I have always been
drawn to the passage from 33:18 to 34:8. Moses has already been in close contact with
God but that only creates a yearning for more.
God allows Moses to
see His Goodness, obscuring His Face. There are different ways to interpret
this restriction. I think the point is that humans can not be exposed to the full Glory of
God in this world.
Think back to the
burning bush, where God gives His Name to Moses through the veil of an
apparition. Even there Moses had to take his sandals off because he was on holy ground. Yet there on the mountain, God manifests Himself and speaks His Name:
I AM,
I AM strong, merciful, and gracious,
Longsuffering,
Abundant in Mercy and Truth,
Keeping mercy for thousands,
Letting go of iniquity and rebellion and sin,
By no means will I absolve the guilty,
Visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons and upon the sons' sons,
Unto the third and the fourth generation
- Exodus 34:6-7
To be in the
Presence of the Almighty and hear His Name proclaimed would literally be
awesome!
Moses reacts the
only way possible, he falls down and worships.
Tomorrow's Bible In a Year Passage: Exodus 36 - 38
5 comments:
God is truly awesome, I think I underestimate how awesome He is many times. We use the term "awesome" to describe many menial things, from a great athletic play to a good movie we just saw. Maybe we use that word too loosely? Maybe we don't understand or recognize how far above us God is? Or maybe we don't take the time to think about this, how awesome God is, and then show Him the respect and honour He deserves? If I think about it for even a few seconds, I immediately feel a need to be humble and obedient to Him.
"The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of the LORD your God." - Exodus 34:26a
A good reminder for me to continually give the best of my offering to God. The best of my attitude, my time, my ability, my finances, my thoughts, my words, my everything.
Along with what you said, Cam, I like how the Bible makes special mention of the radiant face of Moses after speaking with God in verses 29-35 (this paragraph is even worthy of its own heading).
Moses' face is so radiant the the Israelites were afraid to go near him! Can you imagine being in his presence in a way that his glory shone through you? He is truly an awesome God!
The reaction of every single Biblical character who sees even a glimpse of God is one of the main reasons I'm hesitant to believe the so called "heaven tourism" books. None of those books have any hint of the absolute awe and, quite frankly, fear you would feel in the presence of a holy God.
11 And the LORD would speak unto Moses face to face, as anyone would speak unto their friend.
Do we hear when God is speaking today? Or are we just too busy talking?
Post a Comment