Enter into His Presence
ICS Daily Devotions
Exodus 33:9-11 (NKJV) And it came to pass, when Moses entered the tabernacle, that the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the Lord talked with Moses. All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door, and all the people rose and worshipped, each man in his tent door. So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle.
Moses was given a challenging mandate of leading His people—a group of Israelites who were stubborn and had sinned against God by worshipping the golden calf—from the land of Egypt to the Promised Land. If God had not been merciful and gracious towards them when Moses pleaded for them, these people would have been struck dead because they were so obstinate. Nonetheless, God did not abandon them despite their sin and rebelliousness. Not only did He provide them with manna and water, but He also accompanied them in the presence of the pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day.
Today, many of us are caught in a difficult position in the marketplace like Moses. Moses was wise enough to seek the wisdom of God because God had called him to lead the people. He set up a tent to meet with God. Since God is the one who placed us in our position, we should do likewise and seek the wisdom of God by making time to be in his presence.
This passage records how Moses met God face to face and showed us the presence of God and the blessing of being in His presence. His presence came when Moses chose a time to meet with Him. Did you know we are so blessed to be in an even better position than Moses? Jesus was made sin for us, has redeemed us with His blood, and made a new and living way for us to approach God freely. Even though there will still be consequences for the sins we commit because we will reap what we have sown, there is forgiveness for our sins, and the blood of Jesus Christ enables us to come before the Heavenly Father with boldness because we are hidden in Christ.
Since God created us to have fellowship with Him, we should expect Him to speak to and minister to us when we enter into His presence through worship and the teaching or preaching of the Word. We can also be assured that He will show up when we want to know Him better through studying His Word and worshipping Him. Therefore, let’s be encouraged to seek God diligently, because we have faith in His promise in His Word that He will draw near to us when we draw near to Him (James 4:8a).
Sermon Series – The Presence of God
