God is bringing about a change that He is making in His people. He has taken decisive action by calling them out of Egypt to meet with Him and worship Him in the wilderness. The change that is to occur in them will make them a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
Exodus 19:5–6 NKJV 5Now 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. 6And 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.”
It is necessary to see what had happened to them and what God was doing. Before God is finished with them, they will be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. They have no idea what God is calling them into. They have been exposed to the religions of the Egyptians for 400 years. Now God is going to make a dramatic change in them. They have struggled in this area of worship.
It is important to remember the history of man.
- In Eden, sin excluded Adam and Eve and all humanity from the presence of God.
- Able offered an acceptable sacrifice to God, but Cain attempted to worship God in his own wisdom. In this first period of history, a distinction was made between people of faith and the world. As humanity increased, cities began to be developed.
- Cain went into the land of Nod and laid the foundations of a kingdom in which ‘the spirit of the beast’ prevails.
- Seth’s descendants gathered around an open profession of faith in God’s promises and man’s purpose to serve God.
- After the birth of Enosh, men began to call on the name of the Lord, (Genesis 4:26).
- The Godly line follows to Cainan, Mahaleel, Jarod, and Enoch.
- Enoch was the seventh from Adam. Enoch stood out as one man who walked with God.
- After Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and then Noah. Humanity became extremely wicked and godless.
- Only Noah found grace in the eyes of God. He preached to corrupt and rebellious people for 120 years without results.
- After the flood, Noah’s descendants (Shem, Ham, and Japheth) repopulated the earth and little is said of a relation to or worship of God.
- To Shem was born Eber, who had two sons, Peleg and Joktan and ultimately Abraham.
Shem was a the oldest son of Noah and was blessed by God.
- Job is a distant relative of Shem from the land of UZ.
The Bible calls Job a righteous man.
The tower of Babel, representeda cultural, social, and personal rebellion against God. The Babylonians interpreted “Babel” to mean “the gate of the god.” Babel is related to the city Babylon, and the Babylonian god Marduk. It is associated with the rebellion that occurs in the end when the antichrist and false prophet come out of Babylon. The confusion of languages and dispersion of people brought about the many nations of the world.
- Peleg begot Reu.
- Reu begot Serug.
- Serug begot Nahor.
- Nahor begot Terah the father of Abram.
- Abram heard the voice of God calling him out of Ur of the Chaldeans in Mesopotamia, a center of pagan idolatry, to serve the living God. Later, Nebuchadnezzar was the Chaldean King who destroyed Jerusalem.
Throughout their history, worship and service to God was not organized.
The patriarchs were individuals who had a relationship with God Almighty. Very few individuals are mentioned in the Bible who had a relationship with God.
The Lord God Almighty was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Jacob’s sons were exposed to the God of Jacob.
Joseph was sold into Egypt.
Egypt was corrupted by paganism, the worship of their many gods. Later, Jacob and his family went into Egypt to escape a severe famine. After 30 years, Jacob’s descendants become slaves in Egypt. Their severe slavery lasted 400 years. God had promised Abraham that his descendants would leave the land of their slavery after 400 years.
From Sinai, God called them to come out of Egypt and worship Him.
With a strong arm, God brought them out of Egypt.
From this history, it is evident that the called-out people did not have a full appreciation of what that means.
God had made promises to Abraham about his descendants. Now, through Moses, God brings them out of Egypt to worship Him. Everything God told Moses was new for them. For the first time in history, God was instituting corporate worship. God was making them His people.
As we watch the people, we realize they did not understand what the holy almighty God required.
God started demonstrating His holiness, power, and majesty to them. They did not know how to come close to God. So from Sinai, God gave Moses instruction for the people.
From Mount Sinai the people heard God’s voice and saw evidence of His holiness and power.
Then God laid out the plans and format of their worship and lifestyle they are to enter. God established a moral law and manner of conduct. It became important for them to remember who they were and where they came from. Although they called themselves the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the people were just beginning to personally engage and encounter the living God.
God was ready to bring them near.
He is ready to absorb them into a new relationship and fellowship. He devised and provided a covering and atonement for them so they may come into the presence of their God. He is ready to dwell in the midst of His people.
While Moses is on the mountain with God, the people reverted to the form and ritual of the Egyptian religion.
