Jesus used graphic language when He spoke of His return. To the disciples who asked what His coming would be like He said, "They shall see the Son of man coming IN THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN with power and great glory" (Mat. 24:30). The picture language of the Bible employs essentially all the created things of God with which we here on earth are acquainted. There are various reasons why God has used so much symbolic language in His Word. We think that one of these is its unchangeableness. The meaning of words change somewhat through use and misuse. Whatever man creates is also subject to change, but this is not true of the created things of God. The created things do change, but their change is so slow and gradual that it is not perceived from generation to generation. In the sign language of the Bible, God has employed the sun, the moon, the stars, and clouds; and on the earth, oceans, rivers, mountains, valleys, sheep, goats, horses, wheat, tares, fig trees, and so forth. The characteristics of these have not changed throughout the centuries, and when used in the Bible to illustrate the exalted thoughts of God they should have the same meaning to us as they did to the ancients. As signs, they have a spiritual meaning and application.

One of the rabbinical names for the Messiah, based on Daniel 7:13-14, was "The Cloud Man." Daniel writes: "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like unto the Son of man CAME WITH THE CLOUDS of heaven..." Christ, of course, is plainly identified as the "One who comes with the clouds" in the Salutation of Rev. 1:7: "Behold, He COMETH WITH CLOUDS; and every eye shall see Him..." Furthermore, when our Lord was adjured by the High Priest to tell whether He was the Messiah or not, Jesus answered with the old equivalent of "Yes!" Then He said, "Ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN" (Mk. 14:62).

This identification was more than His enemies could bear. And so we read, "Then the High Priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witness? Ye have heard the blasphemy: What think ye? And they all condemned Him to be guilty of death" (Mk. 14:63-64). Why should the High Priest and those assembled, think it such BLASPHEMY for Jesus to say not only that they would see Him sitting on the right hand of Power, but also that they would see Him COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN? The truth is, they knew that our Lord was claiming to be the "Son of the Blessed (God)," the one who would come in the CLOUD OF GLORY which had once filled the temple at Jerusalem! Furthermore, they clearly understood that the "clouds" upon which Messiah would come were not the fleecy white clouds which scud across a summer sky, but in all reality they would be the blazing Shekinah Cloud which from times of old had veiled the Divine Presence. How well the learned rabbis of Israel understood the true implication of Jesus' words!

Exactly what is the glory of God and how has God displayed His glory? What relationship do you and I have to the glory of God? The primary word translated "glory" in the Bible literally means "heavy," "weight," or "substance." The glory of a person is actually what is heavy or weighty about that person. Now don't misunderstand! That doesn't mean that it's just the fat lady at the carnival who has any glory! No, that's not the idea. What is the interrelationship between the idea of heaviness with glory? How many times have you said of an individual, "He carries a lot of weight." What do you mean by that? What you mean is that there is something very impressive about that person which enables him to have great influence with other people. There is the concept of heaviness with glory. Glory is that which is impressive or influential about a person.

Let me illustrate. In the first book of the Bible Jacob's wealth is called the "glory" of Jacob (Gen. 31:1). What that means is that Jacob was such an excessively wealthy man that that is what really impressed other people with Jacob, that is what gave him influence with those about him, that is what caused them to sit up and take note of who he was. And then again in the book of Genesis Joseph's very high position as the Prime Minister of Egypt is called the "glory" of Joseph (Gen. 45:13). Again, that simply means that it was the special position of Joseph in the government that impressed other people and gave him influence in the lives of his contemporaries. It was his powerful office that caused other people to have great respect for Joseph. In Isa. 8:7 the Assyrian's great military power is called their "glory." In light of this can we not see that the glory of God is anything concerning God that impresses His creatures with who and what He is and that gives God influence in the lives of those creatures. The glory of God is that which is impressive or influential concerning God!

This brings us to the second significant thing that we learn from the scriptures about the glory of God - the ways in which God has manifested or displayed His glory. The The Bible teaches that God has displayed His glory throughout history through nature or through His creation. The sweet psalmist of Israel intoned these awe-inspiring words concerning this form of the display of God's glory in Ps. 19:1, "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handywork." That is David's way of saying that the heavens display what is impressive about God. Have you ever been deeply impressed with the greatness of God when you have walked out of doors on a clear night and gazed up into those magnificent star-studded heavens?

A second major way that God has displayed His glory through the course of world history has been through His Israel people. In the prophecy of Isaiah God calls Israel by this title: "Israel, MY GLORY" (Isa. 46:13). And again in Isaiah God says, "I made Israel for MY GLORY" (Isa. 43:7). Yet again in Isaiah God says, "In and through Israel I display MY GLORY" (Isa. 66:10-20). How has God displayed His glory, His impressiveness, His influence through the Israel nations through the course of history? He has done it by the ways in which He has dealt with that people historically.

