Three ~

Love And Reverence

~ The Very Best of Motives ~

So, let me ask you a question, dear reader ~

Do you love God?

Oh yeah?

But I mean, do you really love God?

Yeah?

So do I. Though I suppose there’s forever a follow- up question as to what extent. That is, I think most Christians would automatically claim that they truly love God, wouldn’t we? Yet, I’m sure there’s a vast majority of us failing to embrace what it really even means to love and admire Him whole~ heartedly. And one might ask if it’s even possible for us to love God as we should. (Hard to say, I know.) If we did though, I’ll bet our spiritual lives would benefit immensely, and subsequently, so would the lives of those around us. Now I’m sure we all feel as though we’re doing some good in this faith, but are we truly passionate in our commitment to God? (Just asking.)
Sometimes it’s entirely too easy for a Christian to get caught- up in the complacency of simply going through the motions. We go to church on Sunday, listen to the pastor, and fill in the blanks of our programs with alliteration. We probably get involved in some smaller study group. Maybe even reiterate some clever Christian saying we heard to the lady there slingin’ donuts. Somehow, we feel enlightened and jazzed just being in the midst of it all. Nothing wrong with that, but I dunno. . . Have you ever noticed how people ’round church are always commenting about how AWESOME God is? Well, that can be great, but my question is: Do we mean it?!?
Sure, sure ~ I know we credit Him with great works, and sing songs of praise, bow our heads in prayer daily. It’s what we do as Christians, (and these are good things), but I wonder ~ Are we really in awe over God, and are we really passionate about God for all that He is? Because if not, I fear a great number of us are seriously in danger of committing lip service. And that’s not what it’s all about.

“THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR FROM ME.” That’s a displeased God speaking to Isaiah back in the OT. (Check out Isaiah 29:13 and Matthew 15:8.)

So what does this say to us? Think. Seriously. Just believing in The Lord. . . having good intentions. . . even following up with seemingly worthy details. . . fine and dandy? Though there may be nothing wrong with basic obedience per se’, what about our hearts? Are they involved?!? How often throughout our days do we actually take that moment to not only acknowledge, but truly appreciate The Good Lord for all that He is?!? Granted, as mere mortals, we may not even have the capacity to love God to the extent that we should. But are we at least loving Him to the very best of our abilities?

It’s really not that difficult, ya know. . . loving God, that is. If only we make an effort to genuinely get to know Him. There are lots of things to love about Our Father, and lots of great reasons to love Him as well. (Yes, those two statements can mean two different things, I assure you.) Though the simplest, and arguably the best reason, is given to us by The Lord Himself:

~ The Great Commandment ~

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in The Law?”
³⁷ “And He said to him, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.
³⁸ This is the great and foremost commandment.
³⁹ The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’
⁴⁰ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22: 36~40 (NASB)

Though the various Gospel writers may have used slightly different wording at the time, (or perhaps words are translated slightly different), they each convey the same sentiment Jesus did. And it was actually Jesus restating in The New Testament that which The Father had originally spoken in The Old. Deuteronomy 6:5:

“YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART AND ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIGHT.”

Then Jesus went on to point out that all of The Law and words of The Prophets hinge on these two key commandments. So what is it here that we should take to heart and mind?

Well, first off, we have to acknowledge that this is indeed a commandment from The Lord, and not some mere suggestion to be considered. Although I realize that it may seem funny or strange that someone would command someone else’s love. Indeed, it’d really be a trip to hear someone say anything like, “You will love me! I command you!” And of course, coming from another person, it might be downright laughable, (and possibly kinda creepy ;)) No matter ~ We know that this is God speaking to us, and that He’s got His good reasons for such a directive.
Does He need to tell us why? Nope. He is The Lord God Almighty, so why should He have to explain Himself to anyone? ( Pssst! He doesn’t ) He isn’t obligated to do or say anything.
Yet He does still share certain things with us at times in trying to help us understand. And that’s very cool.

