From the beginning, God planned to have an open relationship with humanity. The Lord envisioned a way for His creation to enjoy the fulness of His glory and presence. God’s destiny for our eternal existence was for us to live in the recognizable glory of His presence. Once sin entered, Adam, Eve and all of their descendants lost that open heaven and relationship with the Father. The breach in that relationship was not something that happened with just them. Sin has the same impact on all of us.
Romans 3:23 NKJVFor all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Although we have sinned and fall short of His glory, God had a plan to restore fellowship and an open heaven relationship.
God determined a plan and path to demonstrate the favor of His presence.
Around 2,000 years after Adam, God spoke to Moses.
In Deuteronomy 4:29 NIV He said: If “you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
God was providing a way to find favor in His presence. “If you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul, you will find Him.” Even with the promise and provision, humanity consistently withdrew from God through sin. A veil of unbelief and sin remained over our eyes that made it impossible to recognize God’s presence and know His glory.
A little over 800 years after that message to Moses, the prophet Jeremiah was given a similar word from God.
Jeremiah 29:13 NKJV And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
God was extending the message that was given to Moses to bring you into fellowship with Himself. He wants more for us.
The Lord God almighty wants us to know Him.
God wants to show you His glory that can only be known in the favor of His presence. Every time His presence, power, or work has been recognized, it has been accompanied with His glory.
Over a period of nearly 4,000 years, God revealed His glory, power, and presence to specific individuals.
- The glory of God appeared to Abraham when He called him out and gave him an inheritance and promise.
- When God descended on the bush in the wilderness, Moses came aside and stood on holy ground in the presence of almighty and holy God. Then God spoke to Moses face to face.
- As God led Israel out of Egypt, His glorious presence descended in the pillar of fire and cloud. Then God spoke in an audible voice to them and brought them into the land of their promise.
- When God settled down on the top of Mount Sinai, the mountain shook and appeared to be on fire under the presence of God’s glory. The thunder, lightning, sound of the trumpet of God, and smoking mountain gave witness of His presence and glory.
- When the tabernacle was constructed in the wilderness, God’s glorious presence descended. From the cloud of God’s glory, the people heard the voice of almighty God.
- When Solomon finished building the temple, fire came down from heaven and the glory of the Lord settled on the temple.
2 Chronicles 7:12 Then God spoke to Solomon and said: “I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself.”
2 Chronicles 7:14 Then God said: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and forgive their sin and heal their land.”
Take note of the impact the favor of God’s presence and His glory has on people.
Isaiah spoke about this in chapter 64.
Isaiah 64:1-3 NKJV Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down! That the mountains might shake at Your presence— As fire burns brushwood, As fire causes water to boil— To make Your name known to Your adversaries, That the nations may tremble at Your presence! When You did awesome things for which we did not look, You came down, The mountains shook at Your presence.
Isaiah wanted God to come down in such a manner that people could not ignore Him.
Notice God’s response in Isaiah 65:2-3.
God said: “I have stretched out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, according to their own thoughts; A people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face…”
God was near and wanted to reveal the favor of His presence, but sin hindered their access to His glory.
God was not satisfied with that and He was determined to change it by sending His Son.
Jesus Christ came so that you might have life abundantly.
Ephesians 2:4–5 NKJVBut God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).
Isaiah 53:4-6 NKJVSurely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
God sent His Son to bring us back to Him.
Father God wants to have fellowship with you and bring you into the glory and favor of His presence through Christ.
Moses was a great example of what happens when anyone turns toward God from the routine of life.
This happened in the wilderness when he was tending sheep. Moses turned and went to see the fiery burning bush and found himself on holy ground in the presence of God. When he was leading God’s people toward the Promised Land, he went up into the cloud of God’s presence on Mount Sinai. Then God spoke with him face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Moses wanted a continued abiding presence of God.
In Exodus 33, while Moses was on the mountain with God, he said: “I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight.”
Then God said: “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” That is a message we all want to hear.
God said: “You have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.”
Moses said: “Please, show me Your glory.”
In God’s presence the Lord provided a way for Moses to know His glory.
God said: “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”
Exodus 33:21-23 NKJV And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.”
Moses was standing in the favor of God’s presence beholding His glory.
2 Corinthians 3:16–18 NKJV Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
This may sound incredible to some that God wants to show you the favor of His presence and bring you into His glory.
It is amazing to watch how creation responds when God comes near. Mountains quake, thunder rolls, and lightening flashes. Isaiah wanted God to come down like that and show Himself to the people. When God brings us into His presence, His goal is to transform us into His image from glory to glory by the Spirit of the Lord, (2 Corinthians 3:18).
God makes Himself known to us and removes anything that would hinder our getting closer to Him.
When anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
The first step is still turning to the Lord.
When He turned aside, Moses walked into the presence of God and stood on holy ground. In God’s presence, Moses heard God’s voice.
The second step is standing in His presence and hearing His voice.
Moses walked under that glory for quite awhile and led Israel out of Egypt under that anointing and glory. Israel came to be known as the people of the presence of God. Under His presence, they were unstoppable and no enemy could conquer them.
The third step is walking away from the world and living in fellowship with the Lord God.
Israel struggled with this. They wanted God’s presence, favor and blessing, but they did not want to forsake the gods and ways they learned in Egypt.
The fourth step into His glory is a realization of God’s power, holiness and glory.
When Moses was called up into the cloud of God’s presence and fire, every fiber of his faith was challenged. Moses was called out to go where no one else could go. He stood and spoke with God as a man speaks with his friend. On holy ground, Moses beheld the glory of God.
This progression into the favor of God’s presence still works. When we turn to the Lord, God will begin showing us that He is the living God. He will take you onto holy ground.
