BEHIND THE VEIL OF FLESH IS GLORY

February 10, 2002 pm
MF Blume

John 1:1-4 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
1 John 1:1-7 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

GLORY is what came to earth when Jesus was born.

And it was God's glory.
God would be glorifying His own name through the wonders that Christ wrought.

When the ark of the covenant was made during Moses' day, it was a golden chest where God said His commandments must be placed inside, and where His presence would be made known.

And this ark was placed behind the VEIL in the tabernacle - that portable temple.
We read verses this morning that tell us the veil divided the two rooms of the holy place and the most holy place.
Behind that divider was the ark of the covenant.

Exodus 26:33 And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy.

Years later, when Israel disobeyed God, the enemies of Israel conquered them.

It is always noted in scripture that when God's people do not live properly, their enemies defeat them.
It's the same today in the spiritual world.
Your enemies are the devils and evil spirits from Satan.
And if you do not serve God properly, He removes His protection and your enemies make life a living defeat.

In this case, the enemy at the time was the Philistine nation.

And in this time of defeat, the enemy STOLE THE ARK.

And notice what was said when it was stolen.

One of the priests had fetched the ark to the battle in hopes that God would help them even if they were not living right.
But he and his other priestly brother were slain and the ark was taken.
The man's wife was pregnant with their child, and upon hearing news of the husband's death and the ark's theft, the shock threw her into birth travail, and she demanded that the child's name be called ICHABOD.

1 Samuel 4:21-5:1 And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband. {Ichabod: that is, Where is the glory? or, There is no glory} And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken. And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.

The ark was called the GLORY OF GOD.

The ark was where God's presence would be made known to Israel.
It was GLORY.
And it was put behind the veil in the temple.

When Jesus came to earth, we read that God's GLORY came to earth and people were in the presence of GLORY.

But we read that there was still a veil also.

Hebrews 10:20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;

There was glory in Him.

And as the ark was situated behind the veil in the temple, we read Jesus flesh was a veil.
Behind that FLESH was GLORY.
Inside that flesh was GLORY.

And GOD'S GLORY was as much hidden behind Jesus' flesh as it was hidden behind the veil.

Now, during OT times, the veil was breached and bypassed once a year by the high priest for atonement.

One man could get into the presence of God's glory, where the ark was.

Well, Jesus Christ performed wonders for people.

Miracles occurred.
And you could say GLORY came forth every now and then as God's POWER came out of the veil of Christ's flesh in wonder working miracles.

He was glorified in miracles He did.

John 9:3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
John 11:4 When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.

But He spoke of a GLORY that would be beyond any glory that man might ever see in Him.

A greater means of showing God's glory through Him.

John 12:20-33 And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour. Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes. Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die.

The greeks desired to see Jesus.

He immediately spoke of being glorified.

And he refers to the resurrection.
The seed that is planted and rises again with many more seeds.

Later Jesus prays and asks the Father to glorify His name.

And a voice speaks from heaven saying He already glorified it and will glorify it again.

The times Jesus was glorified were the speaking of God's voice when Jesus was baptized.

Matt 3:17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

This occurred when Jesus was baptized.

Now the interesting thing is that Jesus was baptized in water in a burial by John the Baptist.
Baptism is indicative of a burial into death.

The second time He was glorified was as follows:

Luke 9:28-35 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering. And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias: Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem. But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him. And it came to pass, as they departed from him, Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias: not knowing what he said. While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.

When Jesus physically shone like the sun, and Moses and Elijah appeared, He was glorified.

Made glorious.
And when Peter commented about making three temples to memorialize the event right there, It was as though God rebuked Him.
A cloud overshadowed them all, and God spoke from Heaven again saying, "THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, HEAR YE HIM.
And the cloud dissipated and Jesus was the only left there.
It was as though God intervened to indicate to Peter He should not at all make three temples.
For one thing it was JESUS that ought to be glorified alone.
Not Moses and Elijah.
And a temple is not God's will either.
People would probably worship the building and think superstitiously that they would get a blessing by simply going to it.
Wrong.
God wanted people to simply HEAR JESUS' WORD!

