Experiencing God's Presence #96

Whenever he went into the Tent of Meeting to speak with the LORD, he would remove the veil until he came out again. . . . So he would put the veil over his face until he returned to speak with the LORD.

Exodus 34:34-35

It sounds like the ultimate spiritual experience. Moses glowed because he had been in God’s Presence, and the sight was a little unnerving to those around him. So he covered his face with a veil when speaking to the people, but uncovered it while meeting with God. For Moses, encountering God was a regular occurrence. For his fellow Israelites, it wasn’t. Moses was the exception, not the norm.

But the New Testament points to a more widespread spiritual experience, a familiarity in encountering God. According to 2 Corinthians, the new covenant makes us “very bold” (3:12). We don’t have to worry about glory fading. “All of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image” (3:18). This is spoken of all who turn to God in faith. Deep experiences with God should be the norm, not the exception.

What does it mean to have an unveiled face? It means that (1) like Moses, we encounter God openly and honestly, with no separation between us because of sin or ignorance; and (2) unlike Moses, we are among plenty of other people who have experienced God like we have and plenty of people who need to, and we have nothing to hide from any of them. To whatever degree we soak in God’s Presence, we become reflections of His glory. We become what we behold.

Father, I want to become a reflection of You. I want to glow with Your Presence and Your glory. Let me soak in Your Presence and carry it with me into the world.

From the book