“One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple” (Psalm 27:4, NIV).
Are you aware of “the beauty of the Lord”?
Do you know God’s Supreme Attractiveness or His Divine Goodness?
Do you think if someone would behold His Awesome Beauty, he could ignore or respond negatively?
Ordinary physical beauty attracts us. It is our tendency to admire, treasure, accept or want to have what is beautiful.
Notice the reaction of the Egyptians, when they saw the beauty of Sarah, the wife of Abraham: “When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that she was a very beautiful woman. And when Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, menservants and maidservants, and camels” (Gen. 12:14-16).
The officials of Pharaoh “praised her to Pharaoh” and “she was taken into his palace.” Because of her beauty, Sarah was taken to become the wife of Pharaoh (God, however, prevented it to happen [verses 17-20]).
Consider also the reaction of Jacob, when he saw Rachel.
‘Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was lovely in form, and beautiful. Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, ‘I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel’" (Gen. 29:16-18).
Because of her beauty, not only Jacob admired her but he fell in love with her. And he was even willing to work for Laban not only for seven, but for fourteen years (verse 27) to have her as his wife.
Remember also when Moses was still a baby.
During his time the “…Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: ‘Every boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live’" (Ex. 1:22).
Exodus 2:1-3 continuous, “Now a man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.”
Notice that Moses was “a fine child” or “a beautiful child” as we read in the New King James Version. Because of his “beauty” her mother was more determined to keep or protect him.
If the temporary physical beauty could elicit positive response from us, how much more if we are given the great privilege to grasp the Beauty of the Glorious God?
Notice the reaction of those who were made aware, or had a glimpse of the Attractiveness of God’s Goodness and Might.
King David declared in Psalm 27:4 that his prime desire was “to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD.”
He also said, “Delight yourself in the LORD…” (Ps. 37:4.) “Taste and see that the LORD is good…” (Ps. 34:8.)
Asaph remarked, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you” (Ps. 73:25).
Another psalmist expressed his great longing for God: “As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” (Ps. 42:1-2.)
Let’s also listen to Habakkuk: “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior” (Hab. 3:17-18).
God’s Supreme Attractiveness will surely move us to fix our attention on Him, delight and rejoice in Him and greatly desire or long for Him. Our great admiration for Him will overflow in our hearts that will move us to encourage others to bask in the Beauty of His Goodness.
But that is not all. When God made all His goodness (Ex. 33:19) or His glory (v. 22) “…passed in front of Moses,”( Ex. 34:6) – how did Moses react?
We read in Exodus 34:8, ”Moses bowed to the ground at once and WORSHIPED.”
David also declared in Psalm 29:2, “Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.” We also read in Psalm 96:9, “Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness…”
If we behold the Beauty of His Holiness, our tendency is to worship Him.
Consider Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. When he was made to realize the Beauty of God’s Might (Dan. 4:31), the king declared:
“At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever.
His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: ‘What have you done?’" (Dan. 4:34-35.)
He added, “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble” (verse 37).
Yet, there are those who teach that God’s Beauty could generate negative response! For instance, because of our own human free will, according to them, we can still refuse to trust God though we know the Attractiveness of His Trustworthiness. They said that because of our freedom of choice, we can “choose to resist the Holy Spirit and throw God’s gift of grace back at his feet” -- though we know the Divine Goodness of the Spirit or the Supreme Value of the Gift!
Of course, we have the so-called freedom to choose. But the Word of God teaches that that is NOT the reason why some of us refused God’s Gift and disobeyed Him.
We read in 2 Corinthians 4:4, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
Also, during the return of Jesus Christ, we read in 2 Thessalonians 1:8: “He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.”
There are those who do not know the Beauty of God and of His Gift.
Jesus Christ told the Samaritan woman, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him…” (John 4:10.)
If you know the “gift” – not only you know it’s really free, but – you know the Great Worth, you know your desperate need for it, you know that you cannot be happy without it, you know its Supreme Beauty – you will choose even to ask for it and welcome the Attractive Giver!
Jesus also said in John 10:14-16:
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me -- just as the Father knows me and I know the Father -- and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. “
The “sheep” know the Goodness of the Shepherd. They know He is even willing to “lay down” His life for them. They don’t need to be forced to listen and follow Him, for they know Him and they know His voice (also verses 2-4).
How about us? Do we know the Beauty of God? Are we aware of His Supreme Goodness? Do we recognize the Attractiveness of His Being and of His Call?
If He “… made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:6) – we’ll realize that the combined attractiveness of Sarah, Rachel, Moses, Esther and other physical attractions in this world cannot match the Divine Splendor of the Glorious God!
We will not hesitate to listen and follow Him. And we will choose to embrace Him and His Gift.
PRAYER: Our Magnificent Heavenly Father, Who displays His Supreme Attractiveness before His children, so that an unquenchable desire to listen and follow You would be created in our hearts – we kneel down before You with overflowing gratitude, admiration and love. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.