Of course, it stands to reason, that if we truly love God, (as directed:)), then we’re most assuredly going to do whatever it takes to please Him as well. That’s just the way it works with a genuine love. And not only does God know this, but He is The One that designed this into our humanity.

God designed true love
to be a phenomenal motivation
in the hearts of all mankind.

Dear reader, if you can remember a time when you really, truly loved and cared for someone, then you might also recall looking for ways to look out for their best interest, to please them, or to bring joy into their life.
For those we truly care for, there isn’t much we won’t do. Am I right? We’ll arrange special ‘quality time’ to share, truly making them a priority in our lives. We’ll often express our devotion through gifts and praise. And at times, we’ll even get all magnanimous, sacrificing our own well- being for their benefit. I know it may sound as though I’m speaking in terms of a romantic love, but these signs are universal in any loving relationship. Consider bonds shared by the very best of friends. Or what of that love shared between a father and his kid? (I’m speaking idealistically, of course, as human interactions aren’t always perfect.) But you get the notion, dontcha?

Now, with truly loving God, it also signifies that our hearts are involved. Admiration. Adoration. Worship. Even a sensation of reverence may accompany. Call it what you may. Though the point has been made before that love is more than a feeling, our hearts are involved nevertheless.

This is to say, that although the more ‘practical side’ of our following God may entail abiding in His Word, and staying in heartfelt prayer and steadfast communion with Him, (as well as doing our very best to do all of those things we should, while steering clear of those things that we shouldn’t), there’s still a more heartfelt way (if you will) to share in God’s favor. In other words, we shouldn’t merely do things from a sense of obligation, but also from a genuinely loving spirit. As Christians, our every action should flow instinctively from our love and devotion for God, as well as a desire to emulate Him. Then, the calling to behave as we should will become less of a required discipline, and more of a motion directly from the heart. Tell me, am I becoming redundant yet? Alright ~

Then here’s the logic of it all, dear reader, wrapped in a lovely verbal bow for you:

The Lord knows that if we genuinely love Him with all of our hearts, then we’re going to obey His commands to the best of our abilities. . . and not merely out of a striving for the sake of obedience alone, but in catering to that heartfelt desire within every true believer to be pleasing to God.
Then, we’ll also be subsequently blessed with all of those benefits that result from following His lead. . . including, sharing in an increasingly better relationship with God Himself, (and all that entails, though this really does become secondary).
Therefore, because He loves us, dear reader. . . He made it a command that we should love Him, that we would benefit by loving Him and following Him. One might go so far as to call it a form of ‘tough love’. You catch that groovy symbiotic, relationship underneath it all though? (I knew that you would.)

He even goes so far as to set examples of showing us what true love really is, by consistently demonstrating to us how He loves us, unreservedly.

And so, we’re given this directive of the utmost priority. Though it’s hardly a chore or task. As we’ve really only been given the objective of getting to know God, and subsequently, to our benefit, of loving Him as well.
Now as I mentioned just a few moments ago, there are LOTS of things to love about God. And I dare say different people are moved by the different characteristics of God that they admire most. For some, it’s His amazing love for them. For others, it may be His creativity, and/or the beauty He shares. Then, there’s His power and glory. Plus, there’s much much more to The Alpha and The Omega than even The Bible conveys. However, there is one descriptive facet of God, that seems to blanket the rest.

God is always greater than ~

“Greater than what exactly?” someone may inquire. Why ~ Greater than everything and everyone. . . God is greater than whatever the- way- distant- second in any given quality may be. (Be aware, dear reader. I do feel a rant coming on.)

