Show Me Your Glory

As I sit here in Friday morning prayer a favorite worship song of mine is playing. It simply says, “Show me Your glory.” That’s something we all love to say. We want to bask in the glory of the Lord. But have we really ever wondered what it takes? Do we understand the requirements for the glory of God to be revealed?

I’m reminded of when Moses was on the top of the mountain with God. He was there day and night for 40 days. The Bible doesn’t say all that went on but we know that part of it was receiving the 10 Commandments from God. Then there is a conversation that is one of my favorites. It is found in Exodus 33. The conversation starts out with God being fed up with His people. Basically He says to Moses, ” Forget the promise I made to Abraham, these people don’t deserve it. I will make you into that nation.” To which Moses replied, “No. These are your people. How will anyone know that unless You go with us?” Of course this is paraphrased but you get the point. Moses is the only person anywhere in the Bible that talked that way to God and survived. He told God, “No,” and God listened. Jonah did that and was swallowed by a big fish.

What does this have to do with God showing His glory? It has a lot to do with it. This one conversation has several keys to seeing the glory of God revealed to us. One of the first things that I see is in Exodus 33:11. “The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend…” In order to have a friend you have to spend time with them. That’s the implication here. Moses didn’t go to God and give Him a punch list. He talked to God and listened to what He had to say back. He spent enough time with God that a deep relationship developed. Deep enough that Moses could tell God no and He would listen.

Another thing that I see is that Moses heart was in the right place when he told God no. All too often we want to dictate to God when and where the glory should be according to our agenda. But this wasn’t how Moses did things. He understood the frustration God was feeling because they had talked. Moses reminded God about His promises and that others needed to see God when they saw His people. I wonder if our desire to see God’s glory is for the same reason. Are we chasing the warm fuzzies or are we hungry for a move of God that reveals to others who He is?

The final thing I see is that Moses always wanted deeper things of God. It wasn’t enough to sit in the Tent of Meeting and talk with God. It wasn’t enough that God listened to the things he said. Moses wanted more. He wanted to really see God. And God’s response to that can be found in Exodus 33:17, “And the Lord said to Moses, ‘I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.’” What a statement! We know that God knows our name. He knows everything. But this is different. It’s a statement of intimacy of both ends of the relationship. Moses knows God almost as well as God knew him. That’s why Moses could ask to see God’s glory.

So back to the original question. Do we understand the requirements for the glory of God to be revealed? I believe that Exodus 33 details some of those requirements. If I want to see the glory of God then I have to be willing to put the work in to get to know God. It’s a tall order…but I’m willing to do it. What about you? Can you, like Moses, ask God to show His glory to you?