Tag Archive | Gods Presence

Exodus 33 – Show me your Glory…

Feb18

Good evening y’all. Happy Mid Week 🙂 Today we are looking at Exodus 33.

One thing I realized as I was reading this chapter is that, we can get close to God as much as we want. He has given an open invitation. The choice is ours. When we seek Him in all sincerity of heart, humility and honesty, we will surely find Him

Moses approached God in humility and sincerity of heart. I particularly love his statement in verse 13 where he said, ‘… if you are pleased with me teach me your ways…’

“If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”(Exodus 33:13 NIV)

Moses wanted more of God. He wasn’t content with what he had seen and experienced of God. He wanted to know more. He was sincere in his pursuit of God. How hungry are we for God? Are we content with the little we’ve seen of God or do we desire to know him on a face to face level like Abraham, Moses and Jacob did? One thing I know is God won’t hide Himself from us if we truly desire to know Him more. He will come and reveal himself to us.

Jeremiah 29: 13 says “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart”(NIV)

Deuteronomy 4:29 says “but if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul “(NIV)

Moses wasn’t willing to go if God wasn’t going to be with him. It was God or nothing at all. He wanted God’s presence. He understood that as long as they had God’s presence with them, everything will be fine. He wanted to know Gods plan. His desire was to please God. He wasn’t willing to do anything or take any step outside of God’s will. He wasn’t content with leading the people in his own knowledge, rather he depended on God.

“Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”(Exodus 33: 15-16 NIV)

Are we moving without God? We need His presence to guide and direct us in all we do. That’s why the book of Proverbs says we should trust God and not lean on our understanding as He knows everything. He knows the beginning from the end. He already knows what lies ahead of us. I once heard someone say “our future is God’s past”.

“With all your heart
you must trust the Lord
    and not your own judgment.
Always let him lead you,
    and he will clear the road
    for you to follow”.                                
            (Proverbs 3:5-6 CEV)

Moses asked to see God in all of His glory and God answered him.

image

“Then Moses said, “I pray that you will let me see you in all of your glory.” The Lord answered: All right. I am the Lord, and I show mercy and kindness to anyone I choose. I will let you see my glory and hear my holy name, but I won’t let you see my face, because anyone who sees my face will die.There is a rock not far from me. Stand beside it, and before I pass by in all of my shining glory, I will put you in a large crack in the rock. I will cover your eyes with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take my hand away, and you will see my back. You will not see my face”.(Exodus 33:18 -23 CEV)

Isn’t it amazing the kind of conversation God and Moses had? I am tempted to say I’m jealous of their relationship. But the truth is, are we willing to pay the price to get that close to God? Are we ready to give up all the things that are not pleasing to Him in order to truly see and encounter Him or are we content with what we think we know of Him?

Moses’ goal was to seek God and do his bidding. He really wanted to be pleasing to God. We should also ensure that pleasing and doing God’s bidding is our ultimate desire: it should be the reason for which we are living

I pray we all desire to know and experience God on a personal level like Moses did. Amen

Thanks for joining today.

Have a blessed evening 🙂

***With God all things are possible***

Exodus 24 – Free access to the Throne Room

Feb5
Good Afternoon y’all. Today we are looking at Exodus 24.
This chapter is pretty awesome as we see Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and some of the elders of Israel see God and even dine with Him! It doesn’t get any better than this: dining with the Almighty God himself 🙂
I was particularly struck by verse 1 and 2 where God asked them to come up the mountain and meet with Him.
“Then the Lord instructed Moses: “Come up here to me, and bring along Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of Israel’s elders. All of you must worship from a distance. Only Moses is allowed to come near to the Lord. The others must not come near, and none of the other people are allowed to climb up the mountain with him.” (Exo 24: 1-2 NLT)
It’s interesting that only Moses was allowed to get close to God. All the other prophets and elders could only worship God from a distance. Thank God for the sacrifice that Jesus paid on the cross of Calvary, we can now come boldly into God’s Presence.
throne room
“Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence”. (Eph 3:12 NLT)
“So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most”.(Heb 4:14-16 NLT)
The veil has been torn apart. We no longer have to worship from a distance. (Hallelujah !!!!)
“And so, dear brothers, now we may walk right into the very Holy of Holies, where God is, because of the blood of Jesus. This is the fresh, new, life-giving way that Christ has opened up for us by tearing the curtain—his human body—to let us into the holy presence of God”.(Heb 10:19-20 TLB)
God is here and living in us. We have full 24/7 access to him. We don’t need to go via a priest or prophet, we can approach God ourselves, through His Son Jesus. How awesome is this? The holy and magnificent God has made a way for us to enter freely and lounge in His presence…that’s absolutely mind blowing!!! Yet, some of us don’t take advantage of the free invite. We don’t like spending time with God. We would rather someone else do it on our behalf.
God is interested in having a personal relationship with us. He has extended the free invite to us, but it’s now up to us to accept the invite.
In Revelations 3:20 God says: “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends”.(NLT)
Today, let’s take advantage of Gods invite and spend time in HIS Presence.
“You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore”.(Psalms 16:11 NKJV)
Prayer: 
Dear Lord we thank you for Today. We thank you for sending Jesus to die for us. Thank you that we can now come boldly into Your presence. We ask, Lord, that we may dwell in Your presence and gaze upon Your beauty all the days of our lives. Thank You, dear Lord. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.
Thanks for joining today.
Have a wonderful day 🙂