Exodus 24:15–18 - Drawn to God to experience and declare His glory

Moses - what a befitting name for him. The name means to draw out. We have seen how many times God drew Him out. First, he was drawn out of the water of death, then he was drawn out of Egypt to the desert. Then he was drawn toward God at Mount Horeb by a burning bush which was not consumed by the fire. He was then drawn and enlisted to go to Pharaoh of Egypt and to deliver His people. Then He was drawn out by God to come up to Mount Sinai several times. Like Moses, God is drawing us out of the world of darkness to Himself, that we may connect with Him. And then to be His emissary in this fallen world.

These last four verses bring us to the climax of Exodus 24. The chapter began with God establishing and ratifying the covenant with His people on the basis of the blood from the sacrifice. Then He gave them the law. This chapter also tells us how Moses, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and 70 elders of Israel saw God and were not smitten but came back to tell their experience. Now we are about to see Moses being drawn into God’s presence to experience His glory. There he stayed forty days and forty nights.

We come across the phrase “the glory of God” ever so often in the Book of Exodus. What do we understand by God’s glory? Simply put, it is the very person of God, His majestic personality and His majestic works. This Book of Exodus is about God revealing His majestic personality and works, one upon another. It is about God rescuing the people for His glory. The glory of God is about the visible manifestations of the beauty of the invisible God. His glory was manifested in the burning bush, then again in the journey as the pillar of fire by night and the pillar of cloud by day. When they were at Mount Sinai, He called the people near and His glory was seen descending upon Mount Sinai. Here in Exodus 24:16 we are told again that “The glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days…” Verse 17 describes the manifestation of God’s glory this way. “And to the eyes of the sons of Israel, the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the mountain top.” 

Here in these last four verses of the chapter, we see God inviting Moses to come into His presence to revel in His glory. This servant of God was being drawn closer and closer to God with each experience. God called him up to the Mountain top for an experience with Him, until he was totally consumed in the holy presence of God! What Moses experienced can be our experience today. We are rescued from the domain of darkness and made God’s own sons and daughters through the works of Christ Jesus. We are called to live a set-apart and a worshipful life. We are drawn out from the world that we may live a life separated from sin. Then we need to be immersed in the Word of God constantly and to be found obeying them in our daily living. We are called to experience God’s glory and then to declare that glory. Isn’t this what 1 Peter 2:9-10 say? “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.” This is our commission and we must do it excellently for the glory of His name!