God Reveals Himself
2007-09-27

I missed a day on Wednesday. This entry is being written on Thursday, which was supposed to be my day of reflection over what I have read/heard over the past 6 days. This devotional is set up that way. You read for 6 days, then on day 7, you reflect. But since I missed a day, I'll have to read and reflect all at the same time, I guess.

Read

Exodus 33:21-34:7

Read slowly. For a broader picture, read the expanded passage, which is 33:12-34:10
This passage occurs right after Moses had asked to see God's glory.

Think

During a second reading of the passage, I am instructed to "explore nooks and crannies of God's communication with Moses." I like the way he worded that.

Moses was not allowed to see God's face. Only his back. God hid Moses in the "cleft of the rock," and covered Moses with his hand. This passage is where the old hymn, "He Hideth My Soul" comes from.

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry thirsty land
He hideth my life in the depths of his love
And covers me there with his hand.

Beautiful words.

Moses had to cut and engrave the new tablets. He broke them, he had to fix them. And this was required before God showed Moses his glory. Also, no person or animal could even be close to the mountain when Moses went up to meet with God.

As God passed in by Moses, he called out his name. He described himself as being a God of mercy and grace and endlessly patient. However, he does not overlook sin. And in this Old Testament passage, he declares that a person's sin will be visited all the way down to the third and fourth generations of his children. I would think that this would cause a man to think seriously about his actions.

During yet a third reading of the passage, I am to choose a word or phrase from the passage that especially impresses me. Then I am to speak that word or phrase out loud a few times, allowing it to interact with my thoughts, feelings, and desires.

The phrase I chose is this (remember, I'm reading from The Message: "So much love--so deeply true."

This is God's description of himself. "So much love--so deeply true." It is not possible for God to be untrue. He is true to a farther depth than we could ever imagine. And his capacity for love is neverending. It is eternal.

"So much love--so deeply true."

Pray

I am to deeply ponder the the quality of God that the above phrase portrays.

As I ponder the love of God, I am reminded of another hymn that I truly love. Another old hymn, called "The Love of God," has a verse that goes like this:

Could we with ink the ocean fill
And were the skies of parchment made
Were every stalk on earth a quill
And every man a scribe by trade
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky.

That verse is huge. The very thought...if the ocean were completely full of ink, there still wouldn't be enough ink to write the fullness of God's love. That's how infinite his love is.

Live

I'm asked to envision the ways God is present to me right now. What posture is he assuming? What expression is on his face? What tone does his voice hold?

I envision my Father sitting down, embracing me in his lap. I have crawled up in my Daddy's lap and he is simply holding me. The expression on his face echoes the phrase, "so much love." This, in spite of my sin. This, in spite of the unfairness with which I treat those around me at times. Because I am his child, and he simply loves me. The effect of this love is that my sin fades away...by that I mean its hold on me begins to disappear. I begin to display that love to others around me, because it overflows from within me. In fact, I begin to lose myself in him, my identity being absorbed into his as I display his characteristics.

"So much love...so deeply true."

Drink deep, friends.



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