Today's Scripture
In the Presence of God- Exodus 24:9-18
Today’s Reading Schedule: exodus 22-24(CEB)- Click to read
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel went up, 10 and they saw Israel’s God. Under God’s feet there was what looked like a floor of lapis-lazuli tiles, dazzlingly pure like the sky. 11 God didn’t harm the Israelite leaders, though they looked at God, and they ate and drank.
12 The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there. I’ll give you the stone tablets with the instructions and the commandments that I’ve written in order to teach them.”
13 So Moses and his assistant Joshua got up, and Moses went up God’s mountain. 14 Moses had said to the elders, “Wait for us here until we come back to you. Aaron and Hur will be here with you. Whoever has a legal dispute may go to them.”
15 Then Moses went up the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 16 The Lord’s glorious presence settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from the cloud. 17 To the Israelites, the Lord’s glorious presence looked like a blazing fire on top of the mountain.18 Moses entered the cloud and went up the mountain. Moses stayed on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.
RJ's Devotion
What Does the passage Mean to Me/US?
Somehow we think that the encounter happened for a short time.
We see how God calls Moses and the elders, into the presence of God, and they are able to see the presence of God touching the earth. What a marvelous scene of incarnation.
The presence of God, projected through the pillars of clouds overwhelmed all who were watching.
I noticed how the people, who were surrounded by that glory were there for such a long time.
It says, “The Cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day, he called out of the Cloud to Moses” (v. 16 The Message).
Meaning that Moses was there in the presence of God for six days, without hearing what God had to say.
Have you imagined what it would be like to be alone in the presence of God for six full days?
Even though God chose not to say a word, I believe the six days were full of awe that we cannot imagine.
That is something, for us who are visually stimulated have a hard time to understand. Things on earth have a hard time to capture our full attention. Compared to the things that can easily fade away, God’s presence brings eternal awe and everlasting fulfillment.
We desire to touch and see that presence when we enter the kingdom, but we also believe we have a way to taste that presence on earth. That is the reason we practice God’s presence, every day.
Prayer
Lord, while we are distracted in our day-to-day lives, we forget the joy and awe we experience when we come into your presence. Help us desire your presence in our lives. Help us to taste the presence today. May it give us the everlasting joy you promised. In Christ Name, we pray, AMEN
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