“The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out.” (Leviticus 6:13)
This was what God commanded the priests in the Law. It was the fire of burnt offerings or peace offerings, the offering of thanksgiving. It was not to be put out ever. All things in the Old Testament point to the coming New Covenant. This fire also has implications for us in the New Testament, who live in the New Covenant established by Jesus. We are to keep the fire in our hearts burning in prayer of praise and thanksgiving continually. It is not to go out at all. “And He spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;” (Luke 18:1)
Many have wondered how to obey the commandment given to us through Paul. “Pray without ceasing.” (1Thesalonians 5:17) Our living in this world consumes us. We are ever thinking of what needs to be done, trying to solve one problem or another and dreaming of what we want that we fail to realize we need to pray. What is prayer? In its most simple form, it’s talking to God. He lives in us. He goes where we go. He knows our thoughts and hears our words. He is with us always. Yet we go about our day not acknowledging His Presence. If your friend came to stay with you, you’d be cognizant of their presence. You’d talk to them. The Holy Spirit is that friend. He is with us and in us, always accompanying us. Continually talking to us God’s wisdom.
How can we pray without ceasing? Two things need to happen. We must acknowledge His continual Presence in us and with us. And we must have that continual conversation with Him. Ask Him to remind you that you don’t have to think of what has to be done. He will tell you when and how to do things at the perfect moment. You don’t have to rack your brain about how to solve a problem. The Holy Spirit has the perfect solution. He will make it known to you at the perfect time. You don’t have to dream of a better life. You have the best life possible with the Lord. You are living a supernatural life. “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;” (Ephesians 6:18) That is living in the Spirit. There is always something, some situation or some brother or sister, to talk to the Holy Spirit about. This is what Paul did. “I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;” (2Timothy 1:3)
“What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.” (1Corinthians 14:15) There is a gift given to those who are baptized in the Holy Spirit that enables us to keep the fire of our hearts always burning. It is the gift of a prayer language in an unknown tongue. It’s a personal spiritual prayer language. We may not know exactly what the Holy Spirit is praying or singing, but we can have understanding of what we are praying or singing. This is a supernatural gift of the Holy Spirit. It’s void of human touch, is eternal and from God. “For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.” (1Corinthians 14:14) Our mind may not know what the Spirit is praying, but we can ask for understanding. (I Corinthians 14:13)
I know that right about now, we may be asking ourselves if this is important and a vital part of prayer. Paul put it this way: “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” (Romans 8:26-27) We don’t know the real needs of others and what God’s Will is for them. But the Spirit does. He prays God’s Will for the brethren and for that matter any situation. We can allow the Holy Spirit to make intercession and pray in the Spirit as He gives utterance. And to receive this gift we can ask for it. “If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?” (Luke 11:11-13) The Lord doesn’t complicate things. We do.
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