God's Holiness Leads to Repentance

March 13, 2022 Speaker: Ted Detiveaux Series: Spring Cleaning

Topic: Holiness Scripture: Exodus 19:16– :20, Exodus 20:18– :21

Series: Spring Cleaning

 

Title: God’s Holiness Leads to Repentance

Exodus 19:16-20

16 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. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain.

 

In Exodus 3, we first see the calling of Moses when God speaks to him through a burning bush.  As you may recall, Moses sees a bush on fire, but it was not being consumed.  As he draws closer to the bush, the Lord God tells Moses to not come any closer and that he must remove his sandals for he was standing on Holy ground.  It was Holy because God was there, and He is Holy.

 

Holy- qāḏôš – Holiness of God, as separate, apart, and so sacred, holy:

  • God’s divine name;
  • separate from human infirmity, impurity, and sin;
  • exalted on His Heavenly throne

There aren’t any classes to point to. There aren’t any categories. He is absolutely one-of-a-kind, which makes definitions almost impossible with God.  The holiness of God is rooted in God’s inability to be defined. God is infinitely valuable.

 

He tells Moses that He has chosen him to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery and to Mount Horeb (aka Mt Sinai) to worship their God.

 

This became one of Moses’ major arguments when dealing with Pharaoh.  Moses insisted that his reasoning for leading Israel out of Egypt was to bring them to Mt. Sinai to worship God.  This event was finally being fulfilled.  Here we see that Moses was obedient and he has brought the people out of the camp to meet with God.

 

However, the Israelites were terrified of the sights and sounds that they encountered on the Mountain.  First off there were thunders and lightnings. Thunder and lightning throughout the bible cause us to take notice of the power of God, and His terror in them. Thunder is likened to the voice of God, and lightning is likened to the consuming fire of God.  Both thunder and lightning work together to engage the senses of sight and hearing, those senses by which we receive so much of our information. 

 

If the thunder and lightning were not enough, a thick cloud of smoke then covers the entire mountain.  The thick cloud throughout the Old Testament was often symbolic of God’s tangible presence or the Shechinah glory. 

 

God’s Holiness Reveals Our Unholiness

 

This awesome display of Thunder and lightning was meant to shake them to the core, to get their undividedattention and to bring about a healthy fear of God. We need a healthy fear of God.

Yes, God is a loving Father, but He is also a Holy, righteous Judge.   He will one day demonstrate His full wrathupon the wicked.  If you are living for yourself like there is no God, then you should be terrified, just as the Israelites were terrified. 

Because up to this point, they have not proven to be a righteous people, but instead a group of complainers and blamers.  On several accounts thus far, they accused Moses and Aaron of bringing them out of Egypt to die in the wilderness.  They said things like “was it because there were no graves in Egypt.”  They complained about not having food and not having water, despite all that the Lord had done for them up to this point.

 

Therefore, we can see why they trembled when the Shechinah glory of God appeared before them.

The fear of God is meant to bring about holiness in our lives.  For a glimpse of His Holiness, will bring about an awareness of our unholiness.  As the prophet Isaiah says

 

Isaiah 6:5

“Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

 

The text says that “all the people in the camp trembled”

 

18 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. 

 

Besides the people trembling at the presence of the Lord, we now find that even the mountains are trembling greatly because of His presence.  Notice the word smoke is used and not fog.   It’s a natural thing to see fog in the Smokey Mountains.  But smoke only happens if something is on fire.  In this case the mountain is on fire because the Lord had descended upon it. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln (furnace) smelting forge, furnace.

 

Judges 5:5

The mountains quaked before the Lord, even Sinai before the Lord, the God of Israel.

 

When the mountains saw him, it trembled, and served as a witness against those whose hearts were hardened and remained unmoved despite of all that God has done thus far.

 

19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. 20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

In the concluding verses of chapter 19, we seen that the Israelites were warned to not follow Moses up the mountain.  They were to remain at the camp and consecrate themselves unto God.  If they were to come near the mountain out of curiosity, then God would surely destroy them. Even still, they were anxious for a closer look, so Moses heads down the mountain to warn them.

Meanwhile back at the Israelite camp, they remain awestricken by the sights and sounds coming from the mountain.

Exodus 20:18-21

18 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 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”

It was God’s intent that His people would hear his voice directly.  We know this by chapter 19 vs 9

9 “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”

But His people, paralyzed by fear, did not desire that same thing.  Obviously, if God who created them desired for them to hear His voice directly, then their physical bodies would indeed survive.

So, what caused them to withdraw after being so anxious to go on the mountain before?

His Holiness, and their realization of their unholiness.

Our Unholiness Brings Separation from God

They were not allowed to approach the place where God was, because He is Holy, and they were not.  He is perfectand sinless, and sin cannot stand in the presence of God.  Therefore, sin separates us from a perfect and Holy God for this reason they “stood afar.”

