In the Beginning, God' glory in the Garden was the first manifestation of God's presence on man. God crowned man with his Glory! Adam and Eve in the garden were perfect...no sin in them...they not only knew God, but they walked daily with Him in the garden. They had that Glory on them that allowed them to walk in divine communion with God. Talk face to face with him.

Psalm 8:3-9
3 Look at the splendor of your skies, your creative genius glowing in the heavens. When I gaze at your moon and your stars, mounted like jewels in their settings, I know you are the fascinating artist who fashioned it all! But when I look up and see such wonder and workmanship above, I have to ask you this question: Compared to all this cosmic glory, why would you bother with puny, mortal man or be infatuated with Adam’s sons? 5 Yet what honor you have given to men, created only a little lower than Elohim, crowned like kings and queens with glory and magnificence. 6 You have delegated to them mastery over all you have made, making everything subservient to their authority, placing earth itself under the feet of your image-bearers. 7–8 All the created order and every living thing of the earth, sky, and sea—the wildest beasts and all the sea creatures—everything is in submission to Adam’s sons. 9 Lord, your name is so great and powerful. People everywhere see your majesty! What glory streams from the heavens, filling the earth with the fame of your name!

This is an Angel asking God this question. The angels were in awe that this man that God had created would be made higher then them and just below God.

Genesis 1:26-28
26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 2:7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. 8 The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.
18 And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” 21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. 23 And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” 24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Ezekial 1:1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the River Chebar, that the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God

Note that this was a vision Ezekial was not actually seeing God in the flesh, because as we saw in another lesson with Moses, he would not have been able to withstand being in the presence of the Glory.

26 And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. 27 Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.

Ezekiel 8
8 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house with the elders of Judah sitting before me, that the hand of the Lord God fell upon me there. 2 Then I looked, and there was a likeness, like the appearance of fire—from the appearance of His waist and downward, fire; and from His waist and upward, like the appearance of brightness, like the color of amber.
4 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the vision that I saw in the plain.

Habakkuk 3:3-4
God came from Teman, The Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah
His glory covered the heavens, And the earth was full of His praise.
4 His brightness was like the light; He had rays flashing from His hand,
And there His power was hidden.

What Ezekiel and Habakkuk were seeing was the Glory of God and within it was His Power.And this glory and power is what God placed on Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve were clothed with the Glory from the inside out...looked just like God. This is why they were not aware of their physical bodies. This is shown when they sinned and the Glory left them...and they saw their bodies for the first time and realized they were naked. The light went out that day, the Glory was gone.

Gen 2:9 And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
15-17 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

The Temptation and Fall of Man
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” Genesis 3:4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. (The devil is contradicting what God actually said)
5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. 8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” 11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?” 12 Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” 13 And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

But once they sinned, they no longer had that communion with God. They were afraid of him and hid. What a bold contrast we see in this scene. I believe that God wept that day as well. That his man...his creation...would choose disobedience over his communion with Him. I am sure all of heaven wept that day.

22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. 24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.

And that day...the Glory lifted from them both...they no longer had dominion over the earth and everything on it...and God expelled them from the Garden. Man was no longer just below him, but now below the Angels in heaven and subject to Satan's reign on this earth. And on that day, God set into motion His plan of redemption...to send His Son...to bring redemption...and bring back communion between God and Man...and bring back the Glory to His creation!

1 Corinthians 2:7-8
The Passion Translation
7 Instead, we continually speak of this wonderful wisdom that comes from God, hidden before now in a mystery. It is his secret plan, destined before the ages, to bring us into Glory. 8 None of the rulers of this present world order understood it, for if they had, they never would have crucified the Lord of shining glory.

"1 Corinthians 2:7 The Aramaic can be translated “for our glorification” or “so that glory may be ours.”

Hebrews 2:5-10 TPT
Jesus, and the Destiny of Believers
5 For God will not place the coming world, of which we speak, under the government of angels. 6 But the Scriptures affirm: What is man that you would even think about him, or care about Adam’s race.

