Walter Martin on Experiencing God:

Then Moses said, "Now show me your glory." And the LORD said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But," He said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live."
Exodus 33:18‑20


In the Old Testament, when God was taking the Jews through the wilderness after their escape from Egypt, Moses honored and praised God for all the miracles that were done. He gave God all the glory. Moses knew the Lord intimately: he knew Him in the burning bush and he knew Him by revelation. But still, he wanted even more intimacy.

As Moses is talking with God, God tells him that He is pleased with what he’s been doing—he’s been doing God’s will. Moses seizes upon this opportunity. It’s very beautiful, almost like a child talking to a parent. And Moses asks God if He is pleased with him, to “...show me your glory.” What did that mean in the relationship that Moses had with God? What Moses was asking for was to look upon God. In other words, he said, “I want to see you as you really are!” Now, you’d think that a creature talking that way to the infinite Creator would be an affront, but instead God is delighted with the dialogue. He answers, “Right! Tomorrow, come on up to the mountain and I will show you my Glory! But...you can’t look at me, because if you do you are no more.”

I was always intrigued by that. God said, “Come on up, but you don’t know what you’re asking for. You are asking for intimate comradery with deity. You are asking to look into the face of eternity. You are asking to behold all power, all knowledge, all wisdom. You are asking to look at the radiance of the Glory of God’s very nature!” And you just can’t do that, because if He should ever let you see that in your present form, you would be no more. “For no one can behold me and live.”

That’s why in the New Testament, the revelation of God is so intimate for us. That’s why Jesus said, "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9) In other words, He was saying, “You are seeing all that God can safely reveal to you now, in the person of the Son.” So, the Lord Jesus Christ is the very intimate glory of God. Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.”

When we come to know the Lord Jesus as our Savior, we come to experience God in a more intimate way. Moses wanted a more intimate relationship. What Moses was denied, we have beheld—the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ!