Good evening, everyone. We are in Exodus 19 today. If you'd like to turn your Bibles there, I'm going to be reading that chapter. You can read along. Father in heaven, thank you for this time tonight, and thank you for your revelation and your Word. Help us to, through your Word, know you tonight, Father, and help us to know how you interact with your creation, especially with your own special people. We need your help to do that. Amen. Okay, so Exodus chapter 19. Going to read that. In the third month after the children of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on the same day they came to the wilderness of Sinai, For they had departed from Rephidim, and come to the wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness. So Israel camped there before the mountain. And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel, You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to myself. Now therefore, 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, 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. So Moses came and called for the elders of the people and laid before them all the words which the Lord commanded him. Then 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. And 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. So Moses told the words of the people to the Lord. Then the Lord said to Moses, go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow and let them wash their clothes and let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, take heed to yourselves that you do not go up to the mountain or touch its base. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. Not a hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot with an arrow. Whether man or beast, he shall not live. When the trumpet sounds long, they shall come near the mountain. So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people and they washed their clothes. And he said to the people, be ready for the third day, do not come near your wives. Then it came to pass on the third day in the morning that there were thunderings and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and the sound of the trumpet was very loud so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. 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. And the Lord said to Moses, go down and warn the people, lest they break through to gaze at the Lord, and many of them perish. Also let the priests who come near the Lord consecrate themselves, lest the Lord break out against them. 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. Then the Lord said to him, away, get down and come up, you and Aaron with you, but do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, lest he break out against them. So Moses went down to the people and spoke to them. Amen. So I was, had this week to kind of meditate on this chapter and it's, as I thought about it, it occurred to me that this is, one of the more significant chapters you're going to find. Maybe I say that too often, but it really is. And the reason why this is a significant and a remarkable chapter is it records one of the most significant days or the most significant series of events in history. certainly in history up to this point, and really one of the most significant days in really all of the history that we have recorded since creation. I guess there's two reasons why I think that. So those are the things I want to point out to us all today on why this is such a significant event. What happens in this chapter? What is significant about this? There's two things and I hope we will see that and as I continue to contemplate and study this and read the scripture and read outside helps to understand understand what we're reading as we go through the Old Testament. I just found it very helpful and hopefully that can be helpful for all of us. So what is significant about this? The first thing that is significant about this we find in verse 11 of what we read and be ready, and let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of the people." The Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai before all of Israel, all the children of Jacob. What does it say? I didn't write this down. We see this later. In verse 20, then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai on the top of the mountain. That is a significant event that happened. Nothing like this has happened before in the recorded history between God and man. God created the heavens and the earth. He created man and woman. He spoke to the man in the garden. He spoke to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in one form or another. But in this case, the Lord comes down to the mountain in front of all these people. That is a very big deal that the Lord did this. And as we read the text that we're going to read today, we will see just the effect, how that happened and the effect that that had. Why did God come down in this way at this time. What's going to happen is he's going to make a covenant with Israel, which is the second point of what happens in this chapter. And we'll talk more about that later. And verse nine explains why. So let's look at verse nine. And 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." That the people may hear when I speak to you and believe you forever. There is a reason that God is going to reveal himself in this new special way for the Israelites on this day, because he's going to speak to Moses. We know what he's going to speak to him about. It's chapter 20 in Exodus through Numbers 10. He's going to give them the covenant. the covenant that we would call the Mosaic Covenant, and he's going to lay out all the terms of that covenant. And it is important that Israel, the Israelites, believe what Moses tells them about what God has said. He needs to be believed. So we have this revelation that's going to happen, this revealing of God in this I hope I'm not misspeaking here, but I think it's a once in a history time. Certainly there is another revealing coming down the road 1,500 years later that is different. But this particular revelation of God is the only time this has happened in recorded history. So let's look at that event, this revelation of God, starting in verse 16. Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain, and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace. And the whole mountain quaked greatly. And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him by voice." So you've got, what do you have in here? You've got smoke and thunder and lightning and quaking mountains. as God descends on this mountain. Let's skip ahead to chapter 20 in verse 18 and 19. Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountains smoking. And when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, you speak with us and we will hear, but let not God speak with us lest we die. So this describes an event in, I suppose, as best as language can describe what happened that day. This is just a remarkable thing, probably one of the most remarkable things that humans have ever experienced. at this day when the Lord descended, and the way Moses describes this. So, try and help us picture this. Many of us have seen a weather event, maybe experienced a weather event in person, or we've seen a picture of a weather event, or a video of a weather event, that makes us go, whoa, that was something. And it might even bring actual fear into our lives. If you've experienced a tornado or seen one in person, you may have been literally afraid or been involved in a hurricane or just seeing pictures. We've seen pictures of a big storm front moving through and the bank of clouds that comes in and it's dark and it's lightning. Some of those are intense enough that we go, wow, that's something. Right? And I saw a video last week of, it was like a traffic cam video, and it's of a tsunami. And in this video, it's kind of shooting down a road, and you see cars driving down this road, and then turning around and coming the other way. And you see a bunch of cars doing it, and their cars are driving away, and cars come to the intersection that's in there, turned towards the traffic cam, away from what's ever over there, and all of a sudden, so there's nothing, there's just normal road and field or whatever and cars driving, and then in no time, literally in no time, there is water and literally houses, full houses, floating in that water, being ripped up off of their foundations, floating in this water towards this traffic cam. And it's just an unbelievable sight, the power of a tsunami when you see it. There was a tsunami in Japan several years ago, and they had all that similar type traffic cam video of it, and it's just remarkable. And for, again, for some of us, it just makes you go, wow, that's pretty spectacular. And for some of us, it makes us literally afraid. Not saying it's wrong to be literally afraid, but they're so, visceral, that that's the effect it has on us. This event, with God coming down to the mountain, made a couple million people tremble. It made Moses tremble. Let's look at chapter 20, verse 18 again. Now the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain spoking, and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. That word tremble. It means to quiver, to totter, to shake, to reel, to stagger, to wander, to move, to sift, to waver, to tremble. These people saw this manifestation of God and they were literally shaking in their boots, to use our language. That's the effect this event had on them. We see something else in Deuteronomy chapter 4. You can turn there if you'd like. starting in verse 32. For ask now concerning the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether any great thing like this has happened, or anything like it has been heard. Did any people ever hear the voice of, speaking of this event right now, did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire as you have heard and live. Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown that you might know that the Lord Himself is God, and there is none other beside Him. Listen, out of heaven He let you hear His voice, that He might instruct you. On earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire. That's another description of this event. In fact, Hebrews gives us a description of this event. We can go to Hebrews chapter 12, verse 18. The writer of Hebrews says, for you have not come to the mountain that may be touched, and that burned with fire, and to blackness, and darkness, and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word not be spoken to them anymore. That's the effect this had on them. We saw it in Exodus chapter 20. God, don't talk anymore. Let Moses talk. This is too much for us. for they could not endure what was commanded. And if as much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow. And so terrifying, listen, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, I am exceedingly afraid and trembling. That's the effect this event in Exodus 19 had on Moses. Moses, who had met with God at the holy, at the bush, right? Moses, take your shoes off, it's holy ground. Matt, you think that would be enough to make someone tremble? Hearing the voice of God there, however he manifested. And Moses had spoken to God many times between now and then. This event made Moses be exceedingly afraid and trembling. That is what happened in Exodus chapter 19. This is God Almighty who has revealed Himself here. That's what's going