“Do
Not Be Afraid.
God
Has Come To Test You”
When
the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the
mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said
to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak
to us or we will die.”
Moses
said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the
fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”
The
people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where
God was.
Then
the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You
have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven: Do not make any
gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of
gold.
“‘Make
an altar of earth for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and
fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats and your cattle. Wherever I cause my
name to be honored, I will come to you and bless you. If you make an altar of
stones for me, do not build it with dressed stones, for you will defile it if
you use a tool on it. And do not go up to my altar on steps, or your private
parts may be exposed.’
Exodus 20:18-26
Imagine
standing at the bottom of a mountain, elbow to elbow with everyone in your
community. Thunder and lightning flash; you hear an earsplitting trumpet blast.
Amid flames, God descends on the mountaintop. The summit is enveloped in smoke;
the entire mountain begins to shake, and so do you.
The
Israelites were asking Moses to mediate between them and the Almighty. After
meeting with God, Moses brought God’s messages back down the mountain to the
people below.
Today
we worship the same God who displayed His staggering greatness on Mount Sinai.
Because God is perfectly holy and we are desperately sinful, we cannot relate
to Him. Left to ourselves we too would (and should) shake in terror. But Jesus
made it possible for us to know God when He took our sins on Himself, died, and
rose again. Even now, Jesus is the go between for us to a holy and perfect God.
Jesus bridges the gap between God and us.
Our
Daily Bread – March 14, 2015