfillment in the appointed time.

Thus, we are exhorted to continue in persistent prayer for the coming of God’s kingdom, with the assurance that our prayers will surely be answered, but also with the understanding that they will be answered in God’s appointed time, and when that time has arrived, the answer will come “swiftly,” suddenly.

Devote Yourself to Prayer for God’s Kingdom, Because God will Use Such Prayers←⤒🔗

As the dramatic silence of expectation fills heaven (vs. 1), John observes “the seven angels who stand before God” (vs. 2). These angels are perfect in number, (seven being the biblical number of perfection), and they occupy the position of supreme honor and importance: they are seen standing before God. Their appearance indicates that a great and marvelous work of God is about to occur. This is all the more emphasized by the fact that to each of these angels is given a trumpet: they are to herald the coming of the LORD and His mighty acts.

In verse six, John observes these seven angels as each one raises his trumpet to his lips and proceeds to sound a blast. Note carefully that between the initial appearance of the seven angels (vs. 2) and the sounding of their trumpets (vs. 6), there occurs the vision depicting the prayers of the church (vs. 3­ 5). The message is this: the LORD uses the prayers of His people to accomplish His work.

One aspect of prayer is that it is the gracious gift of participating with God in the accomplishment of His plans. We may pose the question, “Why pray, since God has assured us that He is going to sovereignly accomplish His will?” The reason we are nevertheless to pray lies in the fact that part of God’s method for accomplishing His will is graciously employing the prayers of His people as a means of accomplishing His divine and sovereign plan. By way of illustration: When he is working on repairing the family car, Dad may graciously allow his little son to “assist” him. Dad does not need the little boy’s “help,” but out of love, Dad has determined that the boy shall have a part to play in the work of repairing the car.

Prayer that “works with God” in the accomplishing of His eternal purposes is one present aspect of what it means to share with Christ in His sovereign rule. We are told that even now we in some sense are sharing with Christ in His heavenly reign: “[God] raised us with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms, in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6). Note the use of the past tense: God seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms. We are presently seated with Christ in the heavenly realms, indicating that our being seated with Christ is not only something that shall occur in the future age. In eternity, we shall fully participate with Christ in the accomplishing of His plans and His dominion. At present, one way we share in the accomplishing of His purposes is by means of prayer, prayer that is attune to His plans and purposes as they are revealed to us in Scripture, the greatest being the coming of His kingdom.

Let us devote ourselves to prayer for God’s kingdom, because God has graciously ordained to use such prayers, making them an integral part of the accomplishing of His work.

We, as Christians, must appreciate the awesome privilege we have been given, the privilege of having a role in the fulfillment of God’s great work, namely, the coming of His kingdom. The instrument by which we carry out our role is prayer. But, if we become negligent in carrying out our role of praying for the coming of the kingdom, God has His means of inspiring us to earnestly engage in such prayer. That means is persecution. It is when the Psalmist finds himself severely oppressed by the forces of evil, and when he witnesses the devastation of the temple of God and the city of Jerusalem, it is then that he is especially moved to earnestly plead with God to act on behalf of His people and on behalf of His cause.

Conclusion←⤒🔗

Some time ago a survey was taken on the subject of prayer. The survey indicated that four out of five Christians pray at least once a day. The general content of their prayers, compared to the prayers of those who are not Christians, is as follows:

• 90% thank God for what they have, (as do 73% of non-Christians)
• 74% pray for people whom they know personally, (as do 58% of non-Christians)
• 71% pray for their own spiritual growth, (as do 52% of non-Christians)
• 66% pray for their health, (as do 61% of non-Christians)
• 31% pray about the events happening in the world, (as do 31% of non-Christians)
• 28% ask the LORD to give guidance to public leaders, (as do 19% of non-Christians)
• 7% ask for material things that they want or need, (as do 17% of non-Christians)

One observation the researchers made was that the content of the Christian’s prayer is strikingly similar to that of the non-Christian.³

Another observation that can be made from a consideration of the Christian’s prayers is the startling omission of any petition for the kingdom of God: no prayer is noted for the progress of God’s kingdom, the increase of that kingdom via conversions to Christ, or the final coming of that kingdom. If the survey is a true indication of the prayer life of the average American Christian, it appears that many contemporary Christians have lost sight of the great petition that should be the primary focus of our prayers: The final coming of God’s kingdom.

Because of the instruction given by our Lord Himself in His model of prayer (the Lord’s Prayer), and because of the incentives provided in Revelation chapter eight, let us make prayer for God’s kingdom the primary concern of our prayers; may we place it as #1 on our prayer list!

Discussion Questions←⤒🔗

1. What does John witness when the Lamb opened the seventh seal? See Rev. 8:1. Of what does the writer to the Hebrews inform us, and what does he exhort us to do? See Heb. 4:9, 11. How do we give diligence to enter into that divine rest? Note Heb. 6:11-12,​

When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. Rev. 8:1

As the seventh and final seal in the sequence, the opening of this seal seems to introduce the kingdom of God with the silence of divine rest and completion.

Note Gen. 2:1-2:

And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all that they contained. ²And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had made. Gen. 2:1-2

There remains, therefore, a rest for the people of God... ¹¹Let us, therefore, be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience. Heb. 4:9, 11

The writer is speaking of Israel’s failure to trust and obey the LORD during their journey through the wilderness to the Promised Land of Canaan, causing that generation to forfeit entrance into Canaan.

And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end,¹²so that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Heb. 6:11-12

2. For how long was there a silence in heaven, and what do you think is the meaning of this? See, again, Rev. 8:1. Christian, do you ever mistake God’s silence for lack of concern, when in fact it is the silence of attentiveness; the silence that precedes the divinely-appointed time of response? Of what does the LORD assure us? See Isa. 49:23b; Psl. 37:9,

When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.Rev. 8:1

It seems that the “silence in heaven” is not only the climax of the vision of the seven seals, culminating in the eternal kingdom’s rest, but that the “silence in heaven” serves another function as well: It is the silence of God’s attentiveness to His peoples’ prayers. Cp. 1 Sam. 9:16b

...I have looked upon my people, because their cry has come to me. 1 Sam. 9:16b

Kings shall be your [foster] fathers and their queens shall be your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground and lick the dust off your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who put their hope in me shall not be disappointed. Isa. 49:23

...evildoers shall be cut off; but those who wait on the LORD, they shall inherit the earth. Psl. 37:9

3. What scene does the Apostle John describe for us in Rev. 8:3-4? What is symbolized by a “golden” censer filled with fragrant incense? What is mixed with the incense? As this mixture is offered up to heaven, how far does it get, to whom does it reach? Christian, what does this tell you about the way God views your prayers? See Prov. 15:8b, 29,

Then another angel, one who had a golden censer, came and stood by the altar. He was given much incense that he was to mix with the prayers of all the saints, [and offer it] on the golden altar that was before the throne. ⁴The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, ascended to the presence of God from the angel’s hand.Rev. 8:3-4

...the prayer of the upright is his delight. Prov. 15:8b

The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous. Prov. 15:29

4. What is the ultimate result of the prayers of “all the saints,” ascending unto God? What event is being portrayed in this verse? See Rev. 8:5. For what cause would “all the saints” be joined in concerted prayer? Note Matt. 6:9-10. Is the coming of God’s kingdom a top priority on your prayer list? What exhortation are we given by the prophet Isaiah? See Isa. 62:6-7. If we neglect this duty, what might God use to stimulate our zeal for the coming of His kingdom? Note Rev. 6:9­ 10; Ex. 2:23b,

In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed by your name. ¹⁰Your kingdom come; your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.Matt. 6:9-10

I have posted watchmen upon your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who are the LORD’s [palace] recorders, give yourselves no rest, ⁷and give him no rest, until he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of [all] the earth.Isa. 62:6-7

When [the Lamb] opened the fifth seal, I saw beneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain on account of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. ¹⁰They cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'How long, O Master, [you who are] holy and true, will you refrain from judging those who dwell on the earth and avenging our blood?'Rev. 6:9-10

The children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. Ex. 2:23b

5. With regard to prayer, what fundamental spiritual principle is revealed to us in Dan. 9:1-3? Christian, do you appreciate the fact that one aspect of prayer is participation with God in the carrying out and fulfilling of His divine purposes? What effect should this spiritual principle have on your prayer life?

In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans, ²in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet, the number of years [appointed] to complete the desolation of Jerusalem, [namely], seventy years. ³So I set my face toward the Lord God, to seek him by prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes. Dan. 9:1-3

When He is about to act, God moves His people to prayer, and God acts in response to the prayers of His people.