And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face.—Exodus 34:33

Forty days and nights Moses remained in the mount; and during all this time, as at the first, he was miraculously sustained. No person had been permitted to go up with him, nor during the time of his absence were any to approach the mount. At God’s command he had prepared two tables of stone, and had taken them with him to the summit; and again the Lord “wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.”

During that long time spent in communion with God, the face of Moses had reflected the glory of the divine Presence; unknown to himself his face shone with a dazzling light when he descended from the mountain. Such a light illumined the countenance of Stephen when brought before his judges; “and all that sat in the council, looking steadfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel” (Acts 6:15). Aaron as well as the people shrank away from Moses, and “they were afraid to come nigh him.” Seeing their confusion and terror, but ignorant of the cause, he urged them to come near….

By this brightness God designed to impress upon Israel the sacred, exalted character of His law, and the glory of the gospel revealed through Christ. While Moses was in the mount, God presented to him, not only the tables of the law, but also the plan of salvation. He saw that the sacrifice of Christ was pre-figured by all the types and symbols of the Jewish age; and it was the heavenly light streaming from Calvary, no less than the glory of the law of God, that shed such a radiance upon the face of Moses. That divine illumination symbolized the glory of the dispensation of which Moses was the visible mediator….

Moses was a type of Christ. As Israel’s intercessor veiled his countenance, because the people could not endure to look upon its glory, so Christ, the divine Mediator, veiled His divinity with humanity when He came to earth. Had He come clothed with the brightness of heaven, He could not have found access to men and women in their sinful state. They could not have endured the glory of His presence. Therefore He humbled Himself, and was made “in the likeness of sinful flesh” (Romans 8:3), that He might reach the fallen race, and lift them up.—Patriarchs and Prophets, 329, 330.

Further Reflection: Do I possess the glow that comes from obedience to God’s sacred law?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

“I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.”—Matthew 13:35

The Scripture says, “All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; … that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 13:34, 35). Natural things were the medium for the spiritual; the things of nature and the life-experience of His hearers were connected with the truths of the written word. Leading thus from the natural to the spiritual kingdom, Christ’s parables are links in the chain of truth that unites human beings with God, and earth with heaven.

In His teaching from nature, Christ was speaking of the things which His own hands had made, and which had qualities and powers that He Himself had imparted. In their original perfection all created things were an expression of the thought of God. To Adam and Eve in their Eden home nature was full of the knowledge of God, teeming with divine instruction. Wisdom spoke to the eye and was received into the heart; for they communed with God in His created works. As soon as the holy pair transgressed the law of the Most High, the brightness from the face of God departed from the face of nature. The earth is now marred and defiled by sin. Yet even in its blighted state much that is beautiful remains. God’s object lessons are not obliterated; rightly understood, nature speaks of her Creator.

In the days of Christ these lessons had been lost sight of. Men and women had well-nigh ceased to discern God in His works. The sinfulness of humanity had cast a pall over the fair face of creation; and instead of manifesting God, His works became a barrier that concealed Him. Human beings “worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator.” Thus the heathen “became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened” (Romans 1:25, 21). So in Israel, human teaching had been put in the place of God’s. Not only the things of nature, but the sacrificial service and the Scriptures themselves—all given to reveal God—were so perverted that they became the means of concealing Him.—Christ’s Object Lessons, 17, 18.

Further Reflection: The next time I have a chance to be in nature, what do I want God to say to me?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

“Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation.”—Luke 2:29, 30

Spiritual things are spiritually discerned. In the temple the Son of God was dedicated to the work He had come to do. The priest looked upon Him as he would upon any other child. But though he neither saw nor felt anything unusual, God’s act in giving His Son to the world was acknowledged. This occasion did not pass without some recognition of Christ. “There was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.”

As Simeon enters the temple, he sees a family presenting their firstborn son before the priest. Their appearance bespeaks poverty; but Simeon understands the warnings of the Spirit, and he is deeply impressed that the infant being presented to the Lord is the Consolation of Israel, the One he has longed to see. To the astonished priest, Simeon appears like a man enraptured. The child has been returned to Mary, and he takes it in his arms and presents it to God, while a joy that he has never before felt enters his soul. As he lifts the infant Saviour toward heaven, he says, “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.”

