THE GLORY OF GOD ( PART 10 )
Pastor Christopher Choo
Lesson 3308
THE GLORY OF GOD ( PART 10 )
What is the Shekinah Glory of God? ( Study 1 )
It is the tangible manifestation of the presence of God.
The word "Shekinah" does not appear in the Bible, but the concept clearly does.
This extra-biblical expression literally means “he caused to dwell,” signifying that it was a divine visitation of the presence or dwelling of the Lord God on this earth.
The visible manifestation of God’s presence was seen not only by the Israelites but also by the Egyptians: “During the last watch of the night, the LORD looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He made the wheels of their chariots come off so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, ‘Let's get away from the Israelites! The LORD is fighting for them against Egypt’” (Exodus 14:24-25). Just the presence of God’s Shekinah glory was enough to convince His enemies that He was not someone to be resisted.
God spoke to Moses out of the pillar of cloud in Exodus 33, assuring him that His Presence would be with the Israelites (v. 9). Verse 11 says God spoke to Moses “face to face” out of the cloud, but when Moses asked to see God’s glory, God told Him, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live” (v. 20). So, apparently, the visible manifestation of God’s glory was somewhat muted.
Abba Father, we can see Your glory manifested tangibly in what theologians call Your "Glory Cloud". By day it acted as a cool covering for two million of the children of Israel in the open desert of the Sinai wilderness; by night it was a pillar of fire to warm them in the cold desert air. Likewise, Your Shekinah glory showed Your mercy and compassion towards Moses - though he spoke to You " face to face ", he could not see You in all Your glory lest he was to die - as a sinful man would in Your manifested glory - like the two sons of Aaron ( Nadab and Abihu ) who offered strange fire within your Tabernacle in the wilderness. May this Fear of You remain with us even when we come into Your Presence in praise and prayer. May we not take Your Shekinah Glory for granted. For You are both a Judge and a Father God who has mercy and compassion towards Your wayward children when they repent before You.
