August 26, 2026
Wednesday, August 26
The people of Israel have truly repented in Exodus 33. God gave them the chance to sever their ties with Him forever while enjoying the Promised Land. And the people have said, “We would rather have poverty with the Lord than wealth without Him. Better to live the rest of our lives in this desert while serving Him than to live in the Promised Land on our own.” Moses goes before the Lord again with the people’s response:
15 And he said to him, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. 16 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?” 17 And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.” 18 Moses said, “Please show me your glory.”
So here’s the first question of the week: What is God’s glory? John Piper has a great definition of this complex concept. He says it’s “the infinite beauty of His manifold perfections.” Isn’t that great? Now what does it mean? Here’s my humble paraphrase: God’s glory is His greatness on full display. It’s when we truly see beyond the hype, that God is even greater than we imagined.
Here’s an analogy: My niece Brooklin was a terrific athlete in high school. I saw her play basketball many times, but my brother and dad both asserted that her best sport was track. “You need to see her run,” they said. Finally, I managed to make it to a district meet. Picture the scene: There are eight girls on the track, all staggered in their lanes, ready for the start of the quarter mile (one lap around the track). All are taller and look more athletic than my petite, blonde niece. The gun fires, and as they run the first curve, on the opposite side of the stadium, I can’t really tell who is winning. But then they hit that first straightaway, and I say out loud, “Wow.” My brother and my dad both laugh and say, “We told ya.” What I see is that little blonde head passing every girl on that track like they’re running in mud. I had heard about it, but I had to see it to know how impressive she was.
All of us have had similar experiences, those “wow” moments when our breath was taken away. Maybe you heard a singer on the radio and thought, “He’s pretty good.” Then you bought tickets to his concert, and the first time he opened his mouth you said, “Wow, I had no idea.” Or perhaps you saw someone’s vacation pictures and said, “That looks nice. We should go there ourselves.” Then you went, and walked out into all that beauty and said, “Wow. I didn’t know something this beautiful could exist on earth.”
Imagine a relationship with a person that was a constant series of “Wow” moments, where everything they did, and every new thing you learned about them, showed you a beauty, a skill, a wisdom, a mercy, a love that you didn’t know was possible. That’s what it is to see the glory of God.
“Lord, I pray that I would see your glory. Give those glimpses, so that I would know for certain that nothing in this world compares to you. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Senior Pastor
First Baptist Conroe
More from Pastor Jeff at his website: jeffbergerwriting.com
