"Show me Your glory!" says Moses. Of course God doesn't show him right away. It's not so simple. If Moses truly beholds the full form of God, he'll vaporize. But there is a way and there is a place for Moses to be where he can behold God's glory: in the cleft of the rock.
How big was that space in the rock where Moses waited for God's glory to pass by? Indulge me to suggest that the cleft was small ... Just enough space for Moses. A cleft that God had nicely carved over the centuries through erosion and sand storms, preparing it for Moses to someday sit and wait for the encounter he'd never forget.
In this place he saw God closer than all the other encounters. The smoke, the burning bush, the pillar of cloud and fire, these were only emanations. Only within the rock did Moses behold the substance of God in all His glory. In this place Moses' face shone with its greatest brilliance; the glow would henceforth fade.
This was the highlight of Moses' life. The negotiation to spare the lives of the idol worshipping Israelites down the mountain had just occurred before this, and Moses was successful. But even persuading the Almighty was not the height of Moses' career. In light of this encounter, leading Israel out of Egypt was immaterial.
God's glory is the chief end of man. To glorify Him and enjoy Him forever. That is the point.
But where is the cleft of the rock for me? My space where I will find and experience God in His fullest?
How big was that space in the rock where Moses waited for God's glory to pass by? Indulge me to suggest that the cleft was small ... Just enough space for Moses. A cleft that God had nicely carved over the centuries through erosion and sand storms, preparing it for Moses to someday sit and wait for the encounter he'd never forget.
In this place he saw God closer than all the other encounters. The smoke, the burning bush, the pillar of cloud and fire, these were only emanations. Only within the rock did Moses behold the substance of God in all His glory. In this place Moses' face shone with its greatest brilliance; the glow would henceforth fade.
This was the highlight of Moses' life. The negotiation to spare the lives of the idol worshipping Israelites down the mountain had just occurred before this, and Moses was successful. But even persuading the Almighty was not the height of Moses' career. In light of this encounter, leading Israel out of Egypt was immaterial.
God's glory is the chief end of man. To glorify Him and enjoy Him forever. That is the point.
But where is the cleft of the rock for me? My space where I will find and experience God in His fullest?
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