Because of this separation they needed someone to act on their behalf.

 

God is Holy Yet Merciful

 

He provides the people with a mediator.  Thankfully, Moses was the one who God chose to serve as a mediator between God.  Moses was obedient to do all that God had asked up to this point and was therefore allowed and even called to go up the mountain where God was. The Israelites pleaded with Moses not to let God speak to them directly for fear of being killed.  God heard their prayer.  He would communicate through Moses to His people.

 

God’s Holiness Keeps Us from Sinning

It was on top of the mountain that Moses was given the law of God or the terms of the covenant.   God had promised to protect and bless the Israelites as long they fulfilled their part of the covenant by keeping His commandments.  But He had also vowed that they would lose everything and would be taken into exile if they did not keep His commandments.

God’s opening line in this covenant agreement says “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” “You shall have no other gods before me.”

He is God, He is Holy and there is none like Him, He alone is to be the center of our affection. The flashes of lightning, the roars of thunder, the smoldering mountain were all given to the Israelites as an illustration of God’s Holiness.  The ten commandments were given so that they would know God’s expectations for their lives and that they would not fall into sin.

20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.”

It almost sounds like Moses contradicts himself because he says to “do not fear” and then he says “fear of Him may be before you.”  Or in other words “do not fear” and “fear Him.”

You may be thinking which one is it?  The answer is, It’s both. They were not to fear by thinking that God was set on destroying them as these awesome displays of thunder and lightning illuminate the sky.  These were sent to silencethem, frighten them, humble them, terrify them, expose them.

 

They were to have a reverent fear of God’s majesty, they were to dread of bringing him displeasure, and remain obedient to his sovereign authority over their lives.  This type of fear prevents us from sinning in our everyday lives. 

 

Proverbs 9:10

 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

 

21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

After Moses had encouraged the people not to fear, he drew near to where God was while the people stood far off.

 

The truth is, this story is just the background in God’s beautiful masterpiece called salvation.    Let’s fast forward about 3500 years into 2022 and briefly look at these four points again.

 

God’s Holiness Reveals Our Unholiness

 

         Romans 1:18-20

 

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, (His Holiness) have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,  in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse.

 

We are without excuse; His divine nature has been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world. In other words, He has revealed Himself as Holy or as being set apart from us which His divine name implies.  

 

When we meditate on His Holiness, we are made aware of our unholiness. We see how good He is and how short we fall of the glory of God.

 

Our Unholiness Brings Separation from God

 

Upon being made aware of our unholiness, we must come to terms with the fact that our sinfulness has broughtabout a state of separation from God. If we don’t change, we will continue to be separated from Him for all eternity.  However, we do not have the power to change ourselves.  God called Moses up the mountain, otherwise he could not have gone. 

 

John 6:44

44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. 

Only the Spirit of God can draw a person to salvation.  Furthermore, it is His goodness that leads us to repentance.  Just as it was His goodness to allow Moses to intervene on behalf of the Israelites.

Romans 2:4

Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?

 

God’s Holiness Keeps Us from Sinning

 

A healthy fear of the Holiness of God is needed to keep us from sinning.  Afterall sin is not just damaging to man, but it is dishonoring to God.  You should not be comfortable in your sins.  You should not count God’s grace as something cheap.  Because it cost Him everything.

 

If you are a slave of sin, then the Holiness of God should make you very afraid.  You’re an enemy of God.

 

Philippians 3:18-19

 

18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.

 

Romans 1:18

 

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

 

Our sin creates this great chasm between us and God. We are unable to bridge the gap by our own doing.  We need a Mediator. 

 

God is Holy Yet Merciful

 

Thankfully, just as God provided a mediator, the man Moses, for the Israelites who were paralyzed by fear because of their guilt and shame, God has provided us His son Jesus as a more perfect mediator between God and man. 

 

He hung on the cross and He bore our guilt and our shame so that we can come boldly to the throne of grace and obtain mercy.

 

Jesus was a better Moses.  Moses eventually sinned so bad that he did not get to enter the promised land.  God told him to speak to the rock and he struck it out of anger. 

 

However, Jesus lived His life perfectly without sin and is therefore a more perfect mediator.  He is still interceding to the Father on our behalf. 

 

Because He is Holy, He is set apart from us.  But because He is Merciful, He provides a way to bridge the gap between sinful man and a Holy God.  It is through His Son Jesus. He took upon himself the sins of all mankind as He was crucified, buried and then rose again on the third day. His sacrifice made a way so that our broken relationship with our Heavenly Father would be restored. 

 

In this story, God the Father was desiring to meet with His people on Mount Sinai.  In the same way He is desiringthat you too would come to know Him.  Allow His Holiness to lead you to repentance.

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