JULY 31, 2024

So far this week, we’ve looked at two incredible ideas: God is transcendent (unreachable by us!) and God is immanent (present with us!). Because God has chosen to reveal Himself to us, we can know at least a glimpse of the transcendent God.

Right in the center of Psalm 145 is an incredible statement:

“The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
The Lord is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.”
Psalm 145: 8-9

These words are repeated several times throughout the Psalms, and nearly a dozen times throughout the Old Testament. Few ideas of God are repeated so consistently and frequently—and there’s a good reason why this revelation of God’s character is so central.

Way back at Mount Sinai, God and Israel were entering into a covenant together. Moses, very reasonably, wanted to know what sort of deity he was making a life-and-death commitment to on behalf of the people. So God introduces Himself to Moses. Though the reader is already a hundred or so pages into the book, Exodus 34 is where God makes His own introduction.

And what words does God choose for such a momentous event?

Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…

Exodus 34:5-6

No wonder the biblical writers and prophets used this language again and again! These are the words God chose to describe Himself.

Can you imagine?

But first God asked Moses to hide in the cleft of a rock, where God would hide him with His hand—for no one could see God’s face and live.

This a powerful demonstration of God’s transcendence and immanence. No, we cannot see God’s face or His glory. That is far, far too much for us. And yet, God has chosen to introduce Himself. From the very beginning, He has asked us to know Him as “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in love, good to all, compassionate to all that He has made.”

Questions for reflection and discussion:

  • Have you considered what it means that God introduced Himself?
  • Do the words you use to imagine or talk about God align with the words He used for Himself?

Church Reading Plan: Jeremiah 27; Mark 13