The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Judges 13:22,
"'We are doomed to die!' he said to his wife. 'We have seen God!'"
This is the cry Manoah, Samson's father, made to his wife when he
realized they had just been in company with the angel of the Lord. The
angel visited the couple to prepare them for Samson's birth. We are
told when they made an offering to the Lord in the angel's presence,
"the Lord did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: As
the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the
Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with
their faces to the ground." Judges 13:19b-20. It was only then Manoah
realized he had been visited by the angel of the Lord.
I don't know about you, but from time to time I have thought it would
be fascinating and wonderful to have some kind of a visit from the
Lord, or one of his angels. I suspect what may have been missing from
my musing is the recoil and horror those who have actually had a visit
experienced. I think of the nation of Israel at the foot of Mt. Sinai.
"When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet
and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at
a distance and said to Moses, 'Speak to us yourself and we will
listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.'" Exodus
20:18-19. Another instance is Isaiah at his commissioning. Having had
a vision of God on his throne he cried, "'Woe to me!' I cried. 'I am
ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of
unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.'"
Isaiah 6:5.
At times of reflection I have recognized more fully, as many do I am
sure, my own sinfulness. Apart from the purifying and cleansing nature
found within the atonement of Jesus Christ for my sins, I am compelled
to feel I would recoil in the presence of the Lord's pristine
perfections, the beauty of his multifaceted character, the absolute
purity of his unadulterated nature that remains impenetrable, without
wrinkle and consistent for all eternity. How is one to stand in the
presence of that?! I don't think you do. Paul told Timothy God "lives
in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see." 1 Timothy
6:16. That "unapproachable light" must be the transcendent and awesome
glory of God that radiates from his being.
Even Moses, when he had been in the presence of the Lord on Mt. Sinai
and now reflected that glory when he came down the mountain found his
family fleeing from him, so great was that radiant glory! "When Moses
came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in
his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had
spoken with the Lord. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his
face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses
called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came
back to him, and he spoke to them." Exodus 34:29-31. Moses had to
chase after them!
Since I have not had a visit myself (and given the accounts of those
who had, I suspect it is for the best), I take the word of those who
have had an encounter "of the third kind" with God. His glory is so
magnificent as to be unapproachable and his presence so overwhelming
because of his character and nature, he is terrifying to encounter.
Especially for one who is plagued with the frailties of sinfulness and
weakness as I am.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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