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The True WMSCOG | March 28, 2024

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Christ’s Sacrifice and Prayer Times

Christs Sacrifice and Prayer Times

Prayer Is Breathing for the Soul

One of the things that is essential to maintain life and that we cannot forget to do is breathing. Most people who are in good health can hold their breath for approximately two minutes before they lose consciousness. For those who live a Christian life, prayer is known as “breathing for the soul.” Just as we need to breathe in order to remain alive, in the same way, we must constantly pray to God to maintain our spiritual life.

Although the Bible tells us to pray to God continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17), we can also see that the disciples who walked with Jesus had set times in which they prayed to God. These set times to pray to God are not a coincidence, but they are established on the basis of the sacrificial offerings in the time of Moses.

When Are the Prayer Times Held?

The Apostles and the believers of the early church set the third (9:00 a.m.) and the ninth (3:00 p.m.) hour as the times for prayer, and they prayed to God every day at these times. These hours were not randomly chosen, nor are they coincidental. The third and ninth hour are the times when Jesus—the reality of all the sacrificial offerings in the Old Testament – was crucified and finally passed away.

Mark 15:25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him.

Matthew 27:46-50 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” —which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” … And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

Jesus was put on the cross at 9:00 a.m. and He passed away at 3:00 p.m. The disciples kept these hours as the time for prayer every day.

Acts 2:1-15 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place … It’s only nine in the morning!

Acts 3:1 One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon.

Acts 10:30 Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon…”

The prayer times kept by the disciples in the New Testament are related to the regular burnt offerings that were offered daily in the morning and in the evening. God established the heavenly sanctuary as a place to offer sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins; to save all mankind. And after He showed the heavenly sanctuary to Moses and made him build the shadow; the sanctuary on earth, and ordered him to offer the sacrifices according to His laws (Hebrews 8:5).

The Regular Burnt Offering of the Old Testament.

According to God’s command, not only did His people offer sacrifices in the sanctuary to repent of their sins, but also, other sacrificial rituals took place there. Obviously, all sacrificial rituals were the model of the true sacrifice that would be accomplished in the heavenly sanctuary through Christ (Hebrews 10:1-10). One of the sacrifices offered in the Old Testament times was the regular burnt offering.

Numbers 28:3-8 Say to them: ‘This is the food offering you are to present to the Lord: two lambs a year old without defect, as a regular burnt offering each day. Offer one lamb in the morning and the other at twilight…

Exodus 29:38-42 “This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old. Offer one in the morning and the other at twilight … “For the generations to come this burnt offering is to be made regularly at the entrance to the tent of meeting, before the Lord. There I will meet you and speak to you…”

The regular burnt was offered daily in the morning and at twilight, this was done by presenting two male lambs in sacrifice alongside drink and grain offerings. These sacrifices were established as a prophecy of Christ, who is the true sacrifice. For this reason, Christ was put on the cross at the third hour (9:00 a.m.) and died at the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.). Since Christ became the ultimate sacrifice, when we pray at the third and ninth hour, our prayers are conveyed to God along with the sacrifice

Ancient Time Keeping vs. Modern Time Keeping

The time system that was kept by Early Church used a different method than what we use today. Although today we are using the 24-hour system, the members of the early Church used a different calculation method for the daytime and the night time. For the daytime, they used a 12-hour system and set hour zero at the time of the sunrise, and the twelfth hour at the time of sunset (Matthew 20:1-16). The night was divided into the first to fourth watch, and a watch was made up to three hours (Matthew 14:25, Luke 12:38).

Since the time of sunrise and sunset is different according to the season, there is a time difference for the prayer times in the summer and winter season. For the summer season, the prayer time is at 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., and for the winter season it is at 10:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. (1)

Biblical Times Chart WMSCOG

The Meaning of the Sacrifice At “Twilight”

WMSCOG Prayer Time Question

Some individuals will have a question that could be a potential stumbling block. The command in Numbers and Exodus says to offer one daily lamb sacrifice at morning and the other a twilight. Because twilight is generally known as the moment of time between day and night, some people would ask why is it that the afternoon prayer time is at 3:00 p.m. and not later when the sun is setting.

The fact is that in the original Hebrew text, the time of the second burnt offering was described as “towards twilight” or “between twilights.” So it wasn’t actually at twilight when the lamb was sacrificed, but the priest would sacrifice the second lamb of the daily sacrifices at 3:00 p.m., and it was left burning until twilight and cleaned up before nightfall. The priests conducted the first sacrifice at 9:00 am and leave it burning until 3:00 p.m., then they would sacrifice the second lamb and leave it burning until the end of the day. This is why Jesus was crucified at 9:00 am and have His last breath at 3:00 p.m., fulfilling the sacrifice of the temple.

Prayer Times Should Be Kept Daily.

