Moses

March 3

Exodus 19:1-8, 18-21

Mount Sinai

In the third month of their journey through the desert, the Israelites set up camp at the foot of Mount Sinai while Moses went up the mountain to meet with God.

The Lord said to Moses, “Go tell the people that I will come down in a thick cloud. Tell them to wash their clothes and purify themselves for worship. I will come down to where they can all see Me. Mark a boundary around the mountain that no person or animal may cross.”

On the day that the Lord said He would come, there was thunder and lightning on the mountain, and a loud trumpet was heard. The whole mountain was covered with smoke. God spoke to Moses and told him to come up and meet with Him. So Moses went up and disappeared in the thick smoke.

Can people really meet with God?

God is so big that the whole mountain was covered with His glory. The people were not allowed to come near the mountain. If they even put a foot across the line that Moses had marked off, they would die. Everyone had to get ready to meet God by doing certain things and by not doing certain other things.

When we go to church to meet with God, it can also be an awesome experience for us if we prepare our hearts properly. If we are casual about meeting with God and there is sin in our hearts, we cannot get near to Him to see His greatness. But when our hearts are clean and we are ready to worship Him with gladness, we can sense His closeness and become aware of His glory. We can come right into God’s presence because of what Jesus has done (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Verse for today

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:16