"THE PRESENCE AND THE GLORY!"

“And Moses was not able to enter the Tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle… For the cloud of the Lord was above the Tabernacle by day, and fire was over it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.” (Exodus 40:35, 38)

“God is in the midst of His people. The foremost symbol of this presence is the Tabernacle with its sacred Ark of the Covenant. Between the cherubim on its cover shined the Shekinah glory. There was also the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. These speak at one and the same time of the nearness and the majesty of God. God leads His people when they are on the way, and He dwells with them when they are in the camp, but He holds them at arm’s length, lest they become too familiar. He is not their servant, but their God.”

(Dwight Stevenson – Adapted)

As the author of Hebrews in the New Testament informs us, the Tabernacle was symbolic of the Church, a “shadow of good things to come.” As God was present with His people then, so He is present with us today. When we meet with the Lord and His people on the Lord’s Day, His glory especially is manifest; though in another sense it is true that His presence dwells within the sanctuary of every Christian’s heart also. “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I am in their midst.” What a wonderful blessing!
When believers assemble on the First Day of the week to attend to the sacred things ordained by the Master, it is not just a casual, informal, merely social event: God is present, in full glory, majesty, and power! While we are encouraged to draw near Him boldly because of Jesus’ sacrifice and God’s own gracious love, nevertheless we must not be frivolous or flippant, superficial or sloppy, presumptuous or careless. God is present!
The nearness of God and the majesty of God! May we remember this dual truth and blessing and seek to maintain an attitude that approaches this ideal appreciation of the presence of God in the Church!


Larry Atkin, Preacher