For instance? Can you recall a time when you were really impressed by something or someone? Have you ever been moved by an act of love, of kindness, or generosity? Ever been in awe of someone’s strength or skills, their intellect or creativity? How ’bout being smitten by someone’s beauty? Or emotionally stirred by a beautiful sunset, or even by a particular shade of green? (C’mon, I know you have.) Well, God is The One to be praised for creating said beauty. . . and if you’d like to take it a step further, God invented sight, and gave us eyes, as well as the emotion, sensitivity, mentality, and heart to appreciate whatever may qualify as beautiful.

In fact, dear reader ~ Whatever else it is that might make such a wondrous impression on us, God is always greater.

He is more loving, more kind, more generous, and more powerful. He is simply stronger, more intelligent, more skillful, more talented, more creative, and yes, even far more magnificent in appearance. In short, whatever the quality, God tops it and then some.
He is the Ultimate, and He has no limitations.

I realize that upon hearing such things, some might respond with something like, “Duh Mateo! I already know and believe in all of that!” But I ask you, how few of us really appreciate the magnitude of Who God Is? And what does it take?
Consider the vast universe, the stars at night, or even the Pacific Ocean. Consider The Grand Canyon. . . whatever it is that truly wows you. Not only is God Himself more impressive than all of these, but He also created them. Now, to this, one might still say “duh!”, but I think we often take God for granted.
If you would, dear reader, take just a moment to literally hold your hands out, palms~ up, and ask yourself, “How much larger and more powerful would I have to be in order to form The Earth, let alone The Universe?” HA! Gotcha! (God didn’t even have to use His hands:))

Truth is, He can simply ‘speak’ things into existence. And He actually doesn’t even have to do that either. He can simply ‘will’ thing to ‘be’. Pretty amazing, yes?

And what of God’s limitless intellect, dear reader? Honestly? We can’t begin to fathom it. God knows what’s going on with every form of life and every grain of matter in existence, at every given moment, simultaneously.
Sure ~ we humans may have mastered how to produce a decent bowl of macaroni n’ cheese. . . and maybe do a few neat-o card tricks for fun. . . though not much more than that. ‘Course, any tidbits of wisdom or insight that we may possess have been given to us by God, and are therefore to His credit and glory as well. Ever heard someone talk about how we’ve walked on the moon, or how we’ve figured out how to clone something? Well, whatever it is, I say “Whoop-de-doo! Big deal”. (Sure, I’m being facetious here.) God created space, gave us the concept of interplanetary travel, gave us the moon, and those men that walked the moon, as well as the intellect of the men who launched them up there. And as for cloning?!? Well, that’s just like copying off somebody else’s paper, right?!? How often we fail to admit, that even the greatest human intellects are but a miniscule fraction of God’s own!
I’ve said it before. I’ll say it again. I personally believe that one of the most profound statements that any man can make, is the admission of just how little he really knows.

Humility is forever the proper stance before God Almighty. We’ve gotta keep focus on the fact that whenever we may feel like taking pride in any accomplishments, God is The One that truly deserves the honors. For even if we accomplish anything worthy of praise, it’s only The Lord that has equipped us to do so, and solely The Lord who created us in the first place.
Care for a bit more fuel on the fire? Alright ~

I remember once viewing some fantastic artwork with a friend of mine that were paintings of classic cars, of neon street signs n’ such from the olden days. And I recall how he made comment on how exceptional the technique was, yet in a way, one might view those works as somewhat plagiarized, (being that the style of the subject matter mirrored the original creativity of someone else). “Are you high?”, I responded, “If that’s true, then pretty much everything conveyed on canvas would be borrowed as well.” For even people themselves, and sycamore trees, and the sun radiating down are God’s original creations. And the same view can be true for anything we may create. Like ~ we may write some catchy tunes, but God created music itself. We may design beautiful, dancing fountains, but God invented water. And gravity. And us. And that spirit of creativity within us. You see what I’m getting at? People speak of ‘art imitating life’. Though it’s God that creates and provides all life.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from The Father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

Good verse, James ~ Thank you.

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God is incredible.

You know, chapter after chapter, book after book may be written about Him, though words will never suffice.

