Bible study: Praying under an open heaven

Written by Daniel Kolenda

download .pdf Excerpt from Chapter 5 of Daniel Kolenda’s new book “Your Kingdom come”: One of the most remarkable prayers of intercession recorded in the Bible is found in Isaiah 64 where the prophet calls upon the Lord, saying, “Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at Your presence – as fire kindles the brushwood, as fire causes water to boil – to make Your name known to Your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Your presence!” (Isaiah 64:1-2 nasb). Isaiah was crying out to God that He would tear open the heavens and show Himself to the world that the world might see Him as Isaiah had seen Him! Isaiah’s passion is seen in his expression, “Oh.” There is something deeply embedded in the heart of every person who longs to personally know and experience God. There is an “Oh” within us all. That desire which grows from within is but a reflection of the fact that man was originally created in the image of God and designed with the capability of personally knowing and experiencing God. Saint Augustine said, “For thou has made us for thyself and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee.” This longing of the heart is an integral part of the basic fabric of the human personality. It is expressed in the art, music, customs, and beliefs of every culture around the world that go back as far as the earliest evidences of recorded history. When sin entered the world, man, who had been designed to live in unbroken fellowship with God, was suddenly separated from the One he had been designed to walk with in perfect harmony for all of eternity. A barrier that divides two worlds, the natural and the supernatural, appeared because of Adam’s sin that separated the physical realms of fallen mankind from the spiritual realms filled with all of God’s richest presence, power, and blessing. In this prayer for God to “rend the heavens and come down,” I believe that Isaiah was reflecting upon a previous experience in his life, recorded in Isaiah 6:1-8, in which he had been caught up into heaven and received the commission and anointing for his life and prophetic ministry. He recalls it, saying, “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple” (Isaiah 6:1). Isaiah continued in the following verses to describe his experience in God’s presence. He spoke of angelic beings about the throne crying out, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory” (Isaiah 6:3). He spoke of the visible manifestation of God’s glory. He described his sudden and overwhelming awareness of sin when he stood in the magnificent presence of the holiness of God. He thought he would surely die in such a holy place where he had suddenly found himself! But he also found grace there, and his sin was purged with holy fire. It was in this place that his life and destiny were forever changed. He would never be the same again! Pay careful attention to what the angels were crying to one another. Notice, they did not say, “heaven is full of His glory.” Rather, they said, “The earth is full of His glory.” This was a prophetic insight into a time that is coming of which Scripture says, “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14). When Isaiah prayed for God to rend the heavens and come down, he was asking for the fulfillment of the prophetic promise he had received in his vision many years earlier. He was saying in essence, “Lord, if the earth is going to be filled with Your glory, You must rend the heavens and come down!” Isaiah realized that this “rending of the heavens” would be necessary for God to fulfill His plan for this world. Jesus declared Himself to be more than a prophet, more than a Rabbi, more than a political deliverer, and more than a king. He declared Himself to be the bridge between heaven and earth, the link between God and man, the portal that God has opened on earth, giving us direct access to heavenly realms. Isaiah’s Prayer answered Many people still pray Isaiah’s prayer for God to rend the heavens and come down, pleading despondently like a beggar dejectedly crying for a piece of bread. But my friends, the good news is that the prayer of Isaiah was answered 2,000 years ago! God truly did rend the heavens and came down through Jesus Christ. Could there be a more dramatic rending than the one that happened at Calvary? The earth was split, the veil in the temple was rent from top to bottom, and the precious body of Jesus Christ was broken in order that heaven might invade the earth. On Him the angels of God ascend and descend for us. Through Him all the resources of God are poured out and the needs of humankind can be met. By Him, man can be reconciled unto God and the wrath of God has been appeased. God has rent the heavens and has come down. He has destroyed that ancient barrier between heaven and earth, and today all the riches and resources of God are available to the one who will take them by faith through prayer. Hebrews 10:19-22 says: “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.” God wants us to approach Him in prayer with assurance and confidence in His all-sufficient provision. Today we can march boldly into the presence of God with a pure conscience and a heart full of faith, knowing that God has already destroyed everything that stands between Him and us by the blood of Jesus Christ. He truly has given us the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Through prayer we put this incredible power into action. Someone once said, “Prayer is the lifelong opportunity of a lifetime.” The prayer of Isaiah has been answered. God has rent the heavens. Now let’s bring heaven to earth!