“Oh, Let Me Behold Your Presence!”

• 

At very special times, the reading of the Holy Scriptures will illuminate off of its pages, into the heart of the student. This weekend’s revisits of Moses’ intercessions to God on behalf of Israel in Exodus 30:11-34:35, was one of these unique moments when the Word of God moved me very deeply.

My personal prayer and spiritual intent are that the following observations of this study will bless your soul while disclosing some very useful and practical spiritual principles and truths about ways in which God throughout the ages, choose to reveal Himself to humanity.

May you be blessed in this study in a manner that your life will be strengthened as God’s Spirit draws you closer to His presence.

Grace and Peace

Being Singled Out by God

Moses, once he committed to his divine calling by God devoted his life to three things, The Torah, the people of God, and the pursuit of justice. For all eternity, his name is permanently attached to the “Law of Moses, leader of the Nation of Israel from Egypt to the promised land, and the appointment of judges to assist in ruling the people of God.

He, unlike any other biblical figure, shared a very special face-to-face communication with God. By face to face, the implication is that their relationship was very personal, direct in that there was never any mediation through dreams or visions like other prophets. The messages that he received from God were always plain and straightforward, without any cryptic or parabolic utterances.

In the Exodus 33:12-23 portion of Scripture, Moses inquires to God for specific instructions to proceed to the promised land without the Tent of Meeting. The intimacy between God and Moses happened in two places, Mount Siani and the Tent of Meeting outside of the camp. [v.7]

For the casual reader, this Tent of Meeting could easily be mistaken for the Tabernacle which is not set up until Exodus 40. Why this observation is very important is the basis of Moses’ powerful inquiry to God for the blessed assurance from God that He will be the one leading him with the responsibility of the people.

For Moses, the visible presence of the Tent of Meeting was the blessed assurance of God’s immediate presence for Him and the people of God. Moses would scale Mount Sinai eight times, twice he would spend 40 days and nights in the presence of God [both times, receiving the Commandments of God.]

During the seventh ascent, Exodus 32:34 while interceding on behalf of Israel and the golden calf incident, Moses shows great love and mercy that anticipates the love and mercy of Jesus Christ thousands of years in the future, Moses offers his own life in exchange for the life of Israel.

He said to the Lord, “See You say to me, Lead these people forward, but You have not made known to me, Whom You will send with me!”

The Word stated that Moses was singled out of God who knew him by name. Moses had gained God’s favor. What a blessing! What a responsibility and powerful indicator of the very unique, close, and exclusive bond they had.

During the eight ascent, after receiving the second set of Commandments, Exodus 34:1-2,  the Lord reveals Himself to Moses. Moses asked God to disclose information about His essential being and His attributes on the journey and His actions in dealing with His people and our governance in His world.

“Oh, let me behold Your Presence! And He answered, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim before you the name Lord, and the grace that I grant and the compassion that I show.”

There is a Hebrew word, derekh that communicates both “the right path through the wilderness and God’s way of acting, i.e.., His actual nature.

God’s Self-Disclosure

His Name

Moses once again was reminded of God’s Holy Name. YHVH is the personal name of God occurring 6,800 times in the Tanakh. When God commissioned Moses to be Israel’s liberator from the bondage of Pharaoh’s Egypt, he asked for God’s Name to validate his God-given rule.

God answered then [and again in our chosen passage Exodus 34:5], (“ehyeh-asher-ehyeh”), “I Am That I Am.” YHVH is the source of all being and has been inherent in Himself (He is a necessary Being, everything else is contingent beings that derive its existence from Him.

God’s personal Name also communicates the utter transcendence of God. In Himself, God is beyond all “predications” or attributes of our human language. He is the source and foundation of all possibility or utterance and thus is beyond all definite descriptions. [YHVH source: Hebrew For Christians]

Compassionate and Gracious

God revealed Himself to Moses as having a temper or disposition to pity, sympathetic and merciful. He likewise disclosed that He was gracious, in that He was abounding in grace and mercy. This is noted by His endless love, and His willingness to show kindness and favor.

Faithfulness

Moses was reminded of God’s infinite attribute, faithfulness. This attribute communicates that only God can make perfect both the confidence of those who believe His Word and enable them to rely on His eternal promises. On the other extreme, those who doubt His Word, or willfully defy His warnings will experience despair throughout their existence.

Kindness [hesed v’ emet]

Hesed from God involves His acts of beneficence and obligation that flows from the established covenant-binding relationship between His people and Himself.

Emet expresses ‘truth’ which encompasses the notion of God’s reliability, durability, and faithfulness. When used together, the two words express God’s absolute and eternal dependability in dispensing His benefactions to His children.

During my study of Moses’ multiple encounters with God at Mt. Sinai, it was not only powerful but monumental in the history of the world. God was creating for Himself a new nation with new laws and a new way of life for those who were obedient to the covenant. The Lord showed Himself to be a God who desires to communicate Himself and to spiritually establish a very special covenantal relationship with His people.

In giving the Law, God revealed His holiness, clearly defined sin (Romans 7:7), and provided a guardian to eventually bring us to Christ (Galatians 3:24–25). The mediation of Moses on Sinai, each time, is a wonderful picture of the intercession of Christ on behalf of sinners (Romans 8:34).

The Nearness of God in the Incarnation of Christ. 

There were 400 years of silence between the last Old Testament book and the coming of Christ.  The one and only God, whose form could not be fully seen by men, now appears in human flesh, in the person of His Son, Jesus: Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory – the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.  John 1:14-18

Heaven is the place where we will experience the nearness of God to the full.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had ceased to exist, and the sea existed no more. And I saw the holy city – the new Jerusalem – descending out of heaven from God, made ready like a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “ Look! The residence of God is among human beings. He will live among them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them. Rev. 21:1-3

Heaven is the place of God’s presence that men have desired throughout the ages.

I have asked the Lord for one thing – this is what I desire!
I want to live in the Lord’s house all the days of my life,
so I can gaze at the splendor of the Lord and contemplate in His temple.
He will surely shelter me in the day of danger; He will hide me in His home;
He will place me on an inaccessible rocky summit.
Now I will triumph over my enemies who surround me!
I will offer sacrifices in His dwelling place and shout for joy!
I will sing praises to the Lord! Psalms 27:4-6

Closing Sentiments

It is my heartfelt desire that each reader of this blog post continues to be drawn to a closer encounter with God. For He alone is loving, just, and merciful in the lives of His people of all nations for all eternity.

I pray that He continues to unfold His complete plan of redemption to every human being. Beholding God’s presence is made possible in Christ Jesus, His Holy Spirit, and the Living Word of God.

Our future eternal exodus is in the eternal Kingdom of Heaven where each living-soul will dwell in the House of God forever and forever! Amen.

• 

Research and Study material for this blog post: Commentary on The Torah, Richard Elliott Friedman; Etz Hayim Torah and Commentary, parasha Ki Tissa Exodus 30:11-34:35. Hebrew for Christians, New American Standard Bible, Got Questions, How many times did Moses go to the mountain?