Psalm 43
God has an agenda. It’s a simple one—to draw us ever closer to Him in relationship. I believe He does this even with His perfect creatures—those who have never fallen into sin. Why? Because no creature—even a perfect one—can ever fully understand the mind of the Creator. There will always be more to learn, more to be revealed. And so God is in the business of personal revelation.
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There is a lovely little progression in this psalm, depicting the way in which God draws us closer to Him: “Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight.” (vs 3-4)
Did you see the movement there?
To the holy mountain.
To the place where God dwells.
To the altar of God.
To God Himself.
As God meets us with His light and care, He uses them to lead us into His presence. Often, this requires many steps. We who have never lived in the open presence of the Lord must go through a process of being drawn to Him—sort of like gradually exposing your eyes to light when you’ve been in a dark place for a long time.
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Everything God has done in the past and everything He is now doing is for the purpose of drawing us ever closer to Him and opening our eyes more and more to His glorious light. One of these days, we will be spending eternity in His presence, and even there, He will be drawing us closer and closer, teaching us more and more about His infinite goodness.
Oh, what a wonder that will be!