on. This is God Almighty. We don't use that phrase around here very much, do we? I'm not saying that's wrong, I'm not saying it's good or bad to use that particular name of God, but there is a time and a place for using the phrase God Almighty, the name of God, God Almighty. And this is certainly one of them. This is God Almighty revealing Himself here. Just a hint, and this is just a hint of who He is. This is the God who has the power to create the universe. This is the God who has the power to create a flood that it destroys the entire population of the world. That's how this is being revealed here. This is part of who God is. And for the unbelievers in the room, I want you to take note of this. These people, including Moses, got a small taste of who God is. And they were literally shaking with fear. This is the God that you trifle with. This is the God that you resist and reject. This is not some Santa Claus God who lives to give you presents. This is not your kindly old grandfather God who, when you sin, pats you on the head and says, oh, it's going to be OK, Billy, musses your hair off, and sends you on his way. This is God Almighty. If you stand before this God on Judgment Day without Christ's righteousness, you will experience His full wrath and fury against you. This is nothing compared. What you have heard about today in Exodus 19 is nothing compared to the wrath of God that will be poured out on guilty sinners on Judgment Day, if you try and stand before Him without Christ's righteousness. This is God Almighty. This is a God who literally has made people tremble with fear. And we read about it today. So that's the first reason why this chapter is so significant, this revelation of God. There is another reason this chapter is significant. What happens in this chapter is because God is going to make a covenant with the children of Jacob that will last for 1,500 years or so. That's a pretty big deal, this covenant that he is going to make that we refer to as the Mosaic Covenant that he will make with the children of Jacob. So let's kind of trace that interaction. This starts with Abraham, and we have the start of God creating his own special people. We've kind of reviewed that plenty, I think. That start of that interaction with Abraham was a promise of descendants, it was a promise of land, it was a promise of the blessing to all the nations. And then, really all we see after that time is kind of God's indirect interaction with these own special people, right? We see indirect action in Genesis chapters 37 to 50, then we see his providence and using secondary agents to move these people to Egypt. Right? That's how that whole thing played out. It's Jacob's story and uses all the sinfulness of men and moves Jacob's family down to Egypt. Number one, so they survive because there's going to be a famine where there's living. Jake Joseph had not gone before them. This whole area would have had a really tough time of it. And then secondly, he had to give them many descendants and his chosen method of doing that was to put them into bondage in Egypt. And that is what he used against secondary agents to fulfill his promise. So this is very indirect, I would call it interaction God is having with his people. But then things change in After they have been in Egypt for many, many years, we see much more direct interaction with Jacob's family. In chapter 3, we saw again God meeting with Moses. and informing him that he has heard the cries of his people, and he's going to take them out of bondage. We see the plagues, and what happened at the Red Sea, and the manna, and the water from the rocks. So much more direct interaction with God during this time for the children of Abraham. But now we have this, in that we are getting direct communication from God through Moses to the children of Abraham. Very direct communication, and this starts now, it's gonna start in 19 and 20, it's gonna continue for the rest, really, of the Pentateuch, or the Torah, the books of Moses, that we have this direct communication of God, and he is going to, this covenant is going to make them a We'll see in a second what he's going to make them, but he's going to formalize what his relationship with the children of Israel looks like. He's going to lay out the terms of this covenant. He's going to formalize what he and they are going to be like together. So let's look at chapter 19 in Exodus, starting in verse 3, and review that again quickly. And Moses went up to God, this is the covenant that he's making with them. And the Lord called to him from the mountains, saying, then you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the children of Israel, you have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore you upon eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, 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, 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." So, if they keep their part of the covenant, they are going to be to God a special treasure. They are going to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. That is what Israel gets, if you will, from this covenant that God is making with them. Let's look at Deuteronomy chapter 7. in verse 6. Deuteronomy, second law, is what the book of Deuteronomy, the title of the book of Deuteronomy means, and Deuteronomy is when Moses gave the law to the people again, because he's giving them the law in Exodus, and then they're gonna be disobedient, and he's going to, because of their disobedience, kill everyone in the desert who was of a certain age or older, and that's why they're in the desert for 40 years, and then, There's a new generation of Israel who needs to hear the law again because they haven't been presented with it formally. So Deuteronomy is Moses giving them the law again. And he says in verse six of chapter seven, for you are a holy people to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. So that's, again, what they get. They get to be a special treasure of all the peoples on the face of the earth, a chosen nation, a special treasure. And then we get this, let's turn to Deuteronomy chapter 28. Verse one, and this is very helpful. Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all his commandments, which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. Okay? So, if you do this, this is what's going to happen to you. If you keep the covenant, the Lord God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And then the rest, but the verses after this go on to give us, give them some examples of what that looks like. And I'll just review them, Chris. These blessings you will get if you obey the voice of the Lord. Fruit of your body, produce of your ground, increase of your flocks, increase of your cattle. Blessed is your basket, your kneading bowl. Blessed when you come in. The Lord will cause your enemies to be defeated. The Lord will bless your storehouses and all that you set your hand. He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you. The Lord will establish you as a holy people to himself just as he has sworn to you. If you keep the commandments, this is in verse nine now, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways. So, What is the Mosaic Covenant all about, this covenant that He is giving them? I think this is really helpful. The Mosaic Covenant is a way for God to display His glory through His chosen people in a material and temporal way. It is God displaying His glory with His chosen people in a material and temporal way. I wanna contrast, that's where we're gonna kinda end today, but I wanna contrast that with the New Covenant, okay? Because in the New Covenant, it is God displaying His glory through His chosen people in a spiritual, eternal way. in a spiritual, eternal way. That's the New Covenant. So the Mosaic Covenant had these promises, and again, you've got chapters upon chapter upon chapter that's going to lay all this out between Exodus 20 and the end of Deuteronomy, that over time We may or may not talk about all that stuff and we'll see what the Lord's will is for us. But all these material blessings, this is for the children of Abraham, they are material blessings in time. That's what the old, the Mosaic Covenant is about. The New Covenant is not about material blessings at all, right? It's all about spiritual blessings. It's all about eternal blessings. From a material standpoint, what are we promised in the New Covenant? Persecution? Beatings? Whippings? Now look, again, it's hard for us. We're 21st century North Americans. And we don't experience any of that. But if you look at what we are promised, and we've looked about it many times, But temporally, materially, participants of the New Covenant are not promised anything materially. All of our blessings are eternal blessings and they are spiritual blessings. Now you can understand. Now you can understand if you live here today and your primary focus is the Old Testament, why you can get confused. Because you read that, and you don't think, oh, this is for Israel 1,500 years BC. You think, well, this should be for me today, all these blessings. So all I have to do is obey, and I'll get, God will bless me. I know the plans I have for you, the plans to prosper you and not harm you. Look, that was for Israel a long, long time ago in a material, in a temporal way. You're not Israel. We're the New Covenant people. It's easy to understand when you get that, why some people have so much confusion. It's easy to understand how some people who, in 2 Peter 3, unstable people who want to twist Scripture to their own benefit can easily do that and try and make it seem what was written to Israel 1500 BC should be applicable to us today. That's scripture twisting. That's not new covenant preaching. That's not misunderstanding Jesus completely. It is absolutely and positively missing what Jesus Christ is about, why he came to the earth, You know, the bigger story is, you know, what we're learning in Exodus, as we read through Genesis and Exodus, and as we continue to read, is how it points to Christ. But if we're trying to put the Mosaic covenant promises onto New Testament Christians, we are completely missing Jesus Christ, and we are completely misunderstanding the Bible. And to me, as I've been working through this, I have to tell you, that's very helpful. So whether it's here in the U.S. with people who are caught up in the prosperity gospel, or whether it's Kenyans who are caught up in the prosperity, why are they so focused on these material blessings? That's why. Their hermeneutics aren't right. Their exegesis isn't right. They're twisting scripture in a way that it wasn't meant to be used. So, this Exodus 19 is significant. God has revealed himself in ways he has not before, and it is very helpful for us. Father, we thank you for your word, and we thank you that you have, we thank you that you have given us brains and minds that can Utilize written language and that you have chosen to reveal yourself through written language. and that we can know your history with your creation and how you've interacted with it so that we can really come to know you and understand your redemptive plan all the better. And I pray for us in this room today, Father, those that both know you and don't know you, that for Jesus Christ is their Lord and Savior. For those who don't, that you will minister to our hearts today and understand what we have in Christ or what we need in Christ. Amen. Amen.