Presence of God: Part 2

In my last blog entry, I talked about the importance of the Presence of God to His people. I can't seem to stop thinking about this topic. So, here's more...

Exodus is one of my favorite books in the Old Testament. It describes how God called an enslaved nation out of bondage and into a journey of faith. In doing this, He transformed them from a crowd into The People of God.

To do this, He raised up a prophetic leader: Moses. He intervened miraculously, crushing the pagan deities and powers of darkness and leading the people into a kind of baptism through the Red Sea. He guided and provided for His people. He brought them to the mountain where He formed His covenant with them.

He gave them the ceremonial, political and ethical laws that enabled them to walk in that covenant relationship with Him. Included in this were even the blue prints for the Tabernacle, the ceremonial tools, the priestly garments and the instructions in how to consecrate themselves for service.

The people were flawed. They grumbled, they were strong-willed and resisted God's instructions and God's prophet. But God still remained faithful.

If the creation of the People of God is the plot of Exodus, the Presence of God is the theme.

God's Presence is first revealed to Moses through the bush that seemed to be in flames, yet was not consumed. Then, God's Presence appears as a pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night to protect His People from the pursuing armies of Pharaoh as they seem to be trapped by the Red Sea. God's Presence is with them continually to lead them from site to site. And even before the Tabernacle was constructed, God's Presence appeared to Moses at the Tent of Meeting (Ex. 33: 7-11). Moses brings the elders with him onto the mountain where they all experience God's Presence. And of course, when Moses ascends up the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments, God's fearsome Presence seems to consume the whole top of the mountain.

And, as I highlighted in my last post, the climax of the entire book is the coming of the Presence of God as a thick cloud on the newly-built Tabernacle, finally consecrated for service in the wilderness.

With this in mind, one little verse has always stuck with me. The first part says, "Yahweh would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend..." (Ex. 33: 11a). This verse awakens a deep yearning in my heart to have this kind of friendship with God. Oh, that I could say, "God would speak to Mark face to face, as a man speaks to his friend."

And the rest of the verse also speaks to me: "Then, even when Moses had to return to the camp, his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent" (Ex. 33: 11b). And even when others walk away, Lord, can I just hang around in your Presence as long as possible?

Let us recapture the true theme of our identity as the People of God--the very Presence of God in our midst.