As in Psalms 8 this first part is talking about Man...or Adam. But in verse 7 on...it is talking about Jesus

7 You made HIM lower than the angels for A LITTLE WHILE. You placed your glory and honor upon his head as a crown. And you have given him dominion over the works of your hands, 8 For you have placed everything under his authority. This means that God has left nothing outside the control of his Son, even if presently we have yet to see this accomplished. 9 But we see Jesus, who as a man, lived for a short time lower than the angels and has now been crowned with glorious honor because of what he suffered in his death. For it was by God’s grace that he experienced death’s bitterness on behalf of everyone!

In contrast to what it says in Psalms 8 about Adam in his original state. We see Jesus having to enter this earth under "The Fall" conditions. God made him come to earth in the state of "You made Him lower than the angels for a little while" but in comparison to Adam in his fallen state. Jesus had all the authority and power of His Godhood...because even though he was all man...he was also all God! (A mystery we may never understand until we get to Heaven) So he had all athourity in this earth to defeat Satan. He came into this earth through a woman. Being in the form of a man gave him the right to be here. But being God, he had the power to take authority over the works of the devil, by being the "Perfect Man" (That Adam once was) and doing only what the Father told him to do. Only God had the wisdom to do this and put in motion His plan of redemption.

John 5 19
Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.

Matthew 10:20
20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.

The comparison of the "2" Adams

Romans 5:11-15 TPT
11 And even more than that, we overflow with triumphant joy in our new relationship of living reconciled to God—all because of Jesus Christ!
The Gift of Grace Greater Than Sin
12 When Adam sinned, the entire world was affected. Sin entered human experience, and death was the result. And so death followed this sin, casting its shadow over all humanity, because all have sinned. 13 Sin was in the world before Moses gave the written law, but it was not charged against them where no law existed. 14 Yet death reigned as king from Adam to Moses even though they hadn’t broken a command the way Adam had. The first man, Adam, was a picture of the Messiah, who was to come. 15 Now, there is no comparison between Adam’s transgression and the gracious gift that we experience. For the magnitude of the gift far outweighs the crime. It’s true that many died because of one man’s transgression, but how much greater will God’s grace and his gracious gift of acceptance overflow to many because of what one man, Jesus, the Messiah, did for us!

1 Corinthians 15:22, 45
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
45 And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

Romans 16:25-26
Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began, 26 but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith

(Refer to lesson called "Christ In You")

The Glory resting on the Old Testament Saints
Throughout the OT we see people who sought after God's Glory. Many received a glimpse of it...and others actually were enveloped in it. Many of them put us to shame. They did not have a personal relationship with God, and yet they knew Him in a way that many Christians don't.

Let's start with David!

David was said to be a man after God's own heart.

Psalm 89:3 TPT
3 I heard the Lord say, “My covenant has been made and I’m committed forever to my chosen one, David.

Psalm 89:19-20 TPT
Second Poem — God Keeps His Promises
19–20 You spoke to your prophets in visions, saying, “I have found a mighty hero for my people. I have chosen David as my loving servant and exalted him. I have anointed him as king with the oil of my holiness.

The Downfall of Saul, David is Chosen

1 Samuel 13:13-14
13 And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”

Most of his life David sought after God and God rewarded him for it. And when he did wrong he repented and God restored him. As a youth we know that he spent much time in prayer and songs unto God by reading Psalms. He learned to rely on God for everything, including protection from those that would try to kill him...including Saul.

Psalm 18:32-34 You have wrapped me in power, and now you’ve shared with me your perfection. 33 Through you I ascend to the highest peaks of your glory to stand in the heavenly places, strong and secure in you. 34 You’ve trained me with the weapons of warfare-worship; now I’ll descend into battle with power to chase and conquer my foes.

God showed him how to protect his flock against wild animals, so that later he could protect his people against their enemies...starting with Goliath. So it is not a strange thing to read in Psalms that God surrounded and protected him with His Glory. God knew that he could be trusted with that Glory and reign as the kind of king that Saul was not.

1 Samuel 17:36-38
New King James Version
36 Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”

We all know how that battle went

45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. 48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth.

As Christians, do we run at the devil...or duck and hide, hoping he won't see us or bother us. David was fearless, because he knew His God! And that he would do what he said! We need to be fearless when confronted and know that God will do what he says he will!.

