God lead the Israelites with a cloud by day and fire by night. What was that all about? I always thought that the cloud was over their heads to protect them from the sun until I looked deeper and read that it was a pillar of cloud. It actually stood and spanned earth and heaven.
The presence of God appeared in a cloud.
Jesus left in a cloud.
Moses ascended into a cloud on top of the mountain to meet with God.
God put a cloud between the Israelites and the Egyptians at the Red Sea which was a cloud of darkness to the Egyptians and a cloud of light to the Israelites.
I wonder if that cloud was a type of veil to heaven; there to protect their eyes from seeing the glory of God and going blind. When Moses came down from meeting with God his face shone so brightly the people asked him to put a veil over his face so they could look at him without pain. There was a veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle.
In the New Testament God took the veil away for Saul and he was blinded by the light for 3 days. When Jesus died the veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies was rent from earth to heaven (bottom to top). We now can look on holy things the people in the Old Testament could just speak about. The veil has been taken away if we have eyes to see. 2 Co. 3 talks about this veil and in vs. 16 it says that when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. It goes on in vs. 18 to say that we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. It sounds to me a lot like letting your "little light shine" except I don't think it is a little light. I think it has the power to blind the eyes of those who are deceived so that "though blind, they can see", like Paul, and it has the power to unveil the glory of God in us. We have this glory in earthen vessels that the excellency might be of God and not of us.
Lord, please take the cloud from our eyes that we can see you clearly and let your glory, through us, be light to the unbeliever and to your children.
Now about the fire..... another blog.
2 comments:
"We, who with unveiled faces, all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit."
The glory of the Lord, as we behold him with unveiled faces, is what transforms us into his likeness (not our works or our effort, but just gazing at him).
"Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."
The curtain is the body of Christ, which was rent so we can have access to God. I found this verse this morning in my study--isn't it cool?
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