You see it first in the garden, and you see it over and over again in individual stories. Time and again we see man's sin forging a barrier between them and God. Ever since the fall of man and the ensuing curse, man has been separated from God. God faithfully loves His people, but they can never come too close to Him because of their sinfulness.
After being rescued from Pharaoh's hand in Egypt, the Israelites finally arrive at Mt Sinai. There, they enter into a covenant with God-
"The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."
The people agreed to do everything that the Lord commanded. So Moses climbs up the mountain to receive the first instructions that the Israelites are to follow: The 10 Commandments.
Over and over again the people are reminded to stay at a distance from the mountain. First they are warned that, if they come close, they are to be put to death. Later, the Lord says that if the people came near they would die. They couldn't even come up the mountain a little bit. And, given how awesome the scene on the mountain was, they didn't seem to want to:
"On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled... Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly...
Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”
Important things were happening. God was meeting man on the mountain and making a covenant with them. He had chosen two men (Moses and Aaron) to meet with Him on the mountain, and no one else could come near. The display of God's power was so awesome, no one wanted to.
How could man ever come near to God? Who can keep His commandments perfectly?
"Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false
and does not swear deceitfully."
Who has ever lived truly clean hands (ie, never sinned)? Who has EVER had a truly pure heart? Who has never given his affection for a god lesser than our Creator?
"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
Who, then, will ascend the hill of the Lord for us who have failed to keep His covenant? Who can represent us before the awesome presence of the Lord?
"But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."
Fast forward to another time when God met with man, doing an important thing, making a covenant with them:
"And he (Jesus) said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vineuntil the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood."
Did you catch it? Do you see what happened? We can't draw near to God because we're sinful. So God drew near to us. Sinners. Rebels. Idol-factories. And He makes a new covenant with us. He doesn't wait for us to go up the mountain to Him. He sends His perfect Son to go on our behalf. His Son has clean hands and a pure heart. His Son never lifted up His soul to what is false. He was tested in every way, and was without sin.
And what did He do when He ascended the holy hill on our behalf? He gave Himself for us. His body and His blood given for us is what enacts this new covenant. Why? Because God's punishment of sin demands that the price (death) for sin be paid. Jesus takes our sin on Himself and carries it to the cross, bears the punishment for the sin, and rises again victorious on the third day. Knowing this would soon take place, He invited His disciples to come close to Him.
Close enough to break bread together, close enough to pass the cup of wine that symbolized His blood which would be spilled for them soon. And He invites us as well to come close to His table. Close to Him, the same one who filled the Israelites with terror in His presence on the mountain. Now, because of His finished work- because He has dealt with our sin- we can come close. More than that, He invites us to come close!
How in the world could we possibly pass up an opportunity to come close to the table to commune with Him? The display of God's love is so awesome, who wouldn't want to come?
After being rescued from Pharaoh's hand in Egypt, the Israelites finally arrive at Mt Sinai. There, they enter into a covenant with God-
"The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."
The people agreed to do everything that the Lord commanded. So Moses climbs up the mountain to receive the first instructions that the Israelites are to follow: The 10 Commandments.
Over and over again the people are reminded to stay at a distance from the mountain. First they are warned that, if they come close, they are to be put to death. Later, the Lord says that if the people came near they would die. They couldn't even come up the mountain a little bit. And, given how awesome the scene on the mountain was, they didn't seem to want to:
"On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled... Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly...
Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”
Important things were happening. God was meeting man on the mountain and making a covenant with them. He had chosen two men (Moses and Aaron) to meet with Him on the mountain, and no one else could come near. The display of God's power was so awesome, no one wanted to.
How could man ever come near to God? Who can keep His commandments perfectly?
"Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false
and does not swear deceitfully."
Who has ever lived truly clean hands (ie, never sinned)? Who has EVER had a truly pure heart? Who has never given his affection for a god lesser than our Creator?
"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
Who, then, will ascend the hill of the Lord for us who have failed to keep His covenant? Who can represent us before the awesome presence of the Lord?
"But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."
Fast forward to another time when God met with man, doing an important thing, making a covenant with them:
"And he (Jesus) said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vineuntil the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood."
Did you catch it? Do you see what happened? We can't draw near to God because we're sinful. So God drew near to us. Sinners. Rebels. Idol-factories. And He makes a new covenant with us. He doesn't wait for us to go up the mountain to Him. He sends His perfect Son to go on our behalf. His Son has clean hands and a pure heart. His Son never lifted up His soul to what is false. He was tested in every way, and was without sin.
And what did He do when He ascended the holy hill on our behalf? He gave Himself for us. His body and His blood given for us is what enacts this new covenant. Why? Because God's punishment of sin demands that the price (death) for sin be paid. Jesus takes our sin on Himself and carries it to the cross, bears the punishment for the sin, and rises again victorious on the third day. Knowing this would soon take place, He invited His disciples to come close to Him.
Close enough to break bread together, close enough to pass the cup of wine that symbolized His blood which would be spilled for them soon. And He invites us as well to come close to His table. Close to Him, the same one who filled the Israelites with terror in His presence on the mountain. Now, because of His finished work- because He has dealt with our sin- we can come close. More than that, He invites us to come close!
How in the world could we possibly pass up an opportunity to come close to the table to commune with Him? The display of God's love is so awesome, who wouldn't want to come?
1 comment:
Thanks, Dan, for closing the loop, so to speak... God has always desired out closeness, usually confused with OUR fleshly attempts to do same!
I really appreciate that you required us to "read" the Scriptures, not simply refer to them--something we all to ften neglect!
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