“For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.
—Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-23
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all…”
So many of the events that happened to the Israelites in the Old Testament were set as types and shadows to their spiritual counterpart in the New Testament. God did these things as examples (see I Cor. 10:11) so we could understand His plan of redemption for us through Christ. The above scripture draws on the awe inspiring experience Moses and the Israelites had at Mt. Sinai when they met God “face to face” for the first time since leaving Egypt.
Exodus 19 lays out the events. Three months after crossing the Red Sea, Moses and the Israelites arrive at Mt. Sinai where a physical manifestation of the “I Am” appeared for all to see.
“Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder.” —Exodus 19:18-19
What an awesome sight it must have been, the mountain lit up with fire, lightnings, and smoke, thundering and quaking shaking the ground under their feet and the blast of a loud trumpet announcing His visitation. I can just picture Steven Spielberg making a movie about this with really cool special effects.
It then goes on to say that God came down on the top of the mountain and called Moses up to meet with Him. Here Moses communed with the one, true living God, the Creator, the all-knowing, all-present, all-powerful Ancient of Days. God delivered to Moses the Ten Commandments and instruction for leading the people of his covenant promise, the descendants of His friend Abraham.
Below, at the edge of the mountain, the Israelites watched:
“All the people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance.” —Exodus 20:18
When Moses came down the people entreated him to be their go between with God.
“Then they said to Moses, ‘Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die.'” —Exodus 20:19
I think a lot of the time this is us. We want someone to go to God for us and tell us what He says. We are too sin conscious or afraid to face Him ourselves or not willing to work on our own hearts to be in a place where we truly allow ourselves to hear his voice. We think if we go into that place of His presence and hear His voice “we will die.” Truth is, yes we will. When we do finally do this, we end up dying to ourselves and finding life in Him. As Paul said, “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). I’m learning that being dead is okay, God has new life for us when we finally lose our own.
Moses wasn’t satisfied standing at the base of the mountain watching God from a distance. He sought after God’s presence, pursued it with a passion. Because of his heart attitude, God used him mightily.
We, Church, have not come to this Mt. Sinai that once rumbled and burned and shook but we have come to Mt. Zion and to the City of the Living God. We no longer have to stand at the base of the mountain watching, we can climb up the Mountain of God and into His presence to hear His voice for ourselves. We can enjoy that fellowship and presence that Moses treasured. So, I say it again, RISE UP and enter in, God is welcoming His people to this mountain and to this shaking that leaves only the things that cannot be shaken remaining. For our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29).
Be blessed!
(originally published 3/11/13)