“God, Show us Your Glory”
July 13, 2002
New Community Church
Intro:
A true story - a woman entered a Haagen-Dazs store on the Kansas City Plaza for an ice-cream cone. After making her selection, she turned and found herself face to face with Paul Newman. He was in town filming the movie Mr. and Mrs. Bridge. Newman’s blue eyes caused her knees to buckle. She managed to pay for her cone, then left the shop, heart pounding. When she gained her composure, she realized she didn’t have her cone. She started back to the store to get it and met Newman at the door. "Are you looking for your ice-cream cone?" he asked. She nodded, unable to speak. "You put it in your purse with your change." When was the last time the presence of God quickened your pulse?
Today I want to talk about something I never heard much about in church but is found a whole lot in Scripture. That is God’s glory. Turn with me to Exodus 33:12-23 and let’s read it together.
I want to key in on the verse we are going to talk most about tonight and that is verse 18: “Now, show me your glory.”
We have started a series of messages on different attributes and characteristics of God. Over and over again you see in scripture the word “glory.” What is glory, better yet, what does it mean that God is glory?
The Hebrew word for glory in the Old Testament is “kabod”, meaning weight. It suggests something which radiates from the one who has it, leaving an impression behind. The New Testament word is “doxa”. “This word can be defined as beauty. Glory is not easy to define. How do you define beauty? God’s glory is the beauty of his manifold perfections. It can refer to the bright and awesome radiance that breaks forth in visible manifestations or it can refer to the infinite moral excellence of his character. In either case it signifies a reality of infinite greatness and worth.” (John Piper, Desiring God)
According to the Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible dictionary, glory is used in 3 senses.
#1). God’s moral beauty and perfection of character
#2). God’s moral beauty and perfection as a visible presence
In scripture this was displayed in the Old Testament when the fire would lead the Israelites as well as the cloud. Since the close of the O.T., the glory of God has been shown mainly in Christ and in the members of his church. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (More about this later)
#3). Praise. God’s glory may mean the honor and audible praise that his creatures give to him. Psalm 115:1
This “glory” is no insignificant thing to the Lord. Hear what he says about his glory in Isaiah 42:8, “I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.” In 48:9-11 God says, For my own name’s sake I delay my wrath; for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you, so as not to cut you off. See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another.”
He does not take his glory lightly because it is who he is. If God were any less glorious he wouldn’t be God.
Going back to our main passage I want us to understand how huge a request this is. Moses was not asking that God give him a photo of himself, he wasn’t asking for cab fare, Moses was asking God to show Him his glory.
Let me set the context here. Moses has just come down from Mt. Sinai the first time after receiving the law. He returned to find his people worshipping and celebrating a golden calf. He was so mad that he threw the 10 commandments down and broke them. God was angry. He was ready to do away with the people of Israel. But Moses intercedes on their behalf. In God’s great mercy and favor he spares the people. God wanted Moses to lead his people into the Promised Land. So, Moses bravely asks for help—help in being taught God’s ways and to continue to be in favor with God. God assures Moses of his request. He then asks for God’s presence to go with them. God grants that request too because the Lord his pleased with him. His third request he asks to see his glory.
The Lord answers his request—but not fully. God responds, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
God assures Moses that he will see his glory but not all of it. God was going to proclaim his name. In order for him to see God in all of his glory he would have to see him face to face—to see him in an absolute sense. But there is no humanly way possible to do that and live to tell about it. It’s important for me to stop here and mention something. We need to understand that God does not have a body. People will uses passages like this to try and justify God the Father being just like you and I. When you see a writer in Scripture using human terms to describe features for God we need to understand that it is used metaphorically. It’s the only way our finite minds can understand how God sometimes relates to us. For instance, I believe firmly that God guides me. God doesn’t need hands to do it. I believe God listens to me but that doesn’t mean God has to have ears to hear me.
So, for Moses to see God’s face means to know him absolutely and to exhaust the depth of his being. God would no longer be a mystery. So, God has a solution for Moses’ request. He hides him in a rock and the Lord passes by but Moses could only see his back. Again this is figurative language. We need to know that how ever much Moses saw and experienced blew him away.
I really believe this encounter is placed here for a purpose. I think it’s a picture painted for us to see that man never sees God face to face, never apprehends God fully and that God is always the God of the beyond. What does this have to do with anything? We have a great and glorious God folks who is beyond totally finding out.
But I wonder how many of us are willing to stand upon the rock and boldly ask as Moses did, “Show me your glory!” Even though we will never fully see his glory I don’t care…show me whatever you want to show me God but I want to see your glory!!! When is the last time you asked God to show you his glory? Jesus wants you to see this glory. That’s why he prayed in John 17:24: “Father I want those you have given me to be where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the word.”
Why should we want to see and be familiar with his glory? So we can be a changed people!
CONDITION TO SEEING GOD’S GLORY
It’s important for us to see that God is not going to show his glory to people whose lives are not in tune with him. Out of a whole nation of people (who by the way, God was ready to destroy) Moses was the one who was able to see the glory. God was pleased with Moses—because he was living faithfully. Moses wanted to be taught God’s ways. Moses wanted to be in favor with him.
Read 33:8-10. I’m not quite sure how the people were feeling but I bet they wished they had the kind of access Moses did. Maybe they were ashamed. If they were they should have been anyway.
God will not show his glory to a people, or a church, or a family who are not being obedient to him. What keeps us from seeing his glory? Sin, rebellion, lack of faith, business, etc. You name it. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
HOW TO KNOW IF WE’RE SEEING HIS GLORY?
Read 34:8 We don’t know if this is related to the same encounter in 33 or a different one. “Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshipped.” To see what Moses did there is only one logical response—genuine, heartfelt worship. We’re not the same people. You know for certain he has passed by. This kind of response can not be manipulated.
Another way you can know you (your family or our church) can know we are experiencing the glory of God is that it will be obvious to others when they see us. Look at Exodus 34:30.
Conclusion:
QUOTE: If there is one characteristic more than others that contemporary public worship needs to recapture it is this awe before the surpassingly great and gracious God.
— Henry Sloane Coffin (SERMONCENTRAL.COM)
Closing challenge: I challenge you to add on your prayer list this week, “God, show me your glory.”
