The pillar of fire that guided Israel through the wilderness wasn't just about navigation—it was about God's unwavering presence with His people. Today we'll explore what it means that God never leaves us alone in the darkness.
Exodus 13:21-22 "The Lord was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people."
Did you catch that last phrase? "He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night." Not for a single moment during those 40 years of wilderness wandering was Israel left without a visible reminder of God's presence. When they woke up—there it was. When they went to sleep—there it was. Morning, noon, and night—there it was.
This is what God wanted His people to understand above all else: I am with you. We're so often tempted to think that God is far away. That He's distant, detached, unconcerned with the mundane details of our wandering. But the pillar of fire screams the opposite truth.
Think about what the Feast of Tabernacles was commemorating. Every year, for seven days, the people would build temporary shelters and live in them. Why? So their children would ask, "Dad, why are we doing this?" And the father would be compelled to answer: "When our ancestors were delivered out of Egypt, God led them in the wilderness for 40 years. We are to remember and recall everything God did for us during our wilderness wanderings."
At the climax of this feast—with hundreds of thousands gathered, with massive 75-foot-high lampstands blazing, with the young Levitical priests climbing ladders to throw torches into bowls of oil, with the whole city ablaze with light—Jesus cries out: "I AM the light of the world!"
He's saying, "Everything that pillar of fire represented—that's Me. God's presence? I'm Emmanuel, God with us. You're not alone in your darkness. I'm here."
The name of the Savior we remember at Christmas is found in Isaiah 7:14—Emmanuel, which means "God with us." That's the truth God had promised His people from the beginning. No matter where you wander, no matter the darkness that surrounds you, I am with you.
Why is this so important? Because there is no peace apart from God's presence. You can have all the success, all the relationships, all the achievements the world offers, and still be utterly devoid of peace. But when you have the presence of God—when you know that the Creator of the universe is with you—everything changes.
Is your soul in the darkness right now? Are you going through a season where you feel lost, confused, overwhelmed? God has not abandoned you. He has not left you to wander alone. Jesus Christ is the light of the world, and if you follow Him, you have the promise of His presence—not just in the good times, but especially in the dark valleys.
The pillar never went out. It never dimmed. It never flickered. And Jesus says in Matthew 28:20, "I am with you always, even to the end of the age." That's not a maybe. That's not a sometimes. That's always.
1. In what areas of your life do you struggle to believe God is truly present with you?
2. How would your daily decisions change if you lived with constant awareness of God's presence?
3. What "wilderness wanderings" in your past can you look back on and see God's faithfulness?
Stay dialed in.
