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HOUSMAIL HM057
6 May 2000 SHOW ME THY GLORY (Exodus 33) When
Moses said to God, "Show me thy glory", God's
answer was "I will make all my goodness to pass before you, and will proclaim
before you my name, The LORD". (Exodus 33:18-19) Down
through the centuries, men who weren't there to see what Moses saw, have continued
to engage in theological warfare about what they insist THEY would
have seen if THEY had been there! For
those who really must try to resolve that question, the best Biblical answer I
can offer, is what Moses did NOT see! (John 1:18 and 1 John 4:12.) However,
if that is all we ever resolve about the passage in Exodus, we will have missed
the mark by a "million miles"! The really important thing is NOT
what Moses SAW, but what Moses HEARD! Of course,
we weren't there either when God spoke the words to Moses that revealed his GLORY.
But we can know what Moses HEARD! That is very plainly written in Exodus 34:5-7. "Name"
in Hebrew is "shem", which also means "character".
(Moral Likeness) In answer
to Moses, God revealed His "GLORY" - not as anything related
to His physical form - but as the MORAL LIKENESS associated with the name YHWH. This
"GLORY of God" revealed to Moses, is the MORAL LIKENESS
which was an essential element of God's creation plan for mankind, when He made
Adam. The
point over which many seem to stumble, is that while it is possible to create
an IMAGE from the dust of the earth, it is NOT possible at all to
create men with both a FREE WILL and the MORAL LIKENESS of God, in the same way!
That is something which, even for Jesus, could only be learned through OBEDIENCE. (Hebrews 5:8) Adam
and Eve sinned and fell short of this GLORY, (Romans 3:23) when they succumbed to
the serpents temptation "your eyes will be opened, and you will be LIKE GOD!" (Genesis 3:5 RSV) The
Serpent's lie was that they could STEAL a "short cut" to GOD’S
LIKENESS without OBEDIENCE! (This same lie is still being told, by
the way, by the modern "prophets" of the false gospel of "cheap
grace" - and many are still deceived by it!) Paul
takes up this theme: "We all, with unveiled face, beholding the GLORY of the
Lord, are being changed into his LIKENESS from one degree of GLORY
to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18) and "Put on the NEW NATURE, created after the LIKENESS
of God in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:24) Paul
says that we have this treasure (the Gospel of the GLORY of Christ) in earthen
vessels. (created from the dust of the earth?) We have it from "The God .....
who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the GLORY
of God in the face of Christ." (2 Corinthians 4:6) It is
God's purpose to fill this with earth the same GLORY which He revealed to Moses.
(Numbers 14:21) If we
will listen, we will hear the same things which reveal
the name of God, from the lips of Jesus. (John
17:26) The
Good News preached throughout the Bible, is that God will do this by populating
the earth with a PEOPLE who reflect that glory, in the same way that Jesus
does. HOW THAT WILL BE ACHIEVED, IS THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD! Allon |