Exodus 33:18 – “And Moses said, ‘Show me Your Glory.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word of God, I saw the heart of the true shepherd. That heart is utterly self-sacrificing and unrelenting in commitment to the sheep.

In Exodus 32:32, after Aaron’s failure, Moses comes before God interceding for the people.   He was so committed to their welfare and survival that he put himself on the line trying to save them from judgment.  If this had been an attempted coercion, God would have rejected it. It was a genuine expression of the heart, and God honored it.

This led to the amazing request of Moses. Remember, he had seen the burning bush, the miracles in Egypt, and the miracles in the wilderness. He had witnessed the incredible power of God.   Now, in Exodus 33:18, he asked, “Show me Your glory.”  This is the pronoun (seautou) = yourself.  He asked for God to reveal Himself in His fullness!  He asked for a greater revelation of God’s person, nature, and character. Is that our craving?

God said, “I will make My goodness pass before your face.” Goodness, here is a word that refers to appearance. God is committing to honoring Moses’ request.  In verse 23, God says, “You will see My back.” This could mean “aftereffects” of God’s presence. It assuredly indicates the incredible brilliance of the presence and its effect. It brought Moses to another level in his spiritual development.

Romans 11-16 are powerful explanations of our relationship and personal responsibility spiritually.   Renewed minds enable us to see, and in seeing, we are able to do.  We lay aside the old and put on Jesus (the new) in our transformed state. We use our strength to strengthen the weak. We resist judgment (Romans 15:7) and accept others Just As Jesus has accepted us.

How that changes everything!  If we view others with the mind of Jesus, it becomes impossible not to love them and desire to help them. If I keep in mind God’s mercy to me, I find it impossible not to be merciful.

If we view life through the lens of God’s mercy and grace, life shifts from us, our needs, wants, desires, or opinions to the Kingdom of God. Our purpose changes, and the natural result is transformation! We (our flesh and carnal desires) die!  We nail it to the Cross.  Out of that experience, we become real manifestations and representations of Jesus.

LORD, show us Your Glory! Help us to SEE You, because as we see You, we are irrevocably transformed! I live, but not I; Christ lives in and through me!