One of the things
that boggles my mind and drives me crazy as a parent is how often I have to
repeat myself. Not that I think I was
better when I was a child. Sometimes
after a long day for repeating, correcting, getting kids on track, etc., I feel
like I should call my parents and apologize for the times they had to do the
same thing with me!
Well, in today’s
reading God is repeating Himself. He is
re-giving the Law to Moses. But as He
does that He tells us something important about Himself. God said, “"The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and
gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7
maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet
he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their
children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation." (Exo
34:6-7 NIV)
Whenever God
speaks we should take to heart what He says, but when He speaks of Himself, it
seems wise to take double note. Too
often we imagine God in our image, but here He is telling us who He is.
He is (which is
what The LORD, YHWH, “I Am” means) compassionate and gracious. That is the starting point for our
relationship with God. He looks upon us
with compassion and grace. Let there be
no thought that somehow we earn God’s favor or attention. His mercy moves Him to act on our behalf, and
it is there that we meet God, because God bridges the gap caused by our sin and
rebellion, just as He did with Israel. He
comes to us in Word and Sacrament to deliver the salvation of Jesus’ death and
resurrection to us.
God is slow to
anger. I love the Hebrew here. It literally says he is long in nostrils –
which serves as a picture of anger as one’s nostrils flare. God is patient. Yes, He must repeat Himself. He knows that He is dealing with stiff-necked
people when He deals with you and me, just as He did with Israel. Yet in His mercy it is worth it to Him to be
slow to anger in order to redeem us and make us His own.
God is abounding
in steadfast love and faithfulness, forgiving transgression and sin even as he
visits the sins of the guilty upon them.
Here we have the heart of our relationship with God. He did indeed visit the sins of the guilty
upon them, but He did so when Jesus stood in our place and plead guilty of our
sins. God made Him who had no sin to be
sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 5:21)
This is what Romans 3 is talking about when it says, “But now a
righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law
and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus
Christ to all who believe.” (Rom 3:21-22) Because God visited our sins upon
Jesus, we experience God’s abounding steadfast love and faithfulness.
What an amazing
God we have!
I’d be remiss to
not comment on Moses’ new shine after he came down from the mountain. Don’t think that Mo is the only one who gets
to glow after his encounter with God.
True, his skin physically shone with the glory of the Father, but we too
shine with the light of Son, Jesus, through the work of the Holy Spirit. After all, you are the light of the world,
Jesus said. So let your light shine so
that others may see and glorify your Father in Heaven for He is merciful,
gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
Father in Heaven, don’t let me focus on the fact that
Moses’ face shown with your glory. He
hid that light behind a veil so as to not terrify the people. Instead, let me shine the light of your Son
in my life so anyone who meets me may meet Him and, by Your Spirit, they may
believe. In Jesus’ name; amen.
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