That being said, as impressed as I am with God overall, the definitive trait I personally admire most is His power. . . and yes, His sovereignty, which accompanies such power.
In case I’ve failed to convey the ideal thus far, God reigns with no boundaries whatsoever, which is obviously a testament to His power in itself. In church speak, we crown God as omnipotent, (pronounced om-nip’-o-tent), which quite simply means that He is ALL~ powerful. Thus giving us the phrase “Lord Almighty!”, which first started as an exclamation of awe and reverence. People originally utilized it in extreme situations as an acknowledgement of the power of God, and quite often, just before fervently praying for their lives. Think tornados, or major earthquakes. Think on a sudden sense of reverence that somehow arises right on cue, in the midst of urgent situations. Surely, somewhere down in the depths of our souls, we hold in reserve the fact that God has control over all things. That is, until we really need His help, at which time such concepts are instinctively brought up full fledged.
Remarkable how so many of us feel so independent and self- assured until potential calamity strikes. Also amazing, is how many of us suddenly remember God and call on Him in the midst of heavy turbulence, or when we, (or possibly, someone we love), are in mortal danger. Then, our hearts are involved, I assure you. Of course, in the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s, we were mostly spared the type of major events that would’ve stirred so- called reverent reactions. Our biggest fears back then may have been the threat of herpes, or getting stuck with another president like Jimmy Carter. And for some odd reason, it seemed a lot of Christians were becoming lax in their faith, and straying a bit from God during that stretch.
But then it happened. 9/11. And lo and behold ~ Churches had never been so full as they were in the days following the attacks of September 11, 2001. Can’t say whether people were actually shitting their britches that week, though it does seem likely.
So I ask you, dear reader, could God have prevented such a so- called tragedy from occurring? (The rhetorical answer is Yes.) Of course He could’ve defended us from that attack, and quite effortlessly. The real question though: With a nation rapidly becoming as blatantly wicked as The U.S. had overall, why would He?!? I reiterate, churches have never been so full as they were in the days following the attacks of 9/11. Sad that We The People couldn’t have stayed closer to God before that.

Is this to say that God would have spared America that disaster, had we been loving Him as a righteous nation would? I honestly don’t know. Though it seems entirely probable to me. You’ve read some of The Old Testament, right? There ya go. Consider God’s interaction with His people throughout that history. I ask you, dear reader, what exactly does it take to keep us faithful?!?
Furthermore, are we truly prepared to love, trust, and embrace God in any given circumstance. . . and not just in the more pleasant times? Or, do we keep a certain healthy reverence for The Almighty. . . even when things are comfortable? Typically, I’m afraid we fall substantially short, time after time. Sometimes, within the remnants of a crisis, our faulty human rationale even persuades us that God has somehow let us down, and therefore doesn’t really love or care for us. ‘Course, this is just another lie from the evil one. If anything, the converse must be true. That is, we most likely let God down. Yet, He still loves us. I promise you.
Truth is ~ The Lord loves us more than anyone else ever could. What’s more, God’s love is not just a love that The Lord happens to possess in abundance. GOD actually IS that LOVE. In other words, one might say that God Himself is the very personification of love, in it’s very purest form. Though a much truer statement would be that love is the very personification of God, (if you’re hip to my train of thought). {Check out I John, Chapter 4 sometime.}
Therefore, we can rightfully conclude that every decision, every motion, and every word that God ordains, founts directly from the very essence of real love. In fact, it’s really never even a matter of God contemplating which actions would be the most loving or righteous, and then His acting on said determinations. Rather, God enacts whatever He wills to do, which automatically falls into the category of actions derived from love, because they originate with God. Consequently, we can also draw the obvious conclusion that God does not follow any pre- conceived precepts of love, as it were; but rather, God Himself sets the standard of that love as He exudes it. Now tell me, is there any other being in the entire universe that embodies true love as God does?!? Don’t answer that. Rhetorical.

