He Is Winnowing Barley Tonight at the Threshing Floor

A person does not always see clearly even though he is in God’s care and God is working with him. Yet the good thing about it is that he has a good conscience in the Lord’s darkness, and that God is working with him, whereas a person who is in Satan’s darkness has a bad conscience.

Boaz winnowed his grain at night.

The priests (in the old covenant) could not continue to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house. Then Solomon said, “The Lord said He would dwell in the dark cloud.” 1 Kings 8:11-12.

The priests in the old covenant ministered only for the cleansing of the flesh. Sin in the flesh still had not been condemned, and the new and living way still had not been consecrated. The flesh was weak because of the sin that dwelled in it, and thus the people could not keep the law, which was holy, just, and good. Sin was constantly being manifested by the body, just like leprosy appears on the outside. Therefore we also read, “Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.” 1 Cor. 6:18.

The priests in the old covenant performed their ministry outside the body, but for the body. This was the ministry of the tabernacle. This is precisely the same ministry that the majority of priests and preachers perform in our days. Their message never goes beyond the forgiveness of sins. They do not mention the person’s walk by faith on the new and living way through the veil, that is, His flesh. On the contrary, they even consider this walk with God a dangerous walk, since the person would then leave their priestly ministry and go to Him who has become priest of a new covenant.

Since sin still had not been condemned in the body (in the house), the glory of the Lord had to manifest itself in Solomon’s temple in a cloud. The priests who were priests for the outward could not continue to minister. Their priestly ministry did not extend into the house—into the body. The same thing applies in our days. There is a cloud over the inner life for the priests and preachers who perform the ministry of the tabernacle, and they cannot continue with their ministry when there is talk of ministering for a new covenant. Of course they find expressions of the truth in the Scriptures that cover a good part of the inner ministry, but the enmity of the cross always causes them to be on the outside.

The soul has to be winnowed in the Lord’s darkness before he can minister in the temple, just like Boaz winnowed his grain at night.

Blessed is each soul that is beaten out of the ear and is thus liberated from all earthly bonds in order to be threshed so that his own, hard chaff will fall away. He becomes like food from God, like the living bread that came down from heaven to give life to the world. He can nourish many by his righteousness and by the word of righteousness.