A third major way in which God has displayed His glory has been in the form of a CLOUD. This glory cloud of God has taken different shapes and different sizes on various occasions. When it was time for the children of Israel to begin their exodus out of Egypt, the glory of God took the form of a pillar of fire enshrouded within a cloud. "And the Lord went before them by day IN A PILLAR OF A CLOUD, to lead them in the way; and by night IN A PILLAR OF FIRE, to give them light, to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people" (Ex. 13:21-22).

There are several things to observe about this passage. There was but one pillar of both cloud and fire, for when shining in the darkness it is still called the pillar of cloud (Ex. 14:19) or the cloud (Num. 9:21), so that it was A CLOUD CONTAINING THE FIRE. By day it appeared as a cloud in contrast to the scorching desert sun, hovering over the multitude as a blessed shadow, protecting them from the suffocating heat of the wilderness. By night the same cloud was a fiery splendor (Num. 9:15-16) giving the people light and heat to break the desert chill. They would see the blazing fire at night and they would see the bright cloud by day. It lighted Israel's path by its splendor and led them as a guide in their journeys. "In the daytime also He led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire" (Ps. 78:14). It also threatened destruction to those who murmured against God (Num. 17:10), sending out fire against the rebels and consuming them (Lev. 10:2; Num. 16:35).

When Israel was encamped about the base of mount Sinai, and God came down on top of that mount to meet with Moses to give Israel the law, the glory cloud of God in a blazing flame rested on top of that mountain. "And Moses went up into the mount, and a CLOUD covered the mount. And the GLORY OF THE LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the CLOUD covered it six days: and the seventh day He called unto Moses OUT OF THE MIDST OF THE CLOUD. And the SIGHT OF THE GLORY OF THE LORD was like DEVOURING FIRE on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. And Moses went into the midst of the CLOUD, and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights" (Ex. 24: 15-18). It was there amid the radiant cloud and flaming fire of God's glory that Moses received specific instruction for the building of the wilderness tabernacle, that wonderful typical HABITATION OF GOD from which the kingdom of Israel was to be directed and governed by the glory of God's presence.

Moses came down from the mount of God and began the construction of the tabernacle. At last, after many months of building and devoutly following the intricate instructions given by Jehovah, when every furnishing was finished and every feature complete in its minutest detail, we have these significant and wonder filled words: "Then a CLOUD covered the tent of the congregation, and the GLORY OF THE LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the CLOUD abode thereon, and the GLORY OF THE LORD filled the tabernacle" (Ex. 40:34-35). Thus, when the children of Israel dedicated the wilderness tabernacle they saw the glory cloud of God come and go right down inside the Most Holy Place of that tabernacle. Centuries later, when Solomon built the glorious temple in Jerusalem, on the day of dedication once again the glory cloud of God came and the people of Israel stood transfixed in awed wonder as they watched the glory cloud go right down inside the Holy of Holies of that temple.

What did the glory cloud of God signify every time it appeared? The glory cloud of God signified the unique presence of God. It always told the people of Israel, when it appeared, that Jehovah was uniquely present at this place, at this time, for a special purpose. When the shekinah glory of God as a cloud led the children of Israel out of Egypt it signified to the people that God was with them in a very real and sovereign way. "And the LORD went before them IN a pillar of a cloud" (Ex. 13:21). God was IN the cloud! The Almighty God Himself dwelt in that cloud by day and in the fiery pillar by night. That strange pillar of cloud and fire was the visible manifestation of His glory and presence. While Israel walked in the light of His fiery presence, no calamity could harm them, no enemy could attack them, no evil could befall them nor plague come nigh their dwelling. God was with them in sovereign power in all their marches. "And the Lord said unto Moses, I come unto thee in a THICK CLOUD, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe for ever" (Ex. 19:9). And again, "And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the Holy Place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: FOR I WILL APPEAR IN THE CLOUD upon the mercy seat" (Lev. 16:2).

When the cloud came down out of heaven and rested on top of mount Sinai, it signified that God in a unique sense had come out of the realm of spirit to meet with the nation of Israel in His manifestation on the earth plane. When they saw the cloud enter into the Most Holy Place in the tabernacle and later in the temple, it signified again that God in a special sense was taking up residence within that worship structure within the nation of Israel. The light that shone in the Holiest of All behind the temple curtains of blue and purple and scarlet and fine twined linen, laced with threads of gold and figures of cherubim, was not the light of a candle nor the beams of the sevenfold candlestick, nor even the radiance of the sun. It was the shekinah, the glory light of God's majesty and presence. Every time the glory cloud of God appeared it signified the presence of Deity. Through time the Israelites called that glory cloud of God the SHEKINAH glory of God. The word shekinah means "to dwell." And since the glory cloud always signified that God was present at the place where the cloud appeared, to dwell in a unique sense, they called it the shekinah or DWELLING GLORY of God.

