Numbers 14:21

But truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled the glory of the Lord.

In order that the we will know when the presence of the Lord is in a place we need to understand how the Lord will manifest himself to us. In the old Testament we see a lot of reference to the Glory of the Lord and that He usually appeared in a cloud. This can and does happen still today. But they need to realize that there are conditions under which God will appear on the scene in a tangible way. I are going to endeavor in this lesson to show you that we can see this kind of anointing happen in our meetings if we will just become sensitive to the Lord and His holiness.

Exodus 16:7,10 v10 And it came to pass as Aaron spoke unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness and behold the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud.

Exodus 19:9 And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud that the people may hear me speak with you and believe forever more.

Ex. 24:16,17 And the glory of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai and the cloud covered it six days......the sight of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mount

Ex. 40:34-36 And 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 there and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle

Num. 14:21, Num. 16:42,

Num. 20:6b and they fell upon their faces and the glory or the Lord appeared unto them.

I Kings 8:10-11 The cloud filled the house of the Lord so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.

Eze. 1:4,28 And I looked and behold a whirlwind came out of the north a great cloud, and a fire in flooding itself and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber out of the midst of the fire.

Some other references:

Ps. 63:2, Ps. 72:19, Eze, 3:12,23, Eze. 10:3,4,18, Eze. 43:5, Matt. 17:5, Mark 9:7, Luke 2:9,27, John 17:22,24, Acts 1:9 Acts 2, Acts 7:55, Revelation 15:8.

How many of you have been in a really thick fog or looked out the window and not been able to look down the street because it was very foggy? Well back in the Bible days that's how God appeared to the church. Sometimes it was so thick in the building and the power of God was so strong that the people could not even stand up. God is so powerful that He just walks into a room and people fall down. This fog or cloud that follows God around is called His Glory. It's like His clothes. He's always there but we can't see Him, but sometimes we get to see His clothes.

Acts 2:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as a rushing mighty wind and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

Have you ever been in a really strong wind? So strong that it almost blew you down. You tried to walk against it but you just weren't getting anywhere. That's how it is with God. If we come up against His power and His glory, it could knock us over. Look what happened to the Red Sea. It had to move when the breath of God blew. We need to yield or give in to the power of God when it comes. When we enter worship we can expect that the power of God is going to come, and God wants to do something wonderful for us.

Another way that God's glory may appear is as a fire. Ex. 24:17. Acts 2:3 On Mount Sinai the whole mountain had a fire around it. The people could see it with their own eyes. God also appeared to Moses in the desert in a burning bush.

Acts 2:3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire and it sat upon each of them.

Each person in the room had a flame of fire over their head. In each case the fire did not consume the object that it was around. It burned without harm. There are sometimes that His fire will consume what it sits on. But if we are seeking Him in worship it will not burn us but will bless us. God wants that fire in us so we will be on fire for Him and witness to others of His power and love. He wants the whole earth filled with the Glory of the Lord. Numbers 14:21 If we have Him we will be His glory in the earth.

When God's glory comes we are to worship Him. In II Chron. 7:2,3 the people fell on their faces when the glory came into the room. Ps. 63:2 We should be looking for God's glory when we enter into worship, not wonder whether it will come or not. We must come every night looking for God to be there and He will be. He wants to touch us so much. Healing can come at times when He appears on the scene, and other wonderful things as well. Have you ever laughed until it was like you couldn't laugh anymore? Sometimes that can happen, and has. God wants to tickle you and make you laugh because He loves you. He does not want to depart from us like He had to sometimes in the Old Testament because of sin or because of lack of respect for His presence. His presence is His glory and His glory is His presence. Let's make a place for Him in our meetings by entering into the worship.

I hope that you all have a better idea of what to expect when God comes into a building. Don't be afraid, it's wonderful. Just praise and worship and don't pay attention to anyone around you. Just see what God will do for you. God is with us all the time but it's really wonderful when He does something special. Without the Spirit we can't truly enter into worship. God is a spirit and those that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.