The Glory
The priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.
Years ago, I did a study on the Glory of God, the kabod, meaning heaviness, majesty, splendor, and abundance; it is the weighty glory of God that manifests itself in our lives. I’ve experienced it many times, and it still brings me to my knees, and it always will. On Dec. 7, 2024, I had a dream, and in this dream I was talking about the Glory of God – the 4 doors to His glory. I wrote the dream down and honestly forgot about it. On Dec. 6 this year, Holy Spirit reminded me and had me go back and read it. He told me it was time for a renewed revelation of His glory. So, this is where I will be studying for the remainder of this year.
This morning, I was reading through different instances in the Word where the Glory of God was manifest. This one I’ve not been able to turn away from yet today….
When the priests came forth from the holy place (for all the priests who were present had sanctified themselves, without regard to divisions/sects), and all the Levitical singers, Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and kinsmen, clothed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps and lyres, standing east of the altar, and with them one hundred and twenty priests blowing trumpets in unison when the trumpeters and the singers were to make themselves heard with one voice to praise and to glorify the LORD, and when they lifted up their voice accompanied by trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and when they praised the LORD [saying,] "[He] indeed is good for His lovingkindness is everlasting," then the house, the house of the LORD, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of God. – 2 Chron. 5:11-14
Holy Spirit kept pulling me in to dig deeper and deeper. There’s so much revelation of His glory in this passage. Let’s break it down:
1. The priests came forth sanctified: They lived a pure and holy life…
According to 1 Peter 2:9, we are a royal priesthood, a generation chosen to proclaim His praises.
To be sanctified is to be made holy, to consecrate ourselves. In John, we are told that we are sanctified through the Truth. (Jn 17:9)
In order to be a royal priesthood, it goes beyond being chosen by God; we must choose Him back. When we set our lives apart from the world, allowing Him to change us from glory to glory, we will experience Him in ways that will transform our lives. We are told to be holy as He is holy; our lives must look different than the average person living in the world.
2. They had no regard to ‘divisions’ or ‘sects’: They chose to walk before God in unity.
Today, in the Body of Christ, unity is greatly lacking. We have a Body that is so distorted because it can’t seem to cross denominational lines (divisions/sects). We are told in the Word that the world will know Jesus when we walk in unity.
If we want to see the glory of God in our cities, we must come together with no regard to divisions/sects.
3. Here’s the big one… They stood to the east of the altar: Our posture and position matter.
At first, I did not understand why it mentions this, but let me pour out some fresh revelation...
The temple faced the east, and the Holy of Holies was in the west. It says that the priests stood east of the altar, which means they would be facing west, symbolically facing the Holy of Holies – towards the presence of God. They were postured towards God, not towards man. Posture matters!
What we see here is that the Levites were not offering sacrifices at the altar; they were gathering for one purpose: to praise God! They were gathering to RELEASE A SOUND! They were gathered at the east of the altar, which I found out after much study that in that position, their sound would fill the courts of the inner sanctuary. Position matters!
Here’s the revelation: When you are postured towards Him alone, and you are aligned in position with His glory, your sound carries weight!
4. They played in unison and sang with one voice:
In complete unity, as ONE, they sang songs of praise and thanksgiving to God!
They praised: halal – became undignified in His presence
They glorified: yada – celebrating, throwing/casting thanksgiving upon God!
5. THEN… THEN His glory filled the house!!!!
It says His kabod – heaviness, majesty, splendor – was so heavy that the priests could not even stand and/or minister!
How will we see HIS Body, our lives, cities, homes, and churches transformed by His kabod? When will we once again see His glory fill the house?
When we truly come to know Him as savior. Not know ‘of’ Him but KNOW Him.
In Exodus, God told Moses, “…you have found favor in My sight, and I have known you by name.” Moses was allowed to see the manifest glory of God because he KNEW God and God KNEW Him.
Knowing Him leads us into a life everlasting and a life of holiness.
When we choose to break down our ‘denominational walls and lock arms in unity for the mandate of Jesus!
"The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one." John 17:22
When we stop fearing man, striving for a platform, comparing our gifts, and seeking the praise of man… When we START posturing ourselves in humility at the altar of God (the place of full surrender and sacrifice of self-desire) and positioning ourselves where HE wants us, not where man tells us.
When we learn to truly praise Him for Him, not His hand.
There are many songs sung on Sunday mornings in church that are all about ‘me’ but there are very few songs that are truly just casting thankfulness towards God just for who He is.
We’ve got to get past this ideation that we praise Him for what He has done. What if He never did another thing for you? Would you still be able to praise Him?
I so deeply desire to see His kabod fill the house, my house, the sanctuary where His Body gathers, my city, my state, our nation… THIS WORLD!! Can you imagine?