I Beseech Thee, Shew Me Thy Glory

And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory (Exodus 33:18, KJV)

Moses made the request above to God. He wanted the LORD to show him His glory. The LORD answered His prayer. Did Moses see some bright light or cloud overshadow him from heaven? No. Remember that Moses had seen it all. He had seen the burning bush. He had seen the pillar of fire and cloud. He had seen Mt. Sinai burning with fire when God came upon it. After all these things and more, he prayed unto the Lord and said: “ I beseech Thee, shew me Thy Glory.“ What was missing?

The LORD intriguingly answered Moses’s prayer. First, He says to Moses two verses later “ Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live” (Exodus 33:20, KJV). This tells us God’s glory is God’s face. In Exo. 34:6, the LORD showed His glory to Moses as a response to his prayer. What did He show Him? He revealed Himself to Moses, who He is: “And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,” (Exodus 34:6, KJV).

From these passes, we understand the glory of God is God’s face. His face is His Person. The glory of God is God Himself, in revelation. The glory of God is simply the visible expression of God. Jesus is the full visible expression of the Father in human form. Before being human, He has always been the Word, the very glory of God! He is the glory of God. This is why He is called Light because He reveals the Father. Paul says “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6, KJV). Did you see the correlation with Exo. 33:20 above, talking about God’s face? Here, He is telling us that Jesus is God’s face, that reveals His glory, who He is to the world.

This truth goes even further. You and I, believers in Christ, have become the visible expression of the invisible God on the earth. God is revealed in all His fullness in and through us. We have become His visible expressions. We are the glory of God in Christ on the earth! ( 2 Cor. 3:18).

MEDITATE

What is the glory of God? Why is Jesus the glory of God? Why does God say you are the glory of God?

APPLY THE WORD

God created you to be a visible expression of His eternal being. That is your destiny. You have seen the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Let the world behold the glory of God in your face!