The disciples of Jesus had become accustomed to seeing Jesus the man, Jesus the healer, Jesus the man of sorrows. They had heard Him tell of the majesty and glory of His Father in heaven, but had never grasped the significance or the glory or the majesty and power of the Christ who walked the road with them. On that momentous occasion when the Lord Jesus took Peter, James and John up into the mount and was transfigured before them, suddenly there appeared a BRIGHT CLOUD - a cloud with a light in it. And out of that bright cloud the voice of the Father spake concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, "This is My beloved Son: hear Him!" It is more than coincidence that, as Peter spoke, a CLOUD overshadowed them and a Voice came out of the cloud. One of the significant facts in connection with the glory cloud of God's presence is that God always SPOKE from the cloud. This began first on mount Sinai. "And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may HEAR WHEN I SPEAK with thee... and the Lord came down upon mount Sinai... and the Lord CALLED MOSES..." (Ex. 19:9,20). At a later time God spoke from the same cloud after that it had descended upon the tabernacle. "And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and THE LORD TALKED WITH MOSES" (Ex. 33:9).

What was that BRIGHT CLOUD with the light in it from which the voice of God spake? It was none other than the pillar of cloud housing the glory fire, the shekinah glory of God that had led the children of Israel in their exodus out of Egypt and guided them for forty years! As Jesus prayed on the mount, He was transfigured before His chosen disciples. At that moment of transfiguration the glory cloud enveloped Him and God spoke from the midst of the radiance of glory.

Please observe the marked similarity which exists between the transfiguration experience and that of Moses going into the blazing cloud on Sinai. "And after six days Jesus taketh with Him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into a high mountain apart by themselves: and He was transfigured before them. And His raiment became SHINING, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. And there appeared unto them Elias with Moses (the law and the prophets): and they were talking with Jesus. And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles (like the tabernacle in the wilderness!); one for Thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. And there was a CLOUD THAT OVERSHADOWED THEM: and a VOICE came out of the cloud, saying, This is My beloved Son: hear Him!"

The matter of utmost importance for us at this time is to grasp the full import of these words of the Father: HEAR YE HIM! It was always the Mighty God who spoke out of the glory cloud. And now that Voice comes out of the excellent glory and commands that from this time forth the ONLY VOICE we are to hear is THE VOICE OF THE SON OF GOD. The great revelation here is not that the Father now ceases to speak and from henceforth leaves it unto the Son to speak. The simple truth here unfolded is that THE VOICE OF THE SON I-S THE VOICE OF G-O-D! Ah, it was Jesus, the Jehovah of the Old Testament, who was speaking from the cloud all the time ... away back on mount Sinai, in the tabernacle in the wilderness, and from between the cherubim over the mercy seat in the Holiest of All! The apostle John, by the spirit of wisdom and revelation, caught the reality of this and declared, "In the beginning was the WORD, and the WORD was with God, and the WORD W-A-S G-O-D" (Jn. 1:1). He then speaks of the WORD as LIGHT: "In Him was life; and the life was the LIGHT of men. And the LIGHT shineth in darkness. . . " (in. 1: 4-5). This is strikingly reminiscent of the wilderness experience. "And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud ... and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them LIGHT: to go by day and night" (Ex. 13:21). The scriptures also assure us that "God IS LIGHT" (I Jn. 1:5), and that He is the "LIGHT of Israel" (Isa. 10:17), and Jesus most assuredly identified Himself as that CLOUD OF LIGHT which led God's people of old, for He said, "I AM THE LIGHT of the world: He that FOLLOWETH ME (a moving light, as the fiery cloud) shall not walk in darkness" (Jn. 8:12). John, after referring to Jesus as the WORD which was the LIGHT continues: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His GLORY, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father" (Jn. 1:14).

In the wilderness this GLORY, this CLOUD, and the VOICE OUT OF THE CLOUD are all brought together: "And Moses went up into the mount, and a CLOUD covered the mount. And the GLORY of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai, and the CLOUD covered it six days: and the seventh day He CALLED UNTO MOSES OUT OF THE MIDST OF THE CLOUD. And the sight of the GLORY of the Lord was like devouring FIRE" (Ex. 24:15-17). On the mount of transfiguration the SON is enveloped in the CLOUD and we are commanded to HEAR HIM. The writer to the Hebrews then identified this VOICE and this GLORY in these remarkable words: "God... hath in these last days spoken unto us BY HIS SON, Whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by Whom also He made the worlds; Who BEING THE BRIGHTNESS OF HIS GLORY, and the express image of His person..." (Heb. 1:1-3). Jesus is the brightness of God's glory! He is indeed, the presence in the cloud and the very cloud and fire of the presence!

In this connection it is interesting to note that in the wilderness the cloud ofhis presence COVERED and OVERSHADOWED the tabernacle of God. Fifteen centuries later, when Jesus was to come into the world as the beginning of the greater and true tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man, we read: "Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall OVERSHADOW thee: THEREFORE also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God" (Lk. 1:34-35). us UNDERSTAND! I do not hesitate to tell you that it was the same SHEKINAH GLORY CLOUD in which the God of Israel dwelt, and which overshadowed the place of His tabernacling among Israel; the same glory cloud which descended upon and overshadowed the majestic heights of Sinai, birthing the law of the Lord to Israel; yes, it was the very same cloud of His presence that OVERSHADOWED MARY so that the Mighty God of Israel could indwell her, and come forth as a flesh being, to be "God manifest in the flesh." The angel that announced these wonder filled tidings to the virgin girl of Nazareth did not plant the seed of Christ in her womb; it was the overshadowing of the POWER OF THE HIGHEST. Christ was CONCEIVED in the glory cloud!

The One of old in the cloud of glory was just JESUS. The WORD. The VOICE out of the CLOUD. The LIGHT that guided Israel. And that One was made flesh and dwelt among us. And to aid us in our perception of who He is, He stood in the glory cloud on the holy mount of God. From the midst of that cloud issued the command to HEAR HIM. And when all other manifestations were passed away the astonished disciples saw JESUS ONLY. "The Cloud Man" long awaited by the earnest rabbis of Israel had made His appearance. The One who is the brightness of God's glory was here on planet earth in the form of a man. The One who IS THE SHEKINAH, the glory cloud of God's presence, stood among men. "And they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, GOD WITH US" (Mat. 1:23).

Let every reader of these lines be assured beyond any possible shadow of doubt that it was this same shekinah, this very same glory cloud which the eleven disciples beheld in spell-bound astonishment on the crest of the mount of Olives that blessed day when the Lord ascended into mid-air and suddenly a bright cloud, like a chariot of God, bore Him speedily away, concealing Him from mortal gaze. "When He had spoken these things, while they beheld, He was taken up; and A CLOUD received Him out of their sight," the record states (Acts 1:9). An accident? An illusion? A marvellous coincidence? Not on your life! This is the equivalent of saying that the cloud which hovered over Israel in the wilderness; the cloud which rested upon the glorious tabernacle of old; the cloud which dwelt between the gleaming cherubim in the Most Holy; the cloud which filled Solomon's temple until the ministers could not minister by reason of the surpassing glory; the cloud which overshadowed the virgin girl Mary when she came to be with child; the same cloud which enveloped the Son of God and revealed His glory on the mount of transfiguration; that cloud IS THE VERY SAME CLOUD that received the Lord Jesus into its midst and out of the sight of mortal eyes! The cloud that received Jesus out of the sight of those startled disciples certainly was no ordinary rain cloud which happened to be floating across a torturous sky. It was the blazing shekinah cloud which had always veiled the divine majesty of God from time Immemorial!

Now, lest in our investigation of truth we should seem to miss the reality itself, we shall state clearly again that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, IS THE GLORY OF GOD and the glory of the Father and the shekinah cloud. All the wonderful manifestations of the glory of God, portrayed throughout the Old Testament and the New, find their eternal satisfaction in Jesus Christ our Lord. All the heavenly voices, the mighty thunderings, the blinding lightnings, the glowing pillars of fire and the luminous clouds of glory find their fulfillment in Him. The Voice that walked in the garden of Eden was nothing less than Christ, the Word of God. The thunderings, the lightnings, the flame and smoke and cloud of mount Sinai were the same voice that said, "Be thou made whole," and "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink." The fire of the pillar was THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD, the glory light that emanated from His presence. It was the radiant aura that is identical with the nature of that from which it emanates.