By Levitical definition, the daily burnt offerings were known as the “perpetual sacrifice.” Perpetual means never ending. Since prayer is “breathing for the soul,” only those who keep the prayer times are the ones who are spiritually alive. Today, the World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG) is the only the church that follows the daily prayer times. As the Levitical priests made so much effort to offer the daily burnt offerings to God, then how much more effort should we make to meet God through prayer? The value of prayer time cannot be compared. Let us keep the daily prayer times remembering Christ’s sacrifice for our salvation.

Comments

  1. Chanel

    Wow! Love this article. So amazing that we have the opportunity to truly follow all of the apostles examples! I love prayer time, it keeps your mind focused on God all day long, so glad we have them!

    • Renesia

      Amen !!! Prayer is truly the breath of our soul !!!i always feel so relieved

    • Moncus

      This Is so amazing! God fulfills all his prophecy to show us his true love, and the way for our salvation.

  2. Claudia

    Never in my life would I have thought that there can be a church that can be able to explain everything with such detailed information. I’m so thankful I can be able to pray to God at the apppointed times. Thank you for this post!

  3. Oscar G

    Christ fulfilled every sacrifice for our salvation and allows us to receive blessing we would never understand withou articles like this. Thank you for explaining and helping me realize the way to care for my soul throughout the day.

  4. Quinn

    God has made it so easy for us living in this age. During the Old Testament times, the Israelites had to offer up two lambs every day! It is so amazing that we can be blessed by giving God even a few minutes of our time twice a day.

  5. Carlos A.

    It is always so amazing to see the fulfillment and prophecies regarding the physical tabernacle and the heavenly one.

    I am thankful for this article as I was able to share it with my family and give them even a little bit more light of truth is something so special as prayer.

    I pray that I will pray more often and more earnestly

  6. M

    This article is amazing. Until now, I never knew that the animal sacrifices would continue burning for hours to cycle around the clock. It made me realize the importance of the prayer times to maintain a continuous connection to God and sustain spiritual life.

  7. Whitney K.

    I think it’s so beautiful that we all pray together at 9am and 3pm in accordance with the sacrifices of Christ. It’s like a special time to be bonded and unified while praying to true God. How good and pleasent it is when brothers and sisters live together in unity! God must be so pleased to hear praises and thanks being lifted up together by Their children.

  8. GP144

    It’s amazing that we can keep the same prayer times as our brothers did 2000 years ago. How merciful is our Creator that not only has Father and Mother given us the Sabbath to wash us of our sins but then giving us 3rd day… But wait that’s not enough… Appointed daily prayer times. Thank you Father and Mother for your love.

  9. Lo

    I’m so thankful for this article! I was never taught about prayer times before coming to the Church of God. The more I study about the laws of God in the Old Testament the more I realize how much effort Christ made to fulfill prophecies and prove Himself as the Savior. Prayer is so important in my life of faith and I’m so happy I am now able to keep these designated times to pray to God just like the apostles of the early church.

  10. Michael H

    What eye opening article! This part impacted me so much! “The priests conducted the first sacrifice at 9:00 am and leave it burning until 3:00 p.m., then they would sacrifice the second lamb and leave it burning until the end of the day. This is why Jesus was crucified at 9:00 am and have His last breath at 3:00 p.m., fulfilling the sacrifice of the temple.” Prayer time is such a blessed time! thanks for posting this article!

  11. Lisa C

    This article is really insightful. I realize now more then ever how important prayer times are. Daily burnt offerings were established from the time of Moses and fulfilled by Christ. Keeping prayer times is a way to remain spiritually healthy.

  12. Andrew

    I’ve always wondered about prayer times. I knew it was correct but just didn’t know how to explain it. I was very amazed to understand the explanation of twilight. It makes so much sense since it must take several hours for a whole lamb to burn. It is very touching to know that it was a prophecy of Christ being on the cross for that whole span of time. I will make more effort to keep prayer times with sincerity

  13. Joshua Castillo

    Wow! this article is fantastic! I am so proud of being in the truth! I give thanks to God, who clears up all the truth and reveals to us everything so that we may have full faith. It is amazing how even the prayer times father considered. How father must have made great effort carrying the cross, effort that I may never fully understand, to fulfill the daily sacrifice.I am really impacted by that love.

  14. Rita

    I am so thankful for this article! So much helpful information. Now I know and realize more about prayer times! Thank you!

  15. Royce S.Q

    Exodus 29. “…this burnt offering is to be made regularly…There I will meet you and speak to you..” I found this verse to be extraordinary. God said that He will meet you, God will hear you. Reading the whole context amazes me, a lot.
    Thank you for explaining this important practical teaching of God. I realized, that God Himself set out these Times, 9am and 3pm, to meet the Creator. “Coincidence, no way!” It’s a special moment in the Universe. Everyone needs to learn about this. I know people who love the Christ, however, I can imagine how much more they would if they understood these special Times too, the Holy Sacrifice of the Creator, God. Of course, pray always! But, how much more meaningful are things when done with great understanding. Thanks to God!