Description

Peculiar People

Know this, that every soul is free
To choose his life and what he’ll be;
For this eternal truth is given,
That God will force no man to heaven.

He’ll call, persuade, direct aright,
Bless with wisdom, love, and light;
In nameless ways be good and kind,
But never force the human mind.

Nevermore was that true than on the day that Moses brought the children of Israel to Mt Sinai to meet God. He said to Moses, “Thus shalt thou say to the House of Jacob…Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on Eagles wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people…And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.”

From the beginning it had been the design of the Almighty to take Israel, a nation of idolatrous slaves, and make them kings—holy and powerful.

Moses brought back Jehovah’s offer. In covenant, Israel said, “all that the Lord hath spoken we will do.” They were then commanded to sanctify themselves, for in three days, “The Lord [would] come down in the sight of all the people upon Mount Sinai.” Incredible! They would see Him!

On the morning of the third day Mount Sinai was terrible, covered with fire and smoke, thunder and lightning. The piercing sound of a trumpet rang forth exceedingly loud. The whole mountain quaked at the awesome display of heavenly power. Even Moses was frightened at a point. Louder and louder, the trumpet grew. The people trembled, and rather than approach when invited, they stood afar off. In the hearing of all Israel, Jehovah Himself delivered the Ten Commandments.

They could have seen and listened to Him as Moses had, but they chose fear over faith, saying to Moses, “speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. Nonetheless, they did covenant to live the law that God had thus far delivered.

God then called Moses up into the Mount again. Forty days he tarried there. When at last he came down, he carried “two tables of…stone, written with the finger of God.” On those tablets was written that law that would have made them a holy nation of priests and kings.

But inside that forty days, Israel had already “corrupted themselves.” Notwithstanding the second commandment and their recent covenant, they chose a dead hunk of bovine metal over the living God. Any wonder He was angry. If not for Moses they would have been destroyed.

In time, Moses was given another set of stone tablets, but conspicuously deleted from this text, and denied to Israel, was the opportunity for them to meet God as a nation of priests and kings.

Please know that when you choose to come to Jesus, you choose to be changed. He loves you the way you are, but is never content to leave you there. He wants you, too, to be holy, perfect, and powerful—something indeed quite peculiar in this modern world. Absolutely, unequivocally, whether or not you become such is up to you.

Sources:

Hymn 240

Exodus 19: 4-6, 8, 11, 16

Exodus 20:18-19

Exodus 31:18

Exodus 32:7

Hebrews 12:21