The truth that I earnestly pray will penetrate deeply into the heart of every saint of God who meditates upon these holy things is the fact of the relationship that we have to the shekinah glory of God, the glory cloud and fire of His presence. Ten days after that little group of ardent disciples stood gazing up into the heavens in bewilderment, wondering at the phenomenon of their beloved Master rising bodily from their midst and disappearing into the cloud, they were startled by another manifestation of the miraculous. On the day Jesus ascended into heaven He said to His followers, "You stay here in Jerusalem until the Father sends the gift that He has promised to you." The disciples obeyed the Lord, they stayed there in Jerusalem, and ten days after Jesus had ascended, on the day of Pentecost, while that little company of believers was banded together some strange things began to happen. Suddenly there was the sound of a mighty rushing wind swooping down from out of celestial realms on that little band of believers, but that wasn't all that came down out of heaven, there were also TONGUES OF FIRE that came down out of the glory world above, as many tongues of fire as there were believers present that day. Those tongues of fire came down out of heaven right to the heads of the believers, and while the biblical text doesn't actually say this, the inference is that those tongues of fire disappeared right into their bodies.

What were those tongues of fire that appeared on the day of Pentecost? They were none other than the SHEKINAH GLORY OF GOD! This was the same pillar of fire in the cloud that went before Israel and dwelt in the Most Holy Place; however, this time instead of being clustered together in a single blazing mass as a singular pillar of fire, it was subdivided into as many segments as there were believers present that day. What did the shekinah glory of God coming in the form of tongues of fire into the bodies of those servants of the Lord signify? They signified then exactly the same thing they had signified every time the shekinah had appeared before - the unique presence of God. But on this occasion they signified that the mighty God was coming to take up permanent residence within the bodies and lives of the sons and daughters of the Most High. Ah, my brother, my sister, born from above by the incorruptible seed of the Word of God that liveth and abideth forever, do you realize what this means to you? This means that God has seen fit to place His shekinah glory cloud INSIDE YOUR PHYSICAL BODY! That truth should make us holy. YOU are now God's GLORY CLOUD! The glory of the cloud that once overshadowed the tabernacle is the glory that overshadows you. The glory that filled the typical temple in Solomon's day is the same glory that filled the living temple at Pentecost and that now fills the living temple which you are.

From the pen of another ready writer let me quote the following words of inspiration and instruction. "From the beautiful phrases of Weymouth's translation, we have these illuminating words of glory and beauty: 'You are a building which has been reared on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, the cornerstone being Jesus Christ Himself, in union with whom the whole fabric, truly bonded together, IS RISING SO AS TO FORM A HOLY SANCTUARY in the Lord; in whom you also are being built up together TO BECOME A FIXED ABODE FOR GOD through the Spirit.' It was this living tabernacle, this dwelling place of God, this spiritual habitation, the body of Christ, which was so magnificently portrayed in every minute detail of the typical tabernacle in the wilderness. Over that tabernacle abode the cloud and fire of God's glory and within the holy of holies was the shekinah, which was the glory of God's presence. In these blessed days so long ago God walked among His people. The glory of God hovered continually over a figurative tabernacle. When Jesus came, He walked WITH THEM. As John once said, 'We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.' But the time came when that heavenly glory, which is Jesus Christ Himself, came to dwell, not merely with them, but in them, for thus has the Spirit spoken, saying, 'I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people' (II Cor.16:16).

"I know and am sure that this wilderness tabernacle, of which the Bible speaks in such intricate detail, is a typical representation of the MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST, of which we are a living part. Nothing else in all scripture so adequately and marvelously displays the ministries, the gifts, the graces, the fruits, the door, the sacrifices, the communion and the GLORY of the body of Christ as does the tabernacle. Every detail the apostles taught concerning the body of Christ is clearly displayed in the tabernacle in the wilderness.

"The shekinahi that once filled the Holy of Holies in the long ago, is the light of Christ that now fills the holy of holies which you are. I know we can neither see nor understand as we often feel we should, but there is a great truth which we must all learn and the sooner we grasp it the sooner we will cease from our fleshly strivings and enter into the rest of our Lord. We must learn that God no longer dwells in a wilderness tabernacle or in temples made with hands. Glorious as were those types and shadows, they were merely frail reflections of a more glorious 'house not made with hands' which was to come. Our Father no longer dwells in a temple in Jerusalem made by the art and wisdom of Solomon or the cunning workmanship of skilled artisans. His temple henceforth is the living temple of His body, which temple we are. The burning truth the Holy Spirit would now reveal is that 'ye are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwelleth in you.' Tothe elect saints of the church age Paul dared to say, 'Now ye are THE BODY OF CHRIST and members in particular.' The saints are the house not made with hands, eternal in the heavenlies. They are the FATHER'S HOUSE OF MANY MANSIONS. The body of Christ is made of LIVING STONES, which stones YE ARE. This is the true temple. This is 'My Father's house.' From the radiant glory of its many mansions He will govern the worlds in ages to come, restoring and reconciling all things unto Himself.