I know I’m going on tirelessly on this matter of God’s love, but believe it or not, I’m actually saving some of the best material way, way back in The Addendums for you. No, really! You’ll see when you get there. But ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

If you’ll indulge me just a bit further, dear reader ~ We’ve only just grazed the subject of having reverence for God. So, if we could graze a bit more. . .

Psalm 111:10 (NIV) says “The fear of The Lord is the beginning of wisdom”,
whereas
Proverbs 1:7 (NIV) reads, “The fear of The Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Our initial reactions? Thoughts?

Fear of The Lord~~~ as the very start of wisdom and knowledge??? How do we feel about such a sentiment? Although I realize that certain words like ‘fear’ (or ‘discipline’ for that matter) naturally have a negative connotation to our human selves, I assure you, dear reader~ a certain type of fear can be a good thing, and serve as one helluva motivator.

Now, you may think that I’m talking about one being on point with one’s best behavior for “fear” of losing one’s job, or that “fear” of not getting a future in-laws’ blessing. Not exactly. (Though, such notions may well be rooted on the same tree.) Likewise, the necessity of having one’s parachute properly packed out of a very real regard for the laws of gravity. Or, of not overstepping one’s boundaries to walk through an abandoned minefield, perhaps? That’s simply self- preservation. Yet, certain forms of fear may hit even closer to our hearts, dear reader. And certain forms of reverence may also contain ribbons of respect~ and regard~ and awe~

Consider, if you will, C.S. Lewis’ illustration of Aslan being a lion. He may seemingly be tame and loving in many respects, yet he is A LION nevertheless. Mind you, in the Narnian tales, Aslan was always chronicled as being a good- natured character, but never the sort that anyone would ever want to challenge. Even though, He had to remind some of them of that with a mighty roar (or some form of accountability) from time to time. One of his traits I admire most.

Tell me – have you ever watched one of those animal programs where the zoo keepers have a tiger or some great cat under heavy sedation, so that they could fix his tooth or something? Well, there’s almost always some spectator standing there that veterinarian asks her, “would you like to pet him?” “Oooooh! Would I!?!”, they loudly whisper back. Sometimes the tiger lets out a subconscious rumbling of a growl whilst under the anesthetic, and I think, “How cool is that?!?” Wildly scary, but cool! Now, I realize we’re only talking ’bout tigers here, but we may be getting warmer to defining it, amen? Reverence~

What exactly is reverence?

We can dance with words and phrases whilst attempting to fuse an amazing love and fear together ~ Mighty and magnificent, fearsome and awesome, highly regarded and deeply respected. . . as we search for our proper definition.

Though. a. collection. of. words. simply. may. not. prove. adequate. {Food for thought.} I’ll try n’ piece it all together nicely once we get to The Addendums, I promise you, but~

At this point, I am just thinking aloud, dear reader. Hoping that’s cool.

Like at this moment, I’m considering whether there’s anything or anyone that we adore SO MUCH, we not only exalt them, or put them on a pedestal, as it were. . . but admire them SO highly, that to attempt to emulate them seems almost ridiculous to even consider. (And, especially when factoring a particular fear into the recipe.) You know what I mean? Most of the time, it may seem an either- or proposition, ya know? Fascination is rarely complimented with a side of fear.

