This sermon comes from Exodus 33, one of the most pivotal moments in Israel’s wilderness story. Israel has been rescued from Egypt, brought through the Red Sea, and gathered at Sinai. But after the sin of the golden calf, God tells them they can still go to the land he promised, but his presence will not go with them.
That’s terrifying: the land without the Lord, blessing without presence, success without communion with God.
Moses refuses it. He says, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.” Moses understands what we often forget: God’s greatest gift is not merely what he gives, but who he is. The promised land without God’s presence isn’t really the promised land.
That exposes something important in us. We often want God’s help, God’s blessings, God’s protection, and God’s answers to prayer. Those are good things to desire. But Exodus 33 presses a deeper question: Do we want God himself? Would we be content with his gifts if we didn’t have his presence?
Moses won’t settle for less than God. And then he goes further: “Please show me your glory.” He wants to know God more deeply. He wants the weight of God’s reality, goodness, holiness, mercy, and beauty to become more real than anything else.
That’s what worship is supposed to do in us. We’re not gathering simply to go through the order of service, sing familiar songs, pray familiar prayers, and hear another sermon. We’re gathering because we need the presence of God. We need his glory to reorder our hearts. We need to be reminded that beneath every hunger is a deeper hunger for God himself.
Ultimately, Exodus 33 leads us to Jesus. Moses asks to see God’s glory, and John says, “We have seen his glory.” In Jesus Christ, God comes near. In his face, we see the glory of God. At his cross, we see God’s mercy and justice meet. Through him, we’re brought into the presence of God we were made for.
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