"What do the words of Jesus mean to you, saint of God, which He spoke concerning His glory, saying, 'When the Son of man shall COME IN HIS GLORY, and all the holy angels with Him, THEN shall He sit upon THE THRONE OF HIS GLORY' (Mat. 25:31). Was not the tabernacle, filled with His glory, the seat of His government in Israel? Dare we not believe that the THRONE OF HIS GLORY will be this GLORY FILLED TEMPLE of His body, the house of living stones not made with hands? Listen to Jesus as He describes this coming to His temple. 'Then shall they see the Son of man coming in a CLOUD with POWER AND GREAT GLORY' (Lk. 21:27). 'And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other, (Mat. 24:31). These elect are they of whom Peter spoke, saying, 'Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ' (I Pet. 1:2). These are the elect of all ages, members in particular of the 'house not made with hands.' God's glory shall fill that living temple which they are" -The Page.

I would draw your attention to the book of Revelation, the unveiling of Jesus Christ. This marvelous book contains deep and rich teaching for the elect saints concerning the coming of Christ; symbolic, mysterious, wonderful, but always to be approached reverently, humbly, with head bowed low and shoes removed from off our feet, as people standing on holy ground. Nineteen hundred years ago the beloved disciple on the lonely isle of Patmos saw unfolding before him the enthralling drama of the coming of his Lord. As the awesome sight began to unfold he cried out in astonished wonder and surprised joy, "Behold! He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him" (Rev. 1:7). The coming of the Lord as revealed in the book of Revelation is complex and progressive, extending through a variety of diverse scenes, stages, events, and manifestations, until He has come in such measure of fullness that we know Him finally in that dimension where HE IS the glorious fulfillment of all that our heart has yearned for, and desired so earnestly. All the lacks swallowed up into completeness, all the voids filled with His fullness, and we know the bliss of HIMSELF as our All-in-all.

BEHOLD! This is the word with which John begins his description of what he saw. Someone has said that the word "behold" in the scriptures is the "Stop, Look, and Listen" sign of the Bible. It always calls for special attention and directs our focus to a truth of unusual importance. The word comes from the Greek IDOU a demonstrative participle. There are four things we should understand about this word. First, it bids the reader or hearer to give attention to what is being said, as if we were to say, "Now listen!" Second, it is used when an event is specified which seems impossible, yet occurs. Third, it is an exclamation of one pointing out something and calling attention to it. Fourth, it means to observe what is about to be said and consider it thoroughly.

Now let us look at the two words that follow: HE COMETH. "Behold! He cometh." This phrase is from the Greek ERCHOMAI. It is the third person singular, present indicative. Any reader who knows the conjunction of verbs knows what that means. First, it means HE COMES as a present tense reality. The verb is present indicative. He comes. He is in the act of coming. Behold! He is (now) coming! In other words, He has been coming, He is still in the act of coming, and He continues to come. This is extremely important. More than once the coming of the Lord is spoken of in this tense throughout the book of Revelation. It's not a future thing, not something that shall happen somewhere down the course of history, but it is something that IS. Oh! that God with flames of His holy fire would burn this truth indelibly upon the hearts of all who read these lines.

The Church world is either looking back to an historical Christ, or forward to a futuristic coming of Christ, and they miss this word ERCHOMAI altogether, their spiritual understanding never being quickened to this grand truth that HE COMES, He is coming, He continues to come, He will continue to come. It is something that can happen right now. It can happen in your life right now. It means that He comes from one place to another. He comes out of the realm of spirit to be manifested in flesh, expressed and revealed in a visible, tangible way to the physical creation. ERCHOMAI means to come, to make one's appearance come before the public. It means that He comes and appears before the view of the people round about. And this coming has already happened, it is happening now, and shall continue to happen. This is the revelation that so captivated the apostle John that he could only exclaim with amazement, "Behold! He comes!" And the Spirit has borne witness for many years now among God's Spirit-led people that soon Christ shall come in the manifestation of Himself on a plane and in a measure never before seen or experienced by men upon this planet. He shall come to be glorified in His saints, manifested in His sons to set creation free from its bondage to corruption - sin and sorrow and death. Yes, He HAS come, and He is STILL TO COME!

There are two more words: WITH CLOUDS. "Behold! He cometh with clouds." "With" is from the Creek preposition META. It means with, but it also means together with, in the midst of, among, between, in common with, with the help of, and by means of. Behold! He comes WITH clouds, denoting an association. Behold! He comes TOGETHER WITH clouds, denoting a communion. Behold! He comes IN THE MIDST OF clouds, denoting an indwelling. Behold! He comes AMONG clouds, denoting a fellowship. Behold! He comes BETWEEN clouds, denoting a union. Behold! He comes IN COMMON WITH clouds, denoting a participation. Behold! He comes WITH THE HELP OF clouds, denoting an interdependence. Behold! He comes BY MEANS OF clouds, denoting an instrumentality. CLOUDS are the vehicle He uses in this coming.

