Experiencing God's Presence #89

Experiencing God's Presence #89

Place the Bread of the Presence on the table to remain before me at all times.

Exodus 25:30

The twelve loaves of bread set on the table in the Holy Place were called “the Bread of the Presence”—literally, “the bread of the face.” The priests would set the loaves out once a week, and they would remain in His Presence until the next week, when a new set of loaves would be set out to sit in His Presence. At all times, bread would remain where God dwelled.

It’s interesting that the Hebrew word for “face” is always written in plural form. Perhaps this linguistic quirk isn’t significant, but when dealing with words of revelation, minor details can have major implications. And it makes sense that “face” would imply some variety: (1) in reference to a God of Trinity, three Persons are involved; and (2) with any person, we can encounter multiple “faces.” In God’s Presence, we can experience His face of compassion, His face of forgiveness, His face of strength and power, His warrior face, His healing face, and so on. He invites us to experience His various attributes in the circumstances of our lives. Sometimes we need to see one side of Him, sometimes another. In His Presence, we encounter over time a wide range of who He is.

Seek in your time with God today not just an encounter with Him in general but an encounter with a specific “face”—one of His many attributes that fits your various needs. Understand that He wants to show you many facets of His personality. Expect to be drawn into His compassion or mercy on one occasion and His jealousy or zeal on another. Know that His Presence applies to any situation you might find yourself in and any need you could possibly have. Whatever you’re going through today, there’s an aspect of Himself that He wants to reveal in it.

Father, Son, and Spirit, please let me know the many sides of who You are. Let me see the face of Your glory that I most need to see today.