Psalm 3:2-4
Listen to how they whisper their slander against me, saying: “Look! He’s hopeless! Even God can’t save him from this!” 3 But in the depths of my heart I truly know that you, Yahweh, have become my Shield; You take me and surround me with yourself. Your glory covers me continually. You lift high my head when I bow low in shame.4 I have cried out to you, Yahweh, from your holy presence. You send me a Father’s help. Pause in his presence

Being in the Glory cloud brings us into heavenly places and gives us power over our enemy...Satan.

David was a worshiper.

2 Samuel 6:14-15
14 Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.

1 Chronicles 13:8
Then David and all Israel played music before God with all their might, with singing, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on cymbals, and with trumpets.

Psalm 3:3
3 But in the depths of my heart I truly know that you, Yahweh, have become my Shield; You take me and surround me with yourself. Your glory covers me continually. You lift high my head when I bow low in shame.

Psalm 115:16-18
16 The heavens belong to our God; they are his alone, but he has given us the earth and put us in charge. 17–18 Dead people cannot praise the Lord, but we can! Those who sink to the silence of the grave can no longer give glory to God, but we can! So let’s praise the Lord! Let’s begin now and let it go on until eternity is done.
Hallelujah, and praise the Lord!

We need to be this bold with our worship! If we are...His Glory will cover us!

David was a Prophet

Psalm 15
Living in the Shining Place
1 Lord, who dares to dwell with you? Who presumes the privilege of being close to you, living next to you in your shining place of glory? Who are those who daily dwell in the life of the Holy Spirit? 2 They are passionate and wholehearted, always sincere and always speaking the truth for their hearts are trustworthy. 3 They refuse to slander or insult others; they’ll never listen to gossip or rumors, nor would they ever harm another with their words. 4 They will speak out passionately against evil and evil workers while commending the faithful ones who follow after the truth. They make firm commitments and follow through, even at great cost. 5 They never crush others with exploitation or abuse and they would never be bought with a bribe against the innocent. They will never be shaken; they will stand firm forever.

This is a song that reveals who will dwell in God’s holy presence and who will live with him in heaven’s glory. It is a description of the perfect Man, Christ Jesus, and all those who are transformed into his image, and it shows us the attributes of those who spend time in the Glory of God. And as His brothers and sisters and as God the Father's children we can dwell in that presence as well and see great and mighty things!

Rom. 8:29
29 For he knew all about us before we were born and he destined us from the beginning to share the likeness of his Son. This means the Son is the oldest among a vast family of brothers and sisters who will become just like him.

David was Anointed by God

Psalm 78:70-72
70 God also chose his beloved one, David. He promoted him from caring for sheep and made him his prophetic servant. 71–72 God prepared David and took this gentle shepherd-king and presented him before the people as the one who would love and care for them with integrity, a pure heart, and the anointing to lead Israel, his holy inheritance.

Psalm 132:16-18
16 I will cover my priests with salvation’s power, and all my godly lovers will shout for joy! 17 I will increase the anointing that was upon David, and my glistening glory will rest upon my chosen ones.

Psalm 17:15
15 As for me, because I am innocent I will see your face until I see you for who you really are. Then I will awaken with your form and be fully satisfied, fulfilled in the revelation of your glory in me!

This is said by an old covenant believer. If he was able to receive all this from God, because he spent time in God's presence...imagine how much more we should be receiving that anointing and visions and revelations through the Glory. We are the chosen ones.

1 Peter 2:9
But you are God’s chosen treasure—priests who are kings, a spiritual “nation” set apart as God’s devoted ones. He called you out of darkness to experience his marvelous light, and now he claims you as his very own. He did this so that you would broadcast his glorious wonders throughout the world.

As priests we have an obligation and honor to worship

Psalm 29:2 Be in awe before his majesty. Be in awe before such power and might! Come worship wonderful Yahweh, arrayed in all his splendor, bowing in worship as he appears in the beauty of holiness. Give him the honor due his name. Worship him wearing the glory-garments of your holy, priestly calling!

We must dedicate ourselves to become worshipers in Spirit and in Truth and we will see the Glory and have it operate in our lives!

 

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