Tag: Exodus

Digging in Deeper: Exodus 20:3

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“Do not have other gods besides me.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When the apostle Paul was talking about marriage with the Ephesian church, he described it as being a reflection of the relationship we have with Jesus. The thing about being in a marriage is that as much as our culture today would like to pretend otherwise, it is a definitionally exclusive relationship. When you are married to someone, you are married to just them and no one else. If you try to expand beyond that, you may have something else, but you don’t have a marriage anymore. Trying to continue calling whatever else you have now marriage will just dilute the definition and ultimately cause issues for you and the people who are in your direct sphere of influence. There’s a reason, then, the first commandment of God’s big ten puts a major limitation on Israel’s ability to relate to other gods. Let’s talk about it.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 20:1-2

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“Then God spoke all these words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

It’s fun to look up lists of strange laws from around the country. There are all kinds of them. It’s illegal, for instance, to drive blindfolded in Alabama. In Missouri, my home state, bear wrestling is banned. And one more just for fun: in Arizona, donkeys are prohibited from sleeping in bathtubs. Laws and rules sometimes seem totally arbitrary. Yet while that may occasionally be the case, it is far more likely that they have a context in which they made perfect sense at one point. As we at last arrive at the famous Ten Commandments, the foundation for the laws God gave to Israel through Moses, while they are sometimes treated like they are strange and arbitrary, they all have a context. That’s what God starts with here. So, before we talk through the laws themselves, let’s talk about their context and why that matters.

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Morning Musing: 19:23-26

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“Moses responded to the Lord, ‘The people cannot come up Mount Sinai, since you warned us: Put a boundary around the mountain and consecrate it.’ And the Lord replied to him, ‘Go down and come back with Aaron. But the priests and the people must not break through to come up to the Lord, or he will break out in anger against them.’ So Moses went down to the people and told them.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Sometimes as a parent you have to repeat yourself to your kids. I know there are experts who insist otherwise, but some things are important enough you have to say them more than once because you know they’re not going to be fully or properly understood the first time. As we come to the end of chapter 19 here, Moses doesn’t understand why God is so worried about the people’s coming up the mountain. God knows the people better than Moses does. Let’s talk about what’s going on here and reflect again with gratitude on Jesus.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 19:16-22

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“On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning, a thick cloud on the mountain, and a very loud blast from the ram’s horn, so that all the people in the camp shuddered. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai was completely enveloped in smoke because the Lord came down on it in fire. Its smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain shook violently. As the sound of the ram’s horn grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him in the thunder. The Lord came down on Mount Sinai at the top of the mountain. Then the Lord summoned Moses to the top of the mountain, and he went up. The Lord directed Moses, ‘Go down and warn the people not to break through to see the Lord; otherwise many of them will die. Even the priests who come near the Lord must consecrate themselves, or the Lord will break out in anger against them.'” (CSB – Read the chapter)

What is it like to be in the presence of God? We often like to imagine that such an experience is one of great peace and tranquility. Or perhaps we imagine it to be something that is gentle and encouraging. Yet while those ideas may have some truth to them in a certain set of circumstances, whenever we see God show up in power in the Scriptures, the experience is quite a bit different from that. Let’s talk about the wild scene we see unfolding here and why we should be so grateful for Jesus.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 19:9-15

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“The Lord said to Moses, ‘I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear when I speak with you and will always believe you.’ Moses reported the people’s words to the Lord, and the Lord told Moses, ‘Go to the people and consecrate them tomorrow. They must wash their clothes and be prepared by the third day, for on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. Put boundaries for the people all around the mountain and say: Be careful that you don’t go up on the mountain or touch its base. Anyone who touches the mountain must be put to death. No hand may touch him; instead he will be stoned or shot with arrows and not live, whether animal or human. When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they may go up the mountain.’ Then Moses came down from the mountain to the people and consecrated them, and they washed their clothes. He said to the people, ‘Be prepared by the third day. Do not have sexual relations with women.'” (CSB – Read the chapter)

As a parent, one of the things you learn pretty naturally (mostly because you experienced it with your own parents) is that different circumstances require a different tone of voice in order to communicate their relative seriousness. If you’re playing a game or having a casual conversation, you’ll choose a tone of voice that is light and gentle. If your kid is about to run into the street, you are going to use a loud and stern tone. It is vital that they understand how important it is to not run into the road. As God prepared to deliver some incredibly important commands to the people of Israel, He used the equivalent of a really stern voice. Let’s talk about what’s going on here.

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