October 01, 2014
The word Shekinah describes the evidence of the
presence of the One Who Dwells. In seeking to understand the real meaning of
Shekinah we have recognized three aspects with respect to it: the cloud of
glory, the light that glows, and the fire that burns.
If there is to be worship of
the Lord there must be an altar. The altar provides the place of worship, the
means by which contact is made with the Lord, and therefore must relate to the
evidence of the presence of the Lord. The altar obviously is not the evidence
of the presence of the Lord, the physical form of the altar, but there is something
about the altar that is—it provides the means by which the evidence may come to
be known. We see this altar as a living altar, composed of physical substance,
the physical forms of people, but again it isn't the mere fact of the physical
form that is the evidence of the presence. There is something about a physical
form that gives that evidence. The glow of life, should we call it?—the cloud
of glory.
The altar of the Lord is composed of human beings in
form on earth, and it provides the place of worship on earth. The altar of the
Lord is, then, characterized by Shekinah. There is the cloud of glory, which is
the evidence of life shining round about—the evidence of the life of the angel
of the Lord individually speaking, the evidence of the presence of the Lord
collectively speaking. It is to this altar that people may come to worship God.
The altar simply gives evidence of the presence of the One Who Dwells. There is
something about the altar that does this. Initially it's the cloud of glory,
the fact of beautiful life, glorious life. We know the presence of life because
of the physical form. The altar must be there to know it. The life, which
characterizes the Lord, cannot be known unless the altar is present, the
physical form is there.
The evidence of the presence of the Lord is made
abundantly clear when there is an altar of the Lord on earth to which people
may come to worship because the cloud of glory is there; it shines round about.
But initially speaking there is no temple, just an altar, just a place of
worship to which people may come if they will; not to worship the altar but,
through the evidence of the presence of the Lord, to worship the Lord.
The altar of the Lord permits the glory of the Lord to
shine round about, and it is this which makes possible the true worship of God
to be restored on earth. It can't occur at all unless there is an altar at
which the Lord may be worshipped. Insofar as mankind is concerned, and in fact
all that is on the surface of this earth, there must rightly be an altar which
makes possible the evidence of the presence of the Lord in a specific sense,
for people to worship.
The Lord is made known by the evidence of His
presence, by the Word made flesh. His nature becomes comprehensible in this
way, so that it may be given worth, value. That is worship. People come in
yielded response to this place where the evidence of the presence of the Lord
is and they are transformed, and the temple begins to take form round about the
altar. The temple is filled with the glory of the Lord. The temple is primarily
mankind, but it becomes a temple only as there is an altar first. Then the
glory of the Lord may fill the temple and shine round about that again in all
the earth, through mankind. But the rebuilding of the altar comes first.
This relates to what has been called the priesthood,
the priesthood after the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek was King of Salem,
King of peace—after the order of the King of peace; after the nature, the
character, the quality, of the King of peace. This is the priesthood. The
priesthood gives this evidence on earth and they compose the altar, the means
by which the body of mankind may worship the Lord. People all through the ages
have been seeking the Lord, seeking some way of worshipping Him; but the altar
has been missing and so it has been a vague thing, so vague to some that they
decided there wasn't anything present, there was nothing to worship. It becomes
vividly evident that there is something to worship as the altar is rebuilt and
the glory of the Lord shines round about.
Shekinah!—the evidence of the presence of the One Who
Dwells, revealed by reason of the altar of the Lord, by reason of the
priesthood after the order of Melchizedek. Orderly, true to the true design,
and of the quality and nature of the King of peace. When the altar of the Lord
is rebuilt on earth there is a place of worship on earth, and the children of
men may come. Some will come. Some are more interested in building their own
altars and calling on their own gods. But the word of the Lord is spoken
through Shekinah, "Come unto me!" The altar itself is a vibrant
invitation to come again to the Lord. To the extent that there are those who
accept the order of Melchizedek for themselves the priesthood begins to take
form and the altar of the Lord is rebuilt. The glory of the Lord begins to
shine round about as the light that glows again.
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