Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” 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 will have compassion. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.” Then the Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When 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. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.” (Exodus 33:18-23)
Adam and Eve had walked with God in the Garden of Eden. They had seen their Creator face-to-face. That all changed with the fall into sin. No longer did God allow sinful humankind to see his face. No longer could sinful humankind bear to stand before him.
On Mount Sinai, God allowed his servant Moses to catch a mere glimpse of his glory, but he didn’t allow Moses to see his face. Merely his back. That was for Moses’ good because no sinful human being can see the holy, righteous God and live.
God’s own Son, Jesus Christ, came down from heaven to make his dwelling among sinful humankind. He allowed glimpses of his goodness—through miracles as well as to three of his closest disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration—but he never revealed his full glory to the people he walked among.
We still catch glimpses, to this very day, of God’s goodness—his mercy, compassion, and love. We see it so clearly in his Word and sacraments. We taste and see that the Lord is good; his love endures forever, as the psalmists wrote (Psalm 34:8; 136:1-26).
All of our sins have been forgiven by our Savior Jesus. Through his perfect life, innocent death, and triumphant resurrection, we have peace with God. We’re his dearly loved children; there’s a home in heaven waiting for us.
As the Lutheran theologian, pastor, and hymnodist Paul Gerhardt wrote so beautifully:
Lord, when your glory I shall see
and taste your kingdom’s pleasure,
your blood my royal robe shall be,
my joy beyond all measure!
When I appear before your throne,
your righteousness shall be my crown;
with these I need not hide me.
And there, in garments richly wrought,
as your own bride I shall be brought,
to stand in joy beside you. (Christian Worship: Hymnal 884)
What’s waiting for us in heaven? What will we see?
Dear Christian, when we get to heaven, we’ll see our Savior-God face-to-face. No longer just glimpses of his goodness. We’ll see his glory fully and without fear because we’re God’s dearly loved children. We’ll live with our heavenly Father forever. I can’t even begin to imagine what that will be like.
But I can’t wait to find out.
How do you live while you wait for heaven? The Bible’s doctrine of the end times gives us hope for the future as Christians. It also influences our fundamental attitudes about life on earth and can have a profound impact on our daily behavior. Learn more in Professor Thomas P. Nass’ End Times: Jesus Is Coming Soon.
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Alex Brown is the marketing and content copywriter at Northwestern Publishing House and a 2023 graduate of Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary with a Master of Divinity degree. He enjoys reading, writing, and spending time in God’s creation with his family.
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