In The Holy Bible, however, God speaks of a healthy, beneficial fear of The Lord.
And in the Old Testament Hebrew, one of the words we’re referring to is yare, which is probably best translated as a form of true reverence. It’s the sort of trembling fear and awe for God that was subtly reflected in the attitude and daily life of the early believers. One could tell just by casual observation just how seriously devout and/or devoted to The Lord someone was. (Plus, just how greatly someone revered The Almighty as well.) Apparently, back in the day, God’s chosen people had such an immense sense of regard for The Lord, they hardly uttered or wrote His Name without being certain it was conveyed in the very highest esteem. YAHWEH? Or YHWH? (To be perfectly honest, I don’t know as much about it as I probably should, but promise to look it up, and get back to you.) All I can remember is that The Jews have that thing with the reverence in which they write The Lord’s Name, whereas the Catholics have that whole kneeling/ bowing/ cross- your- heart, hope- to- die thing they do. Well, there’s that and the “holy water” thing. (Which, admittedly, I’m also pretty hazy on.) ‘Course, having a genuine respect for God has more to do with our attitude, respect, and proper humility toward God than going through any particular motions or rituals per se’, unless, of course, those details are specifically ordered by God. Although~

Many details are, you know . . . ordered by God, that is. If we stop and think about it, God has never been reticent about making His directives known to us. No sir. If anything, The Lord has not only had to tell us what’s required, but He’s had to remind us time and time again of those expectations we’ve failed to uphold. Right from the very get-go, The Lord spelled out, and gave us a definitive understanding about the respect that He requires from each one of us. You’ll notice, dear reader, that I’ve said requires and not required, as the guidelines for respect haven’t changed. . . just as His love for us hasn’t changed.

In fact, a great deal underlining our ability to love and admire is the motivation that it lends to our actions, dear reader. Same can be said with our actions motivated by fear and reverence. So can we assume that God Almighty has created and recreated us with these kinetic reactions within? That is, by God’s own design, for that exact purpose?!? Wellll~ it probably isn’t good policy to assume anything when it comes to the ways of The Lord. And if you have to ask, “why not? I mean, Why not jump to such conclusions?!?” then you’re probably not absorbing this chapter:) Yet it’s all definitely worth a ponder.

As I stare off in the distance, I consider the type of relationship each of us shares with God. Pensive regarding our levels of admiration and reverence for God, I think about Adam and Noah and Abraham, and of Moses as well. And a few episodes from Exodus come to mind.

I’m thinking about Moses as he approached The Angel of The Lord in The Burning Bush, being told by God not to get any closer, but to remove his sandals because he was on holy ground ~ Then The Almighty telling Moses Who He (God) Is, and Moses hiding his face “because he was afraid to look at God”.

Then, after being given a mission to deliver Israel from The Egyptians, Moses doubting his own ability to serve God. . . (and in doing so, he was actually second- guessing God as well). Therefore, God empowered Moses with scary and miraculous signs for him to share with Egypt, though Moses still balked at the directives, which only caused God’s anger to burn against Moses. Yet, God still utilized him to serve His purpose.

So then- – – after the plagues, and God changing Pharoah’s heart, and parting The Red Sea, and providing safe passage with provisions of manna and quail~ that is, after Moses had assisted The Almighty in rescuing His Chosen People from being enslaved to Egypt, Moses spent time with The Lord daily. And God (in a pillar of cloud) would meet with Moses, and spend time as one would with a friend. Then one day, Moses requested of The Lord that he might look directly upon Him, only to be told the following by God ~

{Scripture from Exodus 33 in the NIV} ¹⁹‘And The Lord said, “I will cause all My Goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim My Name, THE LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion. ²⁰But”, He said, “you cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live.”

²¹Then THE LORD said, “There is a place near Me where you may stand on a rock. ²²When My Glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. ²³Then I will remove My hand and you will see My back; but My face must not be seen.”

{Kinda wild to think about, yes?!?}

First of all, that The Almighty would ever actually commune with Moses as He did. . . then, that Moses would have the nerve to ask God to show His true form. . . then, that The Lord would not only respond to him on his level, but take the time to explain things to Moses when He clearly didn’t have to. . . and THEN, to offer up this counter- offer as a personal favor to appease Moses’ curiosity. . . Wow. A great deal for consideration there.

Especially all that The Good Lord was willing to do, and has done, for His loved ones ~~~ Amen?

