Glory Then, Glory Now, Glory in the New Season 1
David W Palmer
(Exodus 13:21–22 NKJV) And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night. {22} He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.
When God brought his people out of Egypt and Pharaoh’s enslavement, he did it by forcing the enemy to let them go. Then, by using his apparently vulnerable people as live bait, he lured the entire military might of Egypt into the red sea. As a result, he completely destroyed Israel’s enemy; they would never see them again; he freed them from the world and its ruler (See: 1 John 5:19). So what happened after that was not a battle with the world or the enemy; for us, it is a picture of coming into a supernatural life in God; it was the journey from a worldly mindset into destiny, God’s way.
The next season God had for them, and will have for us, is a focus on separation, purification, and glory.
In our opening passage, we note that once God’s people began to move by faith out of Egyptian slavery—picturing the world with its ruler and system—to God’s destiny for them, suddenly the pillars of cloud and fire appeared. The cloud led the way. This represents God’s leading by his Spirit. The pillar of fire shone light into the night’s darkness. This speaks to us of a season where the light of God’s revelation shines into dark places. Combined, the pillar represents a manifestation of God’s glory in the midst of his people.
What happened when the glory came? This is an important question for us; we need to know this so we can be fully equipped to understand what is happening with us in the immediate future, and to know how to lead in this time. Importantly, we see that it is a time of separation.
First, this speaks of holiness and complete separation to God. However, in God’s word, we also see this separation clarified in several categories:
Separation in Exodus
Pillar of Separation From the Past and the Enemy
(Exodus 14:18–20 NLT) When my glory is displayed through them, all Egypt will see my glory and know that I am the LORD!†{19} Then the angel of God, who had been leading the people of Israel, moved to the rear of the camp. The pillar of cloud also moved from the front and stood behind them. {20} The cloud settled between the Egyptian and Israelite camps. As darkness fell, the cloud turned to fire, lighting up the night. But the Egyptians and Israelites did not approach each other all night.
The glorious pillar stood as a separating force between God’s people and their Egyptian slave-masters. This wasn’t something God’s people had to do for themselves. Their role was to obey God in faith and obedience: apply the blood, eat the whole lamb, and move forward, etc. For us, as we put God first, seek first his kingdom over our own lives and churches; and as we focus on his glory through holy living, a lifestyle of praise, and unified corporate worship, he will manifest his glory. This is when the battle is the Lord’s. We will then only need to stand still and watch God at work through his glorious cloud and fire. He will bring us into complete separation from the enemy and our past enslavement to him.
Wind of Separation
(Exodus 14:21 NKJV) Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea into dry land, and the waters were divided.
The wind divided the waters. This allowed God’s people to cross the red sea, but the same wind enabled the utter destruction of the enemy’s feeble force. So the wind of separation permanently divided God’s people from the worldly system, slavery, and captivity.
Today, God has gone before you:
(Exodus 13:21 NLT) The LORD went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night.
God plans to have his glory in manifestation around you. This way, nothing can hinder your progress in him to your destined Promised Land. When it’s day and you can see clearly, the cloud will protect and guide you forward. But even when it’s a very dark season, where normally you cannot see your way forward, God’s glory will bring abundant revelation into your darkness and obscurity. This way, by his manifest presence, he will bring you through the whole process of separation from the world, its ruling spirits, and its mindsets, into your destined Promised Land.
Today, as in the Exodus account, first you have to be freed from the enemy’s evil world system and its tyrannical ruler. Jesus calls this being born again, and the Holy Spirit adds that it is becoming a new creation.
Once delivered, God’s angel and glory stands between you and the world and its ruler. So their direct control over you is removed, but their residual training and beliefs are still in you. Then, through a process of separation, you need to have the world’s thinking and mindsets removed from your mind and heart. This is a more gradual process, and it is something God expects us to do:
(Romans 12:2 NKJV) And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Today, I encourage you to persist in the process of renewing your mind with God’s truth until every last vestige of the world’s thinking, training, mindsets, and strongholds is driven from your heart and mind. This is our responsibility, and God expects us to take this very seriously. He has done his supernatural part for us in setting us free and shifting us out of the devil’s kingdom into his. But now, he needs our complete cooperation to see a full separation from its residual control and beliefs from our thinking and perceptions. Press into mind renewal today; have God’s light continually applied to remove all darkness and false perceptions; neutralise them today. Remember, God is with you, in you, and guiding you with his glory and light.