But notice what the Lord and the two prophets spoke about.

HIS DECEASE.
HIS DEATH.

The first time He was glorified dealt with HIS DEATH in the representative act of BAPTISM IN WATER.

The second time also circled around His death as He spoke of His death at Jerusalem with Moses and Elijah.

And when Jesus was replying to the Greeks about Himself, the Father spoke from heaven, glorifying His name once again WHILE JESUS WAS STRUGGLING WITH THE THOUGHTS OF HIS DEATH.

John 12:27-28 Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.

It was almost the same words He prayed in the garden of Gethsemane later.

If it be possible let this cup pass from me.
Nevertheless, not my will but thine be done.
He resigned Himself to the will of the Father.

The great glorification that would occur again would be the resurrection after His death.

Everything pointed to his death.

When One is glorified, there is GLORY all about that one.

John 13:30-32 He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night. Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.

Jesus said He would be glorified when Judas left to betray Him.

A weary ministry in the world in preaching and being both rejected and accepted, was to end now.

He would die, resurrect and rise to the throne.

But upon His death He spoke more highly of THAT glorification than all the others.

John 17:4-5 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.

Jesus did the work of God for His life on earth.

He glorified God.
God's GLORY CAME FORTH.
He was like a temple.
And in temples is the glory of God.
He even said that if they should destroy Him in death, it would be the destruction of the temple.
And he would raise it up again in three days.

John 2:18-22 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.

That flesh seemed to stand aside when God's miracles worked.

John 14:10-11 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.

The GLORY in Him was the FATHER.

When he did miracles, it was the FATHER doing the works.
Behind that flesh was GOD the Father.

BUT that flesh was going to step aside for once and for all.

His death was going to rip that veil wide open.
When he died on the cross, the veil ripped wide open.
GLORY CAME OUT.
THAT was the glory He spoke about.
He glorified the Father every time a miracle occurred.
It was the Father doing it from inside Him.
But it was not going to be a little time of moving the veil aside every so often.
THE VEIL WAS GOING TO BREAK WIDE OPEN IN DEATH.

If the veil is FLESH, then His flesh stepped aside every so often as Jesus let the FATHER shine out through Him in miracles.

OUR FLESH IS A VEIL ALSO.

God wants to baptize you into the death of Jesus Christ.

He wants to fill you with His glory.
The Holy Ghost is GOD INSIDE YOU.
And you have to make the initiative of just not allowing your flesh to block His work through you.

When you first get saved, you have to let the flesh step aside and forget about all your fears and doubts, and serve God like you are supposed. to.

That lets the GLORY IN.

2 Chronicles 5:1-2 Thus all the work that Solomon made for the house of the LORD was finished: and Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had dedicated; and the silver, and the gold, and all the instruments, put he among the treasures of the house of God. Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.

The house is the temples of our bodies.

To get the ark of the covenant, glory, inside us, the veil must be pulled aside.

2 Chronicles 5:4-9 And all the elders of Israel came; and the Levites took up the ark. And they brought up the ark, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, these did the priests and the Levites bring up. Also king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him before the ark, sacrificed sheep and oxen, which could not be told nor numbered for multitude. And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, to the oracle of the house, into the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims: For the cherubims spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above. And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends of the staves were seen from the ark before the oracle; but they were not seen without. And there it is unto this day.

2 Chronicles 5:12-14 Also the Levites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:) It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.

120 priests all blew at the same time in the same sound, and the GLORY CAME and filled the house.

As the ark entered, the 120 praised.
And the glory came inside!

We read that 120 people were in the upper room on the day of pentecost.

Acts 1:15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

And like the priests who got in one voice and unity, these 120 were in one accord.

And they were filled with the Holy Ghost.

Acts 2:1-4 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

And after the glory is in you, don't let your FLESH veil it away from the world forevermore.

When you want to do something for God, you feel a pressure to not do it.

You feel a resistance, and often give in and never understand why you are not doing God's will.
In effect you hinder God from working in your life.

You need to let that flesh step aside and let the glory flow out.