In Exodus 19, God brings His people to the wilderness of Sinai. He has brought them, by His grace, out of the land of Egypt and through many dangers. Now they have come to Sinai where Moses will ascend the mountain in order to receive the law.

Even as God prepares to reveal His law to Moses, He reminds the people of what He has already done to deliver them (v.3-4). The people are charged to obey (v.5-6), but their obedience to the law is not the ground of their hope–God and what He has done by His grace is. This is a reminder that it is God who saves–it is not our own efforts that make us right with God, but God Himself has acted on the behalf of His people to deliver us. We could never be saved by our own law-keeping, but now that God has in Christ set us free, we may now as the children of God seek to live according to God’s law.

As God summons Moses to come up the mountain to receive the law, He gives very specific instructions. The people are to be consecrated. They are to be prepared for God to condescend to them. There is no casual approaching of the holy God, but rather God is to be approached according to His commands and His standards. We understand this more fully if we contrast ourselves with the holy character of God. We also realize how gracious the Lord is to draw us into His presence.

As Moses ascends the mountain, he goes as the mediator between God and the people. We will consider this Lord’s Day why this is important, and how Moses points us to the Perfect Mediator, Jesus Christ. Please join us for worship at 9 AM at 9820 W Markham St. (the sanctuary of Faith United Methodist Church) in Little Rock. For more information, click here or contact us. You can also watch our service at FacebookLive@RiverCityARP or on YouTube.