Here is where I wish to point out a most significant fact of scripture which has entirely been overlooked by the average Bible student and almost all preachers and teachers in the church systems. All the way through the scriptures, from the crossing of the Red Sea by the children of Israel to the ascension of Christ from the mount of Olives, God consistently manifested Himself in ONE GLORY CLOUD. There was always only ONE SINGLE CLOUD. One cloud over mount Sinai. One cloud resting upon the tabernacle in the wilderness. One cloud shining in the Most Holy Place. One cloud filling Solomon's temple. One cloud overshadowing the virgin, implanting the seed of the Christ. One cloud shimmering over the summit of the mount of transfiguration. And finally, we read, "And when He had spoken these things, while they beheld, He was taken up; and A CLOUD (only one!) received Him out of their sight" (Acts 1:9). Christ ascended in ONE SINGLE CLOUD of God's shekinah glory - the very SAME cloud in which He had manifested His presence throughout the long ages of time.

It is when we come to the return of our Lord that we notice a distinct difference in the circumstances surrounding that coming. For suddenly, the one single cloud disappears and we are introduced to a great plurality of C-L-O-U-D-S. Let us SEE! Christ departed this earth in ONE CLOUD. He comes again in MANY CLOUDS! "Behold, He cometh with CLOUDS: and every eye shall see Him" (Rev. 1:7). Daniel in vision beheld Him thus: "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like a Son of man CAME WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN ... and there was given unto Him dominion" (Dan. 7:13-14). Jesus Himself said, "And they shall see the Son of man COMING IN THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN with power and great glory" (Mat. 24: 30). And again, "Hereafter ye shall see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of power, and COMING IN THE CLOUDS of heaven" (Mat. 26:64). Finally, the apostle Paul relates this dramatic experience: "Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them IN THE CLOUDS, to meet the Lord..." (I Thes. 4:17). In the C-L-O-U-D-S! More than one cloud. Many clouds. A great company of clouds!

The question follows: Why are there MANY CLOUDS attending Christ's coming again, and what are these clouds? To aid our understanding of this truth, let us not for one moment forget that we are dealing with THE CLOUD of GOD'S GLORY AND PRESENCE. The shekinah. When Jesus, the firstborn Son of God, was in the world John said of Him, "And we beheld HIS GLORY" (Jn. 1:14). WHEN did they behold His glory? You may reply that they beheld His glory when He went about doing good, healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, raising the dead, performing miracles and teaching the glorious truths of the Kingdom of God. I do not deny that in all those things they beheld His glory, but the apostle Peter pinpoints for us what is really meant about them beholding the glory of the Son. "For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were EYEWITNESSES OF HIS MAJESTY (GLORY). For He received from God the Father honour and GLORY, WHEN THERE CAME SUCH A VOICE TO HIM FROM THE EXCELLENT GLORY (THE GLORY CLOUD), saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, WHEN WE WERE WITH HIM IN THE HOLY MOUNT" (II Pet. 1:16-18).

How very significant that at the end of Jesus' earthly ministry He said, "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word; that they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may BE ONE IN US ... and the GLORY WHICH THOU GAVEST ME I HAVE GIVEN THEM... I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one ... Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, BE WITH ME WHERE I AM; that they may behold MY GLORY which Thou hast given Me" (Jn. 17:20-24). And this is the crux of the whole matter! From the dawn of creation's light until Jesus stepped upon this planet, God manifested to His creation in a singular way HIS OWN GLORY. He, the one eternal God exhibited His presence in the form of ONE GLORY CLOUD. But as Jesus approached the cross and the glorious events to unfold shortly thereafter, He disclosed the grand truth that God purposed from eternity to SHARE HIS GLORY WITH HIS VAST FAMILY OF SONS ... that glorious body which is the fullness of Him who filleth all in all!

Let us see then what great encouragement God has given us concerning His glory. "And ye know how we exhorted you, as a father does his children, that ye should walk worthy of God, who hath called you TO HIS KINGDOM AND GLORY" (I Thes. 2:11-12). Peter asserts, "I ... also am A PARTAKER OF THE GLORY that shall be revealed" (I Pet. 5:1). "Whereunto He called you to the obtaining of THE GLORY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST" (II Thes. 2:14). "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with THE GLORY THAT SHALL BE REVEALED IN US" (Rom. 8:18). The writer to the Hebrews adds this significant testimony: "For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing MANY SONS TO GLORY, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings" (Heb. 2:10). That there is to be a mighty and universal revelation of the glory of God, that very same glory which was revealed in the cloud of old, is evident.