Most of the time, I dare say, we hardly realize the great lengths that Our Father goes to in demonstrating certain things to us. We’re simply too lazy~ ~ ~ too clueless. Yet, even in Scriptures such as these we can look for clues~ ~ ~

if we’re so inclined.

So, then, shortly thereafter, Moses goes up the mountain in order to meet with The Lord, . . and after fasting up there without food nor water for forty days, Moses brings God’s commandments down to His people. (Now, somewhat contrary to common knowledge, there were actually more than just ‘The Ten Commandments’ that The Good Lord gave us. Just not on this particular occasion.) (And if you’d care to take the time, go ahead and read up on Exodus 34.) I’ll pick up on verse 29:

²⁹‘When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of Testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with THE LORD. ³⁰When Aaron and all The Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. ³¹But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. ³²Afterward all The Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands THE LORD had given him on Mount Sinai.

³³When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. ³⁴But whenever he entered THE LORD’s presence to speak with Him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told The Israelites what he had been commanded, ³⁵they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with THE LORD.’

{ Food for thought, eh, dear reader? Even more to ponder and be in wonder of? Indeed. Check this out :}

Time goes on. Yet after Moses’ 120 years of close communion and friendship with The Lord, and after all of the challenges and subsequent hardships, God chose to deny Moses entrance into The Promised Land.

I ask you, dear reader~ Did all of our minds just rush to ask ‘Why?!?’ :^)

I understand why we all might feel the need to know, but with what motivation? I mean, is it because of sheer curiosity or for the hunger for knowledge? . . . that we might learn a lesson from it all? Or is it because somewhere in our being, we’re poised to weigh and judge The Almighty’s actions for ourselves? ‘Cause if it is that third bit, then shame on us!

God had His reasons. And frankly, that’s the first response our minds should hop to. But just to lend our innocent curiosity some relief, I give you Deuteronomy 32: 48- 52 from The NIV~

⁴⁸On that same day THE LORD told Moses, ⁴⁹“Go up into The Abarim Range to Mount Nebo in Moab, across from Jericho, and view Canaan, the land I am giving The Israelites as their own possession. ⁵⁰There on the mountain that you have climbed you will die, and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people. ⁵¹This is because both of you broke faith with Me in the presence of The Israelites at the waters of Meribah Kadesh in the desert of Zin and because you did not uphold My Holiness among The Israelites. ⁵²Therefore you will not see the land I am giving to the people of Israel.”

Now tell me, dear reader, did your soul just sigh a breath of relief upon hearing God’s reasons for keeping Moses out of The Promised Land? Or, do we feel the need for further explanation, in order to feel at ease? Note: One might dub these to be ‘trick questions’ as the right mindset should actually be C. None Of The Above, in that we all should have been satiated with the simple information that God did what He did. . . WITHOUT our needing any further insight. In fact, in all honesty, God didn’t owe Moses any explanation either. Though, He magnanimously offered Moses the reason, probably to spare Moses the stress of wondering what he did wrong, or IF he had done anything wrong. To reiterate, God was The One Whom had been wronged, and never owed Moses anything anyway. Verily, even if Moses had done nothing wrong, it’s not as though God ever owes any of us anything. Amen?

I mean, He Is God, right? And if you or I were Moses, we might feel grateful that we even got to see the land at a distance, and feel blessed that we would soon be in Heaven anyway. We might at that, IF we were in the right mindset.

So, how did Moses react to the news as it was broken to him? (You can look it up, if you like:) I’ll tell ya this much~ He reacted to his circumstances a lot better than Jonah or a few others we might examine. Was it the difference in attitude? I’d vote ‘yes’ on that.

Consider the notion of having such a high regard and reverence for God that one not only strives to accept His will, but actually embraces His Sovereignty unconditionally, above all else. The two really do go hand- in- hand. Of course, with as self- centered as we humans are, I realize this as easier said than done.

Yet, having a true reverence for God can lend a certain sobriety from all foolishness, be it deliberate or inadvertent.

