SOLI DEO GLORIA
Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The LORD.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”
Exodus 33:18-20
As I sit here on a Tuesday afternoon I find myself pondering the glory of God. All of His works, majesty, sacrifice, justice, love, all of these attributes. I went into the book of Exodus where Moses said “Please show me your glory” The Hebrew word here for glory is “kabod” “kaw-bode”.
It means glorious abundance, reverence.
This portion in chapter 33 of Exodus is talking about God’s presence. This is when God and Moses were having a conversation in the tent of meeting.
How many times in prayer have you asked this question? I believe even after everything God does for us through His sovereign authority and our lack of understanding we ask for signs. We want to see wonderful and marvelous things, but what does God say to Moses?
He says
“I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you.” Ex. 33:19
I think he is telling Moses “look around you bud”. His glory is everywhere, He is not going to let you see all of it because you can’t handle it. You’ll literally die.
Have you sat around with unanswered questions like that? Are you seeking God and wondering why you can’t “hear” him or “feel” him? This may be why. The answer for your question has already been answered. His Glory is all around you. Open your eyes and experience it. Once you start looking for it, you will see it. It’s unmistakable.
The topic of the 5 Solas comes to a close with this devotional. We’ve talked about Scripture Alone, Christ Alone, Faith Alone, and Grace Alone. These are all important doctrines to study and know. They are all important to your walk of sanctification, but this last one really is something different. Glory to God Alone. We talked about Moses asking to see God’s glory and we discussed God’s answer, let’s move through the Bible a little bit.
King David wrote Psalm 63 in the wilderness of Judah. He was on the run and he wrote this.
Psalm 63:1-4
O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.
I want to dive into verse 2 here for a minute. “Beholding your power and glory” the word beholding is translated from the Hebrew word Ra’a “raw-aw” meaning to look after, observe, discern, distinguish.
These words seem to point to a different definition than just to look upon God’s glory. Looking deeper I believe God’s Glory here is just the same as with Moses. God is letting Moses know what David is seeking. God’s glory is everywhere just look for it. David is crying out in praise and adoration.
“My lips will praise you, in your name i will lift up my hands” Ps. 63:3-4
David by the end is realizing God’s glory and he has nothing but praise.
David was a worshiper. Over and over in the scripture he breaks out into song and dance over the Lord's favor and goodness. Just as Moses after conversing with the Lord in Exodus 33 turns around and the first thing in Exodus 34 after getting instructions for the new tablets starts to worship. Ex. 34:8
These are just some of the Biblical references I chose. There are numerous ones in the Old and New testaments.
How does this relate to us today?
This all related because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8
Jesus was there in the Glory of the Father with Moses and David. “All things were created through him and for him.” Colossians 1:16
We have two excellent people to learn from here. Moses had just brought down the tablets for the people of Israel and they turned away from God’s glory after seeing the red sea parting and manna from heaven, Moses still wanted to see more glory. David murdered his friend, committed adultery, and numerous other sins David still said “earnestly I seek you” Ps. 63:1
These men like ourselves are full of sin. They were seeking. They were dealing with extraordinary circumstances that they couldn't fully understand, all they wanted was to see God’s Glory in it. I believe we’re the same. We are full of sin. We are seeking God. We want to see his glory in our lives.
Paul tells us in Romans 1:20 “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”
We need only to look to His word and His creation for His Glory.
Deuteronomy 11:7 “For your eyes have seen all the great work of the Lord that he did.
I will close us out with this. No matter what we're doing in this life, no matter what we may be going through, look for God’s Glory in it. Work with that purpose. Work as if your boss is the Lord, because He is, and everything you do is for His glory. Stop doing things for your glory to make you feel better, make your name look good, or to increase yourself with benefit. Do it all for the glory of God and for His Glory Alone.
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, Colossians 3:23
Soli Deo Gloria