When Jesus ascended nineteen hundred years ago, He ascended glorified in that singular glory cloud in which He had dwelt from eternity. He was the One God manifested in all fullness in one Man, the Son. But, blessed be God! when He comes again, "He shall come to be GLORIFIED I-N_H-I-S S-A-I-N-T-S, and to be admired IN THEM that believe" (II Thes. 1:10). Centuries ago the apostle Paul wrote these words to the saints in Rome: "And if (we are) children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also GLORIFIED TOGETHER" (Rom. 8:17). It should not be difficult for any believer to understand that since the majesty and glory of God is now to be shared by and imparted to a vast company of sons of God, each of these sons to whom is given that same glory that Jesus had from eternity shall stand ultimately in his OWN REALM OF THE GLORY OF THE LORD. The glory is shared, so the CLOUD which represents that glory IS SHARED. Each elect son becomes a manifestation of the glory - of the CLOUD - of the shekinah! Each son becomes the expression and revelation of the Person of Deity. There is still only one Person of God, but He shall eternally indwell a many-membered body of like ones unto Himself, the extension and projection of His own Being. In the light of truths so sublime let us then search our hearts and sanctify ourselves in the knowledge that WE ARE THAT BODY. The cloud of old rested upon the tabernacle and filled the temple with the glory of the Lord. WE ARE NOW HIS TABERNACLE AND HIS TEMPLE! WE ARE NOW HIS ARK AND HIS MOST HOLY PLACE AND HIS HOLY MOUNT! The glory is now given to us rests upon us, increasingly fills us, and shall radiate out through this holy habitation of God forevermore. Under the Old Testament economy God dwelt in the one singular cloud. But now He says, "I will dwell IN THEM, and walk IN THEM... and ye shall be My sons and daughters.." (II Cor. 6:16-18).

What, then, are those clouds with which, and in which, the Christ comes again? Why, bless your heart, WE ARE! The apostles Peter and Jude both tell us that FALSE MINISTRIES are "CLOUDS without water ... carried about of winds." A TRUE ministry then, is a CLOUD with water. A true ministry has life to give, and is willing to empty himself out in order to be a blessing to dry and thirsty souls. Jesus was a bright cloud laden with water, for "The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and give His life..." (Mat. 20:28).

The one glory has become the multiple glory. The one God has reproduced His life into a any-membered body. The ONE CLOUD of His presence has become MANY CLOUDS of His presence IN HIS PEOPLE. Isaiah foretold of this day: "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the GLORY OF THE LORD IS RISEN UPON T-H-E-E. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and HIS GLORY SHALL BE S-E-E-N_U-P-O-N_T-H-E-E" (Isa. 60:1-2). The "sign" of the coming or presence of Jehovah has always been the shekinah glory cloud. It was His sign to Moses, and when our Lord comes again in fullness in a many-membered body of saints, it will be IN THE CLOUDS OF HIS PRESENCE.

Because the shekinah glory of God lives inside the bodies of God's elect saints, we have the solemn responsibility of glorifying God in our bodies. "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you? Therefore GLORIFY GOD IN YOUR BODY, and in your spirit, which are God's" (I Cor. 6:19-20). Since the glory of God is that which is impressive or influential concerning God, it behooves us to yield our members day by day as instruments unto God in this world that creation about us may be tremendously impressed with our great heavenly Father who now lives inside us. We are responsible to use our bodies in such a way that God will have influence in the world in these dark days at the end of the age. I cannot help but believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, in anticipation of the hour when the glory cloud would fully indwell and cover the elect of God, said in that long ago, "YE are the light of the world!"

This treasure we have in EARTHEN VESSELS (II Cor. 4:7). Ah, there is a glory even now as we glorify God in these mortal bodies. Christ had and disclosed such a glory in that dim and distant past when He walked the shores of blue Galilee. But, blessed be His name, in His resurrection He came forth in new garments, clad in a sin-free and deathfree body of incorruption and immortality! Now His wonderful life is swallowing up the sin and death in us, bringing to His chosen ones also a change of raiment, and the hour is wonderfully near at hand when even this corruptible shall put on incorruption and this mortal shall put on immortality.

Though His glory has generally been hidden throughout the ages, at certain times and on special occasions that hidden glory has flashed forth into prominence before the eyes of the few who by the predestined counsel of God were permitted to experience unspeakable things unlawful for a man to utter. We are coming ever nearer when God shall unveil His power and glory before the face of all nations and peoples in a manner far beyond any measure experienced by men of any age. The whole world shall soon see the glory that is to be revealed in God's matured and perfected body. BEHOLD! HE COMETH WITH CLOUDS, IN GREAT POWER AND GLORY!

Next to Part 23

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