The Lord lives among His people

At the beginning of the second year after the Israelites left Egypt, the Tent of the Lord was ready. The stone tablets were put in the Covenant Box, and the table and the lampstand were placed in the Tent. The curtain that kept the people from the holy presence of God was hung across the front of the Tent.

When everything was in place, a cloud covered the Tent, and the dazzling light of God’s presence filled it.

Why is there no cloud in church?

In a way, the Holy Tent was like a church building today. It was a special place where God would meet with ordinary people in a close way. It was a place where people could come to worship God, ask for forgiveness at the altar, and bring thank offerings to Him. It reminded people that the Lord is always close to us and that He is very real.

A church is a group of people who believe in God and come together to worship Him. Through Jesus, God is with us even when a small group meets in His name (Matthew 18:20).

You may wonder, then, why we don’t see a bright light showing God’s presence in church, or a cloud covering the church building. Before Jesus left the earth to return to His Father in heaven, He told His disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit to help them, comfort them, and guide them. Forty days later, the Holy Spirit came and filled the believers.

When a person becomes a follower of Jesus, the Holy Spirit lives in them. In other words, God now lives inside every believer, and we are now His Tent (or Temple).

Verse for today

Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God. 1 Corinthians 6:19

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