“Moses
and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up [10] and
saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of
sapphire, clear as the sky itself.” –Exodus 24:10
I’ve read the account of Moses and this part of the Bible many times, but I
don’t ever remember reading this verse, especially the part that says, “Under his feet was something
like a pavement made of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.”
There were two applications from this that I was reminded of. First,
though I’ve read the Bible many times, there are many things that I have still
probably missed along the way. And even with the things that I know I
have read there are many truths for me still to learn and more deeply to
understand and apply to my life.
The other thought that I was reminded of related to the phrase, “… sapphire, as clear as the
sky.” The Bible mentions in several places the idea
that things that are clear or pure are also transparent like glass or clear as
the sky. For instance, Revelation 21:21 says, “The great street of the city
was of pure gold, like transparent glass.”
A few years ago, I felt like the Lord gave me the thought that this also
relates to what Jesus meant when he said in Matthew 5:8, “Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.” When our hearts and lives
are clean and free from the impurities of sin like pride, anger,
self-righteousness, self-reliance, or even just apathy, then we are able to see
God more clearly. It’s like seeing a mountain range free from the
pollution and smog of a large city nearby. It’s like looking through the
clear lenses of a pair of glasses that have just been cleaned of fingerprints
and smudges.
One of the practical ways we can grow in having this type of a pure heart is to
start by simply being transparent
with God. We can just being honest with God about those pollutants in our lives
that we know are there and we can ask Him to gracious remove them and renew us
in the reality of the cleansing work of the shed blood of Jesus on the cross.
Let’s take some time this week to be more real and honest with God and then
let’s claim this promise (Matthew 5:8) to see Him more clearly and real than
ever than before.
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