Experiencing God's Presence #83

Warn the people not to break through the boundaries to see the LORD, or they will die. Even the priests who regularly come near to the LORD must purify themselves so that the LORD does not break out and destroy them.

Exodus 19:21-22

God’s Presence can be dangerous. It wasn’t so at creation, when those made in His image enjoyed His company openly and freely. But the Fall created a rift, and we know how our knowledge of God has been hidden and confused since then. Sin separated us from Him and even from life. So it’s no surprise that a host of Israelites who were only beginning to be reacquainted with God’s ways and who were still demonstrating disbelief and grumbling at every turn could not get close to holy fire without being burned.

But Moses’ faith responses to God, however faltering, afforded him the privilege of coming closer. God apparently credited Moses’ responses to him as righteousness, just as He did with Abraham and continues to do with us. But we must remember the gap that ought to exist between unredeemed human beings and a God who is wholly other. His purity cannot fellowship with impurity that has never been dealt with. That’s why He instituted a sacrifice system on Sinai, and that’s why we must believe in Jesus’ sacrifice, the offering to which Sinai’s commands pointed. We can never take His Presence for granted.

Meditate on the gigantic gap between a holy God and sinful humanity—the enormous gorge that could not be bridged by any natural means. Only a supernatural intervention could bring us close to God. Without it, we would be forever lost. With it, we can come to His throne boldly.

Thank You, Lord, for bridging the vast distance between us. If You hadn’t, I would be hopelessly alienated and alone forever. You’ve opened the door into Your life-giving Presence. From the bottom of my heart, thank You.

From the book