Scripture:
Exodus 24:9–11
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there was something like a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. 11 God did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; also they beheld God, and they ate and drank. (NRSVUE)
Observation:
I was a little shocked by this passage of Scripture today because I’ve always thought about the passage that says no one can see God and live. Yet here is a most remarkable situation in which Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel go up the mountain and see the God of Israel. What did they actually see? We don’t know. They don’t describe God’s appearance, but rather what was under His feet. The detail is about a pavement that looked like sapphire stone, with the clarity of the heavens. What an extraordinary sight that must have been!
What we do know is that they were there at God’s invitation, and that they ate and drank. This appears to be an invitation into God’s holy presence, initiated by God Himself, and the result is fellowship. They beheld God, and they ate and drank. This was a most remarkable experience with God.
What this passage doesn’t tell us is what would happen shortly afterward. Moses would go farther up the mountain to receive the commandments written on stone tablets. While he was away, the people would become impatient and ask Aaron to make gods for them. Aaron would collect their gold and fashion the golden calf. We don’t know what the other elders did, but there is no record of them stopping what happened.
Here is my conundrum. These men were invited to see God, and they didn’t die. They ate and drank in God’s presence. And yet, not long afterward, Aaron would help the people make a golden calf.
Hmmm…
Application:
This makes me wonder what we will do with our own experiences of God. If we are followers of Jesus Christ, we have had experiences with God. But what do we do with those experiences when life becomes difficult?
Our granddaughter Alice is a very spiritually sensitive child. When she was just four years old, we went to look at a home and piece of property that we were considering as a place where we could live together with her mom and dad. It would be a multigenerational space. We went to look at the place together, and Alice and I were walking the property when she took my hand, looked up at me, and said, “Bogogo (which is what they call me), we are going to live here.”
I said, “Really?”
She said, “Yes. And God will make provision.”
Then she just started skipping and ran on ahead of me.
Later in the day, I asked Alice, “What does it mean, God will make provision?”
She said, “I don’t know.”
Had God spoken through the mouth of a child? I think so. This was an experience of God, and when there were challenges along the way with the property, selling the old house, and getting work done on the new one, I kept remembering those words: “God will make provision.”
I still cling to that promise when there are difficult moments. I believe God wanted us in that place for this time. One reason is a church we didn’t even know our daughter would eventually pastor—a new church in that part of the city. God was making provision in ways we couldn’t yet imagine.
But what will we do with our experiences with God?
Will I cling to that promise even when things aren’t going well, or will I become frustrated and complain, asking God why we ended up there?
We all have choices. We may have mountaintop experiences, but we have to live down in the valley. Life can become difficult, and God may seem far away for a season. That’s when we have to decide what we will do with what we have experienced. Will we remain faithful to the God we have encountered, as Moses sought to do, or will we give in to the pressures around us, as Aaron did?
An encounter with God doesn’t eliminate the need for continued obedience. In fact, it ought to deepen our desire to remain faithful to Him.
God remains faithful.
God remains gracious.
God remains hospitable.
God will make provision!
Prayer:
Lord, thank You for the experiences I have been privileged to have with You. Thank You for Your promise of provision. Help me to remember Your faithfulness, especially when circumstances become difficult. May my experiences with You deepen my obedience and strengthen my willingness to follow wherever You lead. Use them for Your glory. Amen.
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