DCLM DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL FOR NOVEMBER 1, 2023 (IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD)

TOPIC: IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD

Text: Exodus 24:1-11 (KJV)

24 And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off.

2 And Moses alone shall come near the Lord: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him.

3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.

4 And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.

5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the Lord.

6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.

7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.

8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words.

9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

KEY VERSE: “And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.” – (Exodus 24:10)

MESSAGE

Many people have spoken of experiences that suggest they have ‘seen’ God. It might be a near-death encounter from which God saved them. Their testimony would be, “I saw the Lord at close quarters as He plucked me from the jaws of destruction”. Or it could be, “I saw God walk into the hospital ward when I was praying.

He came to my bed and touched me and I was healed instantaneously”. Surely, in each case, God was seen to be at work. But Jesus Christ reveals to us that only “the pure in heart…shall see God” in heaven (Matthew 5:8). Our text offers a foretaste of those who will see the Lord. They are not those chosen by man, but by the Lord Himself; those with whom He has made a covenant with the blood of Jesus. When the Bible says, “they saw God, and did eat and drink”, it portrays a coming event when the faithful will dwell in the presence of God forever.

That period is closer in this age than at any other time. The Lord will reveal Himself to those who say, after reading and hearing the word of God, “All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient”. The sincere and sober declaration of the children of Israel made the Lord to enter into covenant with them after their departure from Egypt.

The lesson for us is that the gold, glory and grandeur of this world are deceptive; they will not endure, nor give lasting happiness and joy. True happiness lies in fellowship with the Giver of life. To gain divine presence, sinners must repent and forsake the fading glory of this world; those who have lost it must return to the Lord while saints must abide continually in His word.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Only holy souls can see the holy God.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Jeremiah 31-32

Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM) written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi. It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.