Exodus chapter 33 verses 15-16 (NIV)
Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.
How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”
Colossians chapter 1 verse 27 (NIV)
To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Moses was very clear about one thing here. The only thing that set Israel apart from the other nations around them was the Presence of God with them. Without His Presence there was nothing else to distinguish them from anyone else.
So also with those of us who claim to belong to Christ. It is not the deeds we do, or the fellowship in which we worship that should be the mark of a Christian, but the presence of Jesus and the moving of His Holy Spirit in our lives. We carry Him with us wherever we go, and need to let Him have the freedom to move in us so that others can see Christ in us, the Hope of Glory and want to find Him for themselves. That’s what God had intended for Israel. He wanted them to be an example to the other nations, not because they were special but because God was with them. That’s what He wants for us too.
Dear Lord,
Let the light of Your Presence shine brightly through my life. I pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen.