Skip to main content

Using Candles In Prayer

 


Constantine is reported to be first to have candles used in churches for prayer. Many claim this was a carry over from his paganism and a corruption. Evidently people do not know their Bibles, for The Lord God required in The Tabernacle and Temple a great lampstand, 

“You shall make a lampstand of pure gold. The lampstand shall be made of hammered work: its base, its stem, its cups, its calyxes, and its flowers shall be of one piece with it. And there shall be six branches going out of its sides, three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it; three cups made like almond blossoms, each with calyx and flower, on one branch, and three cups made like almond blossoms, each with calyx and flower, on the other branch—so for the six branches going out of the lampstand. And on the lampstand itself there shall be four cups made like almond blossoms, with their calyxes and flowers, and a calyx of one piece with it under each pair of the six branches going out from the lampstand..” (Exodus 25:31-40). While this may not have been a wax candle, you have to understand wax candles were not common, oil lamps were because access to the oil made from olive oil, “While most homeowners know olive oil as a tasty ingredient in cooking, most don't know you can use it as lamp fuel. Olive oil is one of the cleanest burning types of lamp fuel out there, as it is renewable, odorless, non-toxic, and smokeless. Traditional olive oil lamps are small dishes with thick, wide wicks.” (Google Answers). Leviticus affirms this!, “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the people of Israel to bring you pure oil from beaten olives for the lamp, that a light may be kept burning regularly. Outside the veil of the testimony, in the tent of meeting, Aaron shall arrange it from evening to morning before the Lord regularly. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. He shall arrange the lamps on the lampstand of pure gold before the Lord regularly.” (Leviticus 24:1-4). 


Lest anyone think the Lampstand is an Old Testament tradition, Jesus our Lord stands in the midst of the Lampstand in Heaven, “Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a Son of Man (Jesus, see Luke 5:24, Mark 10:45, Mark 14:62, John  3:14-15, ), clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest.” (Revelation 1:12-13). Contrary to modern Menorahs which have all seven lampstands in one, the original lampstand in The Temple had giant lamps and were placed separately about to light up the Temple and Tabernacle. Since the Temple and Tabernacle were places of prayer, and lampstands were there, it stands to reason there is nothing wrong with praying near candles or using them in prayer.  The Same Lord who became flesh as Jesus Christ ordered the creation of the Lampstand, and so candles are  no different except its wax based rather than oil based, they serve the same function and were placed in sacred places of prayer. 


I see nothing wrong with using candles in prayer. The only issue I foresee is if you become dependent on candles to pray or feel the candle prays on your behalf in pagan fashion. If The Lord has lampstands, I see no harm in candles of wax, which are just a different means of making a lamp. The issue with all aids in prayer is not to become dependent on them lest they be taken away or you can no longer afford them. If you enjoy them that is great! But learn to pray without candles so that you can commune, connect, and converse with The Lord Trinity anywhere. Amen. 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Potrait of Jesus: What Christ Looked Like

What was Jesus’s appearance? Pseudo-historians at National Geographic and other publications argue that Jesus’ humanity was of Arab or African descent. This is impossible because Jesus our God was Son of David according to His flesh, “He promised beforehand through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, regarding His Son, who was a descendant of David according to the flesh, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord (God),” (Romans 1:2-4), and King David was described as the following, “So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy [red, ruddy, from the word admowniy {ad-mo-nee'}; from 'adam ; reddish of the hair or the complexion red, ruddy], with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, "Arise, anoint him; for this is he. So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came ...
4 comments
Read more

Dispensationalism

John Nelson Darby (1800-1882) was a man who did two things, he took 70th week of the Book of Daniel and stretched out to the End Times, and he was the father of  Dispensationalism , a belief system that God dispenses different peoples with separate blessings and covenants. According to Darb'ys doctrine of Dispensationalism, God dispenses different covenants. There are total of seven dispensations that divide the history of man: I. Dispensation of Innocence (prior to the Fall, "Do not east of the Fruit of Good and Eve, Eden), II. Dispensation of Conscience ( You must assuage guilt and sin with blood sacrifices.) III. Dispensation of Human Government (Multiply and Subdue the world, example the Tower of Babel Gen 11:1-9, and Genesis 1:28). IV. Dispensation of the Promise (Dwell in Canaan, Jerusalem) V. Dispensation of the Law ("Obey the Law of Moses and the Prophets"). VI. Dispensation of Grace (The Church, Jesus Christ has come...
Post a Comment
Read more

Orthodox Christianity and Messianic Judaism

There is a divide between the two sides of Christianity. One is lined by a rosary, the other with tallit (prayer shawl). In the west we tend to come from a Greco-Roman understanding of The Bible and Jesus Christ. We are saturated with images of the Crucifixion and see through the red lens of Calvary. Now The Messianic or Jewish perspective is becoming more prevalent as people begin to study the roots of the Christian faith. After all, Jesus was a Jew and his Twelve Disciples were all Jews of different sects and positions in society. By studying the Jewish roots of Jesus we come to understand the ancient customs, practices, rites, and traditions that are featured in the Old and New Testaments. We learn in Jewish tradition that a Rabbi had to be ordained by two rabbis and that when Jesus was asked, "by who's authority do you say these things?, (Luke 20:2)" the Pharisees were asking who had ordained Jesus and where he got his yoke (teachings), and Jesus responds, "wh...
Post a Comment
Read more