One of the most solemn and sobering events in the Old Testament is when Moses meets the Lord at the burning bush. There are many people in the Old Testament with whom I wish I’d been present during their great moments with the Lord – people like Abraham, David, Elijah, etc. But I confess that I’ve never thought to myself, “I wish I could have been standing next to Moses at the burning bush”. I would have felt so unworthy and so intimidated by God’s holiness that I would have died right there on the spot.
The passage reads as follows, “The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed. So Moses said, ‘I must turn aside now and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burned up.’ When the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ Then He said, ‘Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground’” (Exodus 3:2-5). The next verse says that Moses “hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God”.
When I was growing up I thought God was safely stationed in the ornate church cathedral; consequently, how I lived my life on the rest of the earth’s surface was my business. People prefer to keep God in a box – it’s easier to live footloose and fancy free. After I became a Christian I learned from the bible that God is everywhere – He is omnipresent. Then, when I added God’s holiness into the equation, I became much more sensitive to the way I lived wherever I was located.
As we go into our daily activities let’s be sensitive to the biblical fact that God is present everywhere we go. We are always walking on holy ground. As we go to the store, to work, or just stay at home – know that we are standing on holy ground. The apostle Peter tells us to be holy because God is holy (I Peter 1:16)
Read Isaiah 6:1-8 and listen to Holy Ground.
Isaiah 6:1-8
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of armies.
The whole earth is full of His glory.”
And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said,
“Woe to me, for I am ruined!
Because I am a man of unclean lips,
And I live among a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies.”
Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips; and your guilt is taken away and atonement is made for your sin.”
Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!”