Contributor: Adewale Abiona
INTRODUCTION
In our previous study, we saw how wise counsel saved Moses from weariness and how delegating assignments helped him serve the people better. There is no point in asking for counsel if you have no intention of considering it. Moses’ obedience to excellent counsel, demonstrated his humble nature and his qualities as a good leader, who sought God’s guidance in his service to the people he was appointed to lead. Moses did not reject Jethro’s advice out of pride or stubbornness but accepted it as a wise and beneficial suggestion.
In today’s, study, we will be considering the Encounter with God and the preparation requirements, needed to meet with the Lord. What was recorded in Exodus 3:2 and verse 12, came alive in this chapter. It shows God’s faithfulness to His promises, even when men are unfaithful.
Verses 1-2
Third month after leaving the land of Egypt, the children of Israel arrived at the desert of Sinai and camped before the mountain. In those three months, they experienced God’s miraculous power (red sea parted, divine supply of strange food and water) and they have come to rely on Him daily for guidance. This is the beginning of the fulfillment of God’s Word to Moses in Exodus 3:12, So He said, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
Sinai was the place where Moses met God at the burning bush Exo. 3:2, this was where God said that the children of Israel will serve Him. Exo. 5:1. This is a special place God has prepared, a holy ground where they will meet and encounter what Moses had experienced.
Reflection: When God called us out of slavery, He called us to come into father and sons’ relationship, where we can truly and fully experience all that is in stock for us.
Verses 3-4
The Lord called Moses from the mountain and gave him instruction for the people. He was to remind them what the Lord did in a specific wording ‘You people saw what I did to the people of Egypt. You saw that I carried you out of Egypt like an eagle and brought you here to me’
God’s special love strength and power was displayed in this statement and His purpose was clear. They were delivered to be with Him. He brought them to His mountain so that they can have fellowship.
Reflection: Revelation 4:11 alludes to that fact that God created this special relationship for us, delivered us from sin and bondage so that we can live for Him alone.
Verses 5-6
He further explains His plan, the kind of bond He wanted to establish with His people.
A bond that is based on trust. Trust is the key ingredient in believing people’s words.
“5 If you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”
Only if the people knew that this was a call to a higher and very special place in God’s plan, they would indeed have obeyed. We will see later in this study that they deviated from keeping the covenant.
Reflection: God wants to use us as an example and as an instrument to reach the rest of the world. Ephesians 1:15-18 Apostle Paul prayed for our eyes of understanding of the purpose of God’s calling to be opened. So that when we discover the purpose of His calling, we will indeed cherish and treasure the opportunity and cling to the grace bestowed upon us. Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also
1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6 These 2 scriptures describe who God called us to be, and what He intends to accomplish through us.
Verses 7-9
So Moses came and called for the elders of the people and laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. 8Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So, Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord. 9And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I come to you in the thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and believe you forever.”
Here the people agreed to do all that the Lord required of them.
The people truly and freely agreed with their mouths but not with their hearts. Hence the reason they turned to idol worshipping, when Moses did not return from the mountain on time or as quickly as they expected him. Exo. 32:1.
Moses was the God in their heart while the living God was only on their lips. Lips service to the unseen God but true service to mortal or an image. Matthew 15:8
Reflection: Is our relationship just lips service to God?
Do we just say ‘Yes’ to His will and His way from our mouth not with our heart? Do we seek alternative options when God does respond in line with our own timing?
This is the reality of some believers. Some will not come to God until a pastor, prophet or an apostle is leading. They will not hear the voice of God for themselves and when they come to a gathering, they just want to hear their future from the seer. What about what is written in the Word of God? That is just a book, but what man will say will suit their hearing better.
This was the reason for a new covenant Hebrews 8:8-11
8 But God found fault with the people and said: “The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. 9 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord. 10 This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.
Verses 10-15
In preparation to meet with God, Moses gave the following conditions as received from the Lord:
a. Two days of consecration in preparation to meet the Lord on the 3rd day.
b. Put boundaries in place
c. Only at the sound of the trumpet can they come close
d. They must wash their clothes.
e. Abstain from sexual connection with their wives
Reflection:
• Two days of consecrations means to set yourself apart, deliberately as a choice to surrender yourself to God. Two days of this will teach us on how to wait patiently on God’s own timing, Psalm 40:1 and prepared to meet with him on the third day.
• Boundaries not to come near a splendid view that will unfold before them on the 3rd day is to help us put our feelings and emotion under check. 1 Corinthians 9:27; Proverbs 25:28.
• Death as a deterrent to help us make the right choice. Deut. 30:19
• At the trumpet sound is a lesson on following instructions as a demonstration of our love for Him. John 14:15. Obedient is better than sacrifice. 1 Samuel 15:22.
• Washing clothes signifies cleanliness and holiness. Psalm 24:3-4
• To abstain from sex does not mean that legitimate sexual connection makes you unclean, this was just a special requirement for this occasion, the one that help us to put our desires under control and prioritize our relationship with God, demonstrating our love for Him above all others. 1 Corinthians 10:22-23.
An expedient action is a practical, efficient, or advantageous action taken to achieve a specific goal. It is often a "quick fix" or temporary measure that prioritizes convenience and results over long-term fairness, consistency, or strict moral principles In the New Testament, expediency is often tied to spiritual maturity and love for others.
Verses 16-19
God’s power was in full display. His glory and presence was over the mountain, and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of
the mountain that was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire.
Reflection: We should ask ourselves, what our is experience today, when we come to the gathering place of the elect? As praise goes up, do we draw closer to Him? Do we hear His voice?
Verses 20-22
Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. The Lord again sent him to go down and warn the people, lest they break through the boundaries to gaze at the Lord, and many of them perish. He again demands consecration from the priest who come near the Lord.
Reflection: God’s gracious kindness means that He still comes down into our gathering when our hearts are not fully set to obey or ready to offer Him our best. He will again warn us to obey Him.
Verses 23-25
But Moses said to the Lord, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai; for You warned us, saying, ‘Set bounds around the mountain and consecrate it.’”
Refection: “How can I tell my child not to go near fire and yet he goes? - That is not possible God” was Moses reaction here. But that is just who we are. But His mercy is what we are enjoying according to Lamentations 3:22-23.
CONCLUSION
Coming to God’s presence is a sacred thing and must be treated as such. We can equate coming to church as a meeting place where we gather to meet with God and fellowship with Him. However, the way we conduct ourselves in places of worship nowadays, is far from what God requires. Our preparation is not what this study has highlighted for us.
This is a wakeup call for all of us to turn a new leaf, if we are to experience His power and feel His presence. God is always present, but that is not the experience of many. “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” Matthew 18:20.
Prayer: Ask the Lord for grace to be faithful to your side of the covenant, to do what is required to experience His power and feel His presence every second, every minute, every hour and all the days of your life.
