1 Then the Lord said to Moses,
“Leave this place [Mt. Sinai]
and go up to the land I promised
on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob …
3 Go up to the land flowing with
milk and honey. But I will not go with you,
because you are a stiff-necked people
and I might destroy you on the way.”
Exodus 33
Do you ever remember driving with dad on vacation?
In our family, most of the time, we really loved our travels. But occasionally we kids could make our parents mad. And when we knew it was really bad, dad would say, “Don’t make me stop this car!”
Now we were pretty sure what dad meant. My dad is a wonderful, gentle guy, but we knew that if we didn’t “settle down,” his stopping would probably mean that it would be hard for us to sit in a car seat for the next three hours.
But one thing dad didn’t do was say, “You can still go to California, but I’m not going with you. Good luck hitchhiking on your own.”
That however is what God was suggesting in Exodus 33. God would not go back on his promise. They’d still get to go to the Promised Land, but our Lord was saying, “[You can still] go … to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you.”
The people of Israel were acting “32:7 perversely.” The anger of the Lord was kindled. Wrath-32:10 The people had a decision to make: physical blessings (milk and honey) or spiritual blessing (the presence of the Lord).
It appeared to be either-or.
Which would you choose?
Here was Moses’ reply to this dilemma: “33:15 [Lord,] if your presence will not go [with us], do not carry us up from here.” Translations: “We’d rather have the spiritual blessing of your presence rather than any physical blessing, including milk, honey, and land.”
And here’s the good news in the midst of those words of faith … Something majestic happened when Moses helped Israel prioritize the presence of God over and above any physical thing: They suddenly got both! They got to keep the presence of God and still go to the Promised Land.
It reminds me of C. S. Lewis’ famous statement: If you focus on heaven, you get earth thrown-in. If you focus on earth, you get neither.
Spend some time today considering the physical things that you prioritize over and above the presence of God … and in what ways does that make you poorer and poorer.
In Christ’s Love,
a guy who loves road trips
with my father (and Father)
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