Following Instructions
by Jilly Lyon-Taylor
Reading this verse recently, about the glory of the Lord filling the tabernacle, made me long to experience the presence of God in such an overwhelming way. How wonderful it would be to have His glory filling our places of worship so intensely! What would we need to do to enable that to happen?
As I re-read the book of Exodus, it struck me that these verses about the glory of the LORD filling the tabernacle came in the last chapter, following several chapters recording the precise instructions that God gave to Moses for its construction. God had raised up Bezalel and others, filling them with His Spirit, giving them the creative and artistic ability to design and carry out the work according to His blueprint. Then Exodus 39:42-43 tells us: ‘The Israelites had done all the work just as the LORD had commanded Moses. Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the LORD had commanded.’ Following that, I counted eight times in Chapter 40 when it says that things were done: ‘… as the LORD commanded.’ Is that the key?
Are we conducting our lives, and ordering our worship, just as the Lord commands? Or do we have a tendency to do things our way? Are there things that God has told us to do (or not to do), that we have not yet obeyed? Does our corporate worship follow a pattern set by man, or is it led by the Holy Spirit? Even the slightest deviation from God’s instructions for the tent of meeting might have meant that His glory was not present.
If we are longing for a greater manifestation of the Lord’s presence in our lives and in our fellowships, perhaps we should ask ourselves if we are following all the instructions He has given us, or if we are doing things our way. As we submit our lives to Him, sacrificing our own fleshly desires and ways, our obedience becomes an act of worship (Romans 12:1), which may enable His presence to be manifest in a deeper way.
Prayer: Lord, I am sorry for the times when I have not followed Your instructions for my life precisely. I want to do everything just as you command. Please help me to do this so that Your presence may be manifest in my life in a deeper way. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Jilly Lyon-Taylor is part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Pierrepont. She worked in publishing and then with children in Hong Kong before concentrating on being a full-time mother and serving in the local church. Her desire to see people healed led her to the Luke Nine Eleven Training Scheme(NETS) at Pierrepont, and now she teaches and ministers there.
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