His Glory, His Way

by Melissa Fross, Threshold Staff

A few years back, a Christian band called Third Day produced a powerful song entitled “Show Me Your Glory” that became an instant classic. The song echoed the prayer of Moses in Exodus 33, verse 18: “And [Moses] said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.” And the Lord answered the prayer by pressing Moses into the cleft of the rock as He walked by. Moses viewed the hinder parts, the remainders, of God’s glory, and we stand in awe of the relationship between Moses and the I Am. But stop and think about it; was this really what Moses asked for? To see God’s leftovers? No. He asked to see the full glory of God, and God in His mercy in effect said, “No.” To see all of God’s glory would have meant instant death for Moses, and his God protected him.

Was Moses bummed by the fact that God didn’t answer his prayer his way? I don’t think so. I think Moses was so overwhelmed by the trails of glory that he didn’t have the human wherewithal to be disappointed. While it may not have been what Moses expected, the impact of his experience was visible for days afterward, as the skin on his face glowed supernaturally to the point that no one else in the camp could stand to look at him.

A few books later in the Bible, we find another, very different situation where an entire crowd sought to view the glory of God. Matthew 27:35a, 39-40 read, “And they crucified him…and they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, and saying…If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.” Obviously, the attitude of reverence shown by Moses in our first example is not present in this situation. As Jesus hung before them on the tree, the crowd taunted Him further in verse 42: “He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.” Even in their hatred, they searched for a sign. They looked for the glory of God to be put on display as evidence of the Lordship of Christ.

The truth is that the very proof of glory sought by the masses around the foot of Calvary was staring them in the face. It was God’s glory that held the man Jesus Christ to that tree. It was His glory manifested visibly before them, the once-for-all sacrifice that guarantees salvation to those who believe.

Why did they miss it that day? Why couldn’t they see? Why did it take Peter’s anointed sermon weeks later to open their eyes to the glory? Because to the world, glory doesn’t belong on a rough-hewn cross, run through with rusty nails, gouged with the head of an enemy’s spear. Glory isn’t supposed to bleed, shouldn’t cry out in agony, can’t be seen as weak. To them, glory is above all that.

Instead, Jesus made it clear that His glory is about all that. It’s about doing everything necessary to show love. It’s about protecting His children from themselves sometimes. What would’ve happened if Jesus had listened to their cries that day and had proved His Kingship their way? Would you or I have access to the love and power of God today?

It seems that in our humanity, we try to tell God what to do, then we elaborate on how we want it done. For some reason, we believe that the Creator of the Universe needs an instruction manual in order to tackle our little issues. What if Moses had insisted on seeing the glory of God his way? Without Moses’ leadership, the children of Israel may never have made it through the wilderness, much less out of it.

Too often, we paint God into a corner with our how-to plans and specific expectations instead of just letting Him show His glory, His way. We expect God to move on the right, so we don’t even see the path He’s clearing on the left. We look for His hand to work in accordance with our plans, and we don’t recognize the movement of the Spirit to accomplish His plans.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve decided that my plans and expectations of God are too limiting. I can’t begin to understand what He has in mind, so it’s in my best interest to do things His way, not mine. If I truly agree with Paul that the Lord “is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think,” I should be willing to get out of the way and let Him surpass even my wildest imagination.

His glory. His way.