Monday Meditation
March 23, 2015
From the desk of Dr. A.J. Higgins
Shew Me Thy Glory
“I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory.”
Exodus 33:18-23
Imagine the courage of a man on earth speaking to God in this manner! Show me Thy glory! Here was the boldness of faith, a boldness and courage resulting from intimacy and fellowship with God.
Moses desired to see the glory of God. But God informed him that no one could see His glory and live. But God did proclaim the “name of the Lord” to him. In a secure and safe place, in the cleft of the rock, Moses was able to learn something of the glory of God. That glory was revealed in the attributes which God proclaimed to him that day. “The Lord God merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty …”
God’s glory was revealed in a name. All that God is is the sum total of every excellency and moral beauty. This is, however, primarily the revelation of all God is in His government with men. The Lord Jesus came and revealed the Name of God to us (John 17:6). But for us it is a name of indescribable grace. He has not relinquished any aspect revealed to Moses; nor has He acquired new attributes for us. But He has chosen to reveal Himself in His fullness to us of this age. We know not only the God of truth, but the God of grace. It has been made known by the coming of the One Who was full of grace and truth (John 1:14).
Consider:
- In John 17, the Lord Jesus asked the Father to glorify Him with a view to continuing to glorify the Father in resurrection. Is one of His goals to continue to reveal the Father’s Name to us even now?
- What was the response of Moses to learning something of the glory of God (Ex 34:8)? What should our response be?
- But Moses then employed what he had just learned of God as a basis for prayer and intercession (vv 8, 9). What are some of the reasons that God reveals Himself to us? Is one purpose to enable us to pray more intelligently? Look at the different words used in 1Timothy 2:1 and think about what you must know about God to be able to do each: prayer, intercession, supplication, giving of thanks.
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