Now whether we Christians these days will ever exhibit a reverence similar to that of Moses, I’d rather not say. For one thing, I’m afraid even the most devoted Christians have tendencies of throwing The Name of The Lord around rather casually, which very well could be due to a lack of reverence. In fact, there are plenty of ways of upsetting or offending God via a lack of reverence, or of proper respect . . . (the majority of which I’ll save for another time). I fear that we often take not only His love, but His very presence for granted. And the fact that we feel so comfortable with God, and often consider Him to be a comfortable friend can truly be a double- edged sword. In that, it’s an excellent thing to have a friend in Jesus, (and God The Father and The Holy Spirit, of course), provided we embrace first and foremost, that He Is Our King. King of Kings, Lord of Lords, He is Our God. He Is The One And Only True God. He Is more than worthy of our praise and exaltation. And our reverence as well.

Now if we were still seeking a definition in the modern- day English, we find Webster defines reverence as “a fear and regard, often coupled with a feeling or attitude of deep respect, love and awe, as for something sacred; Veneration.”

I like that a lot.
For surely the reverence that we have for God, should ideally reach far beyond the fear of His wrath. (Although, I must admit, just knowing that God reserves the right to become angry and punish us, can lend a certain incentive to heed His Word. Which, in turn, can inspire someone to live a more righteous life for The Lord, genuinely and from the heart.) Of course, it’d be great if we all had a natural inclination to love and admire God as we should, and to hold Him in the highest esteem. . . but I don’t see it in most people, even Christians. It seems the masses live relatively clueless, which { in coming down the homestretch here } brings forth the following inquiry~

What’s become of our fascination with God, and all of His miraculous works?!? Have we become so desensitized that we can take His greatness for granted?!? How is it that so many are amazed by supernatural occurrences and so- called phenomenal events, and not be impressed with God Himself?!?
Have you ever watched people react to some corny magic show with wonder and amazement? Or seen how taken they are with supposed footage of extra- terrestrials? Or fascinated by ghosts? Ever seen smitten crowds react to the latest unbelievable stories regarding their favorite celebrities? Have you ever witnessed a fat guy come to life as he devours a tasty triple- cheeseburger?
How is it people are so moved/ so “wowed” by these lesser things, yet not by GOD?!?

My great- aunt Ella used to sing a bit of advice to me when I was just a wee juvenile of a mere three years old, “Watch the donut, not the hole.” “Watch the DONUT. NOT the HOLE.” ‘Course, I never knew what the hell she was singing about, but there you have it.

You know, we have an entire Channel devoted to relaying news about the weather occurring, world-wide. And people tune into it too. Now, quite often those reports convey the simply ‘highs and lows’ for that day, whereas other video displays violent hurricanes, tsunamis, and such. But WHOM IS IT controlling all of said weather?!? Whose hand is on the thermostat?!? And does anyone ever call attention to whence this weather is derived?!? “There’s a storm front moving in”, my buttocks :^)

Brothers and sisters, we really need to wake up. We need to live in a constant awareness of who God really is. And in doing so, we must also realize that God is still God, and reigns sovereign, with or without our praise or validation. (We must admit, He doesn’t need anything from us.) In fact, I certainly don’t mean to trivialize His role as Creator or anything, but long before The Earth or mankind was ever created, God existed in His Glory. And yes, God will forever rule~~~ long after this Earth is a–gonner. Yet, He still cares enough to reach out to us~
{We can insert a sigh of contentment right here if we like.} As I mentioned earlier, it’s pretty easy to be awestruck with how great God is, just by getting to know Him. . . and this should serve as motivation enough to love God Almighty, and live for Him alone.

Thus, dear reader, the Next Question poised for all of us to answer would be: Are we ready to share in something real, by embracing Him for all that He Is? And what exactly does that entail anyway?
Give it a ponder, and we’ll address this ideal in Chapter Four ~