Title: God Leads to the Covenant
The God who guides (Ex 19:1-25)
God is a blessing. Jesus Christ is the source of blessing. Abraham was blessed through faith (Galatians 3:8-9). But who will receive the blessings Abraham received? In the New Testament era, those who believe in Jesus Christ receive it. What is your belief? It is the belief that if you keep the promises of God, you will be blessed.
1. The Covenant of Mount Sinai
(1) Israel stayed on Mount Sinai (verses 1-2)
(2) God's law on Israel's guidance (verses 3-4)
“He carried the Israelites on the wings of eagles and led them” (Deuteronomy 32:9-11). Just as an eagle disturbs the gospel seat and flaps over its young, spreads its wings to receive the young, and spreads it on its wings, so the Lord alone led them and protected you with the wings of the eagle. Please believe that the reason our God puts us Christians in such extreme crises and hardships is because he is trying to train himself to be strong believers who can soar in heaven.
“Small trials bring small blessings, and great trials bring great blessings.”
2. God's Conditional Covenant
(1) God's sovereignty (v. 5a)
I believe that if we are under God's sovereignty, we should have the assurance that all of God's things can be provided. There is a saying in the book "Your God is too small". “The size of your life is determined by the size of the God you believe in.” David, who was born in a shepherd's family and became the king of the united kingdom of Israel after working as a shepherd, confesses to God as the master of all things (1 Chronicles 29:11-12). This great confession made David a great man.
(2) The promise to the great Israel (verses 5-2-6)
① God's possession / There are three elements necessary for a person to live as a human being. Psychologically, it is the meaning of life (Significance), the stability of life (Security), and the sense of belonging (Belong). The sense of slavery that had been tamed by 400 years of slavery now needed the identity of belonging to God.
②The kingdom of priests / Priests are a middle ground between God and the people. The priest cuts off the sins of the people, and the priest is the mediator who applies the blood of an animal and prays for forgiveness of the sins of the people before God in the Most Holy. There is a priestly prayer asking Moses to forgive Israel at the risk of being destroyed by idolatry (Exodus 32:31-32). God heard Moses' prayer and said that He would not immediately judge the people for their sins.
As such, the priest's mission is to embrace the sins of the people who have sinned and pray. And begging for forgiveness even when you see yourself. It is the priest who takes on all the responsibilities and prostrates himself before the cross. So how important is the position of the priest?
③Holy people/Holy people means “a people set apart holy to serve God.” There are historically Puritans among those who wanted to live as God's holy people. They wanted to live purely according to God's will. When the Anglican Church in England was corrupt, the Puritans moved to America and built a mighty nation. God blesses holy people who live apart to live for God.
⑶The conclusion of the covenant between the Israelites (verses 7-8)
When Moses spoke to the people of Israel with this promise of God, the Israelites heard God's words and responded, "As the LORD has commanded, we will do everything" (verse 8). The covenant that the Israelites make now is a conditional covenant (verse 5). If you do not keep the word of God, you will lose such status blessings.
Of course, God chose Israel and did not forsake it. However, the law that blessings are given to those who keep them is still in effect. In the meantime, God had a plan to save the nations by choosing Israel. He chose Abraham as the father of faith and made an unconditional covenant (Genesis 12:1-3). An unconditional covenant is a covenant in which God's grace takes precedence. Even though Abraham could not keep the word of God, he made Abraham a source of blessing. However, the covenant made with Israel this time is a covenant to keep God's will. This is a covenant that weighs your works. It is the Law Covenant like the Ten Commandments. That is, when the people of Israel keep the law, Israel will become God's property, become a kingdom of priests, and receive the blessings of a holy people.
However, the people of Israel are now showing signs of falling into an idolatrous nation, failing to keep the law of life that appears from now on. Nevertheless, God embraced Israel and did not give up until the end, and sent another unconditional covenant through Jesus Christ, the Savior Jesus Christ, who, if we believe, will not perish. So it was applied to us who confess and believe in Jesus as the Savior and who are living in the New Testament era today (1 Peter 2:9).
The priest's role is to report a problem to God and make it known (verse 9, second half). Today, we Christians living in the New Testament era also have a mission to intercede to God about the situation of the nation.
3. Attitude to receive the covenant
(1) The presence of God (verse 9)
Now Moses concluded the covenant between God and Israel. Then God came to Moses. And he spoke to Moses in the thick cloud. He made Moses known as the mediator whom God had established among the people of Israel. Do you want to experience God's presence? I hope that you will become a follower of God's Word.
(2) Preparation for holiness (verses 10-15)
①The people of Israel had to wait three days to wash and prepare their clothes (verses 10-11). In a word, sanctification is cleansing. In Acts 15:8-9, “And God, who knows the heart, gave them the Holy Spirit as he did to us, to testify to them, and purged their hearts by faith, making no distinction between them and us.” Theologically, this is called the baptism of the Holy Spirit. do. The Holy Spirit came into our hearts and purifies our hearts.
② We must not transgress the limit (verses 12-14). In order to meet with Moses, God restricted the Israelites from crossing the border. In the meantime, God has appointed Moses as the leader of Israel, but with this event, God intends to establish Moses as an eternal leader among the people (verse 9).
③ You should not come near women (verse 15).
As such, the foundation of holiness of God's people is an encounter with God. If they had not met God, there was no need to be sanctified, and God did not command them to be sanctified (verse 16).
⑶ The glory of God appeared on Mount Sinai (verses 17-25)
Now, when Moses led the people out of the camp and stood at the foot of the mountain to meet God, God came upon Mount Sinai as a pillar of fire (verses 17-18). Only the sanctified will ascend the mountain of God.
God first rescued Israel from Egypt and then gave the word of God's covenant. God did not save Israel once and then leave them alone to live. God is thin and thin so that we can live according to the word of the covenant. And he tells us to sanctify us in order to keep that covenant in our hearts. If we do that, God will make us a person whom we particularly cherish, a mediator, and set apart. Ministry: Let us consider the blessings God will give us and obey God's covenant.