God was ready for them, but they were not ready for God. God was revealing more of Himself than they are willing or able to take in. God was ready to inhabit the praises of His people and tabernacle with them. He was prepared to bring His people into close fellowship. God told Moses every step that was required for the people to enter into His presence. He gave instructions on cleansing, atonement, worship, and fellowship.
God was prepared to tabernacle with them.
He wanted to cleanse, sanctify, and pull them into the Holy Place.
God started by revealing His Own holiness and power to them.
This kind of fellowship with the true and living God was new for them.
How do we prepare our body, mind, and spirit for God’s presence?
The tabernacle provided an approach into God’s holy presence.
Exodus 30:19-20 NKJV 19For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet in water from it. 20When they go into the tabernacle of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die.
As one entered into the tabernacle, they are presented two pieces of furniture.
The first is the brazen altar and the second piece of furniture is the laver.
It was a great bath, a place of baptism and a place for cleansing. The penalty for neglecting to wash was very severe. The outward symbol of purity kept them from death.
What does the impure heart look like in the sight of God?
The priests were required to draw near to God, with clean hands and feet, and a pure heart. No worship can be pleasing to God, if the heart is polluted.
The brazen altar pointed to the atoning work of Christ.
This is where the sacrifice was burned before God. The brazen altar testified that only the blood of Christ can cancel the guilt of sin.
The laver referred to the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.
The laver shows us that the defilement of sin can be washed away by the work of the Holy Spirit.
The laver represents two things:
First, you are clean by the washing of water by the word.
Second, it represents baptism.
At the age of 30, the priest was brought to the laver and was baptized.
When he came out of the water, he was a priest unto God. It does not matter what else you have done… It does not matter how many offices you have had… It does not matter how many degrees you have earned… When you come out of the water, you are a priest unto God.
This is the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.
God is showing through them something He institutes within the Church.
1 Peter 2:9 NKJV 9But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
Has He called you out?
If He has called you out, He has provided the washing and cleansing you need. When you are washed and made clean by the work of the Holy Spirit, you become consecrated as a priest unto God.
You are called out to function as a priest unto God.
When He brought you into Christ, He raised you up as a new creation.
God brought you out to worship Him.
Worship is for God’s pleasure. How we feel has nothing to do with worship. You are called to worship God because you are a kingdom of priests unto God.
Exodus 19:6 NKJV 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.”
When Moses said this, they all answered together: “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” It sounded good, but they really did not understand what God was saying.
They did not know how to worship the Holy God.
They did not know God. They had not been face to face with God. They had not been on the Holy Mountain with Him. They did not know what they were saying. They had not been on holy ground and removed their shoes. At times, Moses had found the presence of the holy God to be more than he could stand. He became overwhelmed and trembled in God’s presence.
Some things have to happen to us before we are able to stand in His holy presence and worship.
When they came out of bondage, they had never heard God speak. They had not lived in the presence of God. God was instituting a new form of worship.
Now, the Almighty God was revealing His glory and power to them.
They have been brought out of Egypt to worship the living God. They have not witnessed a god like this. They are fearful and tremble in His presence. The gods of Egypt were made of brass, wood, or stone.
The Lord their God was a living God.
They never knew a God that could talk. He can make His glory known. Even the earth responds to His presence.
They were terrified in the presence of the awesome holy and powerful God. No wonder they wanted to go back. They knew Egypt. You can get used to bad situations. They came from 10 generations of slaves in Egypt. Egypt represents sin and the world.
Worshipping God brought them to new experiences.
They did not know anything about mountains shaking. They did not know anything about fire falling and trumpets sounding.They heard the voice of God.
It is natural to want to go back into what is familiar.
There is something very calm about worshipping a dead god.
God is going to break them from their past.
He has called them out into the desert to meet Him. The people did not know what to expect. God did not give them many details.
- They had not known His miracles until He bought plagues down on Egypt.
- They saw His power when He opened up the Red Sea.
- They had not been to Sinai before.
- They had not stood before the burning bush.
- They did not know what Moses knew.
Moses has stood on holy ground with God. He has taken off his shoes on holy ground.
Now these people stood before God and worshipped Him. They are going toward something they could not explain. They have witnessed the almighty presence of God. They are being drawn toward the place where they will tabernacle in the presence of God.
