For the first time in my life, I believe with all my heart and soul that God is good.
Not the fleeting “God is so good” when a prayer is answered. Nor the reluctant “God I choose to believe you are good” when I face disappointment. Not the “remember that God is good” when trying to encourage a friend.
A deep, anchored, weighted belief that God is good.
In the incredible exchange in Exodus titled “Moses’ Intercession”, Moses was speaking to God on behalf of the Israelites. They had angered God because they had created a golden idol and worshipped that instead of the God who had delivered them out of slavery in Egypt.
As a result, God had said “go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go up among you, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people” (Exodus 33:3 ESV).
Like Moses, we can be bold and say “please show me your glory”.
But the Israelites knew that without God’s presence, they would be lost like sheep without a shepherd. So Moses interceded on behalf of the people.
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.”
And the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.” (Exodus 33:18-23 ESV)
Moses wanted to see God, but God’s holiness meant that no sin could be in His presence. So God made a way for Moses to see Him without dying.
The repeated refrain of “I will” suggested that God went out of the way to ensure that Moses caught a glimpse of His glory, which changed him and caused him to glow (Exodus 34:29).
Wow. God showed His mercy and love for Moses. And He had such a desire to be known by Moses.
Unlike Moses, we can see God face to face, in the person of Jesus.
This same mercy is extended to us in Christ today.
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved — and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:4-9 ESV)
Because of His love for us and His desire to be known by us, He made a way for us to come into His presence. And unlike Moses, we do not have to merely look on the back of God.
We can see Him face to face, in the person of Jesus.
What mercy and what goodness! I can’t begin to describe the joy that I experienced when the Spirit revealed this to me. It’s nothing new, and not a concept that’s unfamiliar. But seeing God’s mercy and grace in His very character changed everything.
He did not bear with us until His salvation plan was fulfilled in Jesus. From the very beginning, He had already extended His mercy to the Israelites to be His people. But the Israelites turned from God and they needed someone to stand in the gap for them to approach God.
Moses interceded for them and experienced this life-changing encounter of God’s glory.
Now we have the perfect intercessor, Jesus, standing in the gap between us and God so that we can encounter His glory and know Him.
“Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.” (Romans 8:34 ESV)
Not some Facebook acquaintance level “know”. Or some patronising 20 minutes spent speed-reading the Bible-in-a-year plan for the day. Or listening to a 45-minute sermon on Him.
Face to face, glorious, life-changing revelation of God’s goodness.
Because of Christ interceding for us, we can be bold like Moses and say “please show me your glory”.
Will you pray that today? Will you ask God to show you His glorious goodness? That same weighted anchored revelation of who He is. When we make this our prayer every day, our lives will begin to shine like Moses did after this encounter.
Wow. Lord, you are so good. So so incredibly merciful and gracious toward us. The world laughs at us Lord, but we know and hold on to the reality of Your goodness because suffering and sin do not change the fact that You are good. Help us see your goodness. Help us know it deeply. Help us desire to see Your glory!
This article was first published on Delphne’s blog and is republished with permission.
