“…and when the song was raised, with trumpets and cymbals and other musical instruments, in praise to the Lord, "For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever," the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.” - 2 Chronicles 5:13-14
The holiness of God is overwhelming. The Israelites at Mount Sinai were sure that if they continued to hear His voice speaking to them, they would die. The priests at the dedication of the Temple were overcome by His manifest presence so that they couldn’t stand up to minister. Peter, James and John lost consciousness at the transfiguration of Jesus and “fell asleep.” The Bible is full of these examples.
God, in His mercy, keeps us from seeing Him in His glory, because as He told Moses, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” (Exodus 33:20)
God is Holy; we are not. Because of Jesus He forgives and cleanses us from our sin and guilt and declares us righteous, and yet we continue to struggle with our sinful nature as long as we are in this life.
In heaven, though, we are told, “No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will worship him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads.” (Revelation 22:3-4)
Finally free from the sin that clings so closely to us here; our sinful flesh finally exchanged for our resurrected and glorified bodies and our hearts purified from everything evil, we will see Him face to face.
“Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.” (1 John 3:2)
Lord Jesus, I’m looking forward to the day when I can see You in all your glory, face to face without being ashamed. Help me today to live as one forgiven, cleansed and set apart for You in holiness. Make me more like You, even now. Amen.
Pastor Dan Giles
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