Glowing for God

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. Exodus 34:29-30, NIV

Exodus 33 ends with Moses asking to see the glory of God. After agreeing to this, Moses is warned by God that because His glory is so great, Moses must be sheltered by God’s hand while Moses stands in the cleft of the rock, (v. 18-23).

The next chapter of Exodus closes with Moses coming down from Mount Sinai, having spent the last 40 days and nights in the presence of God receiving instructions for the people. (This is the second time Moses spent 40 days with God on the Mount receiving these instructions—written by the hand of God. The first account takes place in Exodus 32 and does not end well, i.e., the golden calf.) Moses is told by the LORD He is making a covenant before the people and that He will do awesome wonders never done before, (34:10). (I’m sorry I really must interject—WOW! When the Creator of the universe says this to you—I mean REALLY—WOW—to the infinite degree!! That’s what I call exciting!)

No wonder Moses comes down from the Mount with a radiant face! His face was so radiant, even Aaron, his brother, was afraid to come near him, (v. 31). Moses had to put a veil over his face. He did not wear the veil when speaking to the LORD or when telling the people what the LORD had said, but otherwise, Moses would cover his face.

Extraordinary!—but should it be? Shouldn’t we all look as though we have been in the presence of God? As God’s people we are called to be different—IN the world but not OF the world, (John 15:19, James 4:4) Not only are we to act differently, but shouldn’t we look differently as well? I’m not suggesting that others should be afraid of us because of how we look, but I am suggesting we should be different enough that the difference is recognizable.

We should all be walking-talking-advertisements for Jesus Christ. How about you? Are you glowing for God? In the words of the Apostle Peter—Always be ready to tell everyone the reason for the hope that lives inside of you, (1 Peter 3:15)!

God Bless!