The spirit of prophecy was upon this man of God, and while Joseph and Mary stood by, wondering at his words, he blessed them, and said unto Mary, “Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; (yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”—The Desire of Ages, 55.

Further Reflection: Simeon yearned to see the Messiah who would take away the sins of the world. What am I yearning for God to show me at this moment in my life?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”—John 2:19

Christ was the foundation and life of the temple. Its services were typical of the sacrifice of the Son of God. The priesthood was established to represent the mediatorial character and work of Christ. The entire plan of sacrificial worship was a foreshadowing of the Saviour’s death to redeem the world. There would be no efficacy in these offerings when the great event toward which they had pointed for ages was consummated.

Since the whole ritual economy was symbolical of Christ, it had no value apart from Him. When the Jews sealed their rejection of Christ by delivering Him to death, they rejected all that gave significance to the temple and its services. Its sacredness had departed. It was doomed to destruction. From that day sacrificial offerings and the service connected with them were meaningless. Like the offering of Cain, they did not express faith in the Saviour. In putting Christ to death, the Jews virtually destroyed their temple. When Christ was crucified, the inner veil of the temple was rent in twain from top to bottom, signifying that the great final sacrifice had been made, and that the system of sacrificial offerings was forever at an end.

“In three days I will raise it up.” In the Saviour’s death the powers of darkness seemed to prevail, and they exulted in their victory. But from the rent sepulcher of Joseph, Jesus came forth a conqueror. “Having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them” (Colossians 2:15). By virtue of His death and resurrection He became the minister of the “true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man” (Hebrews 8:2). Human beings reared the Jewish tabernacle; humans builded the Jewish temple; but the sanctuary above, of which the earthly was a type, was built by no human architect. “Behold the Man whose name is The Branch…. He shall build the temple of the Lord; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon His throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne” (Zechariah 6:12, 13).—The Desire of Ages, 165, 166.

Further Reflection: Satan believed that his plan to kill Jesus would end God’s plan of salvation for humanity. It resulted in the opposite. How has God used moments of suffering to bring about even greater blessings in my life?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names

A man who has friends must himself be friendly,
But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
      —Proverbs 18:24

The Lord has not left you to yourself. He is looking upon you with tender compassion. His Spirit still strives for the mastery over the powers of darkness. If you will come to Christ, hungry and thirsty for the bread and water of life, the power of an abiding Christ will break down that harsh, cold, selfishness, which is the opposite of sympathy….

Christ is knocking at the door of your heart, asking for admittance. Shall He knock in vain? Will you refuse Him entrance, or will you welcome Him as an honored guest? Do not refuse to admit Him, for the love of Jesus is of more value to you than the whole world.

Its length, its depth, its height, its breadth cannot be estimated. It opens and expands the heart, giving it a new capacity for loving God. The calls and invitations made in the Bible mean all that the strongest language can express. The Lord is anxious for you to return to Him. He knows that you need Him, and He needs you, for He says, “Ye are My witnesses” (Isaiah 43:10). You do yourself a serious wrong when you turn your face from the living God. Fear not to make a full and decided consecration of yourself. Cast yourself without reserve on the grace of Jesus Christ; you will find that there is no compassion like that of infinite purity. Under His control, you will appreciate the goodness, longsuffering, and self-sacrificing love of God, and will reveal it to the world.

You may think that no one really understands your case, but there is One who is acquainted with every circumstance of it. He knows that you have no strength or wisdom of your own, that you do not even understand your own necessities; and He has promised to keep you from falling, and in this promise you may rely. At times you may feel like weeping because you have lost your joy and hope in the Lord; but Christ says to you, “Open the door of your heart and let Me in.” He is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother, and to Him you may tell every trial, every sorrow, every need. He will teach you many things above price of gold or silver, and give you peace and joy.—Letter 109, 1896.

Further Reflection: Have I shared what is on my heart with Jesus today?

From Jesus, Name Above All Names