The Puppet Master 🎭

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I thought twice about doing this joke because I didn’t want to downplay an encounter with God. But then I realized that what Moses is doing is what we all do by nature! Not always with shadow puppets – but we get distracted and immediately forget what God has shown us.

It was just two chapters before this that the Israelites betrayed God by making and worshipping a golden calf – after witnessing miracle upon miracle as God lead them out of Egypt.

And how does God respond to this human nature of rebellion and short attention span? The answer is in what He proclaimed about His own nature, as He passed in front of Moses (giving him that radiant glow).

“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness”

I’m fully capable of saying, “That was an amazing sermon,” and, 30 minutes later, not remember what the sermon was about – or even be knee-deep in whatever the sermon warned about. Thankfully, we have a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, and abounding in love and faithfulness!

Exodus 34: 29-35

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.

When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.