{"id":19788,"date":"2022-01-13T22:00:41","date_gmt":"2022-01-14T05:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/exodus-19_1-13-copy\/"},"modified":"2022-01-07T19:10:18","modified_gmt":"2022-01-08T02:10:18","slug":"exodus-19_14-25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/exodus-19_14-25\/","title":{"rendered":"You Are Consecrated"},"content":{"rendered":"

Exodus 19:14-25 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Exodus 19:14-25.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Exodus 19:14-15 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n14\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0After Moses had gone down the mountain to the people, he consecrated them, and they washed their clothes.
\n15\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then he said to the people, “Prepare yourselves for the third day. Abstain from sexual relations.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 14-15:\u00a0\u00a0In\u00a0Exodus\u00a019, there is a word that comes up repeatedly which we hardly use today in our daily conversation.\u00a0\u00a0It’s the word “consecrated” (see for example verses 10, 14 and 22).\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0What does it mean to be “consecrated”?\u00a0To be consecrated means to be set apart for a special, holy purpose.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why would God require the people to consecrate themselves before meeting Him (Exodus\u00a019:10, 22)? And why did God say that He would break out against the people if they approached Him without first being consecrated (v22, 24)? It’s because God is holy.\u00a0By “holy” we mean morally perfect, without sin, completely righteous and pure in every way. God is so holy, so righteous, and so pure that anything with sin would perish in God\u2019s presence.<\/p>\n

That’s why the people had to consecrate themselves. They would wash their clothes and abstain from sexual relations, not because dirty clothes and sex are sinful in God’s eyes, but as a practical way to get the people to focus on seeking God with special intensity and getting ready to encounter Him.<\/p>\n

How about us?\u00a0\u00a0How do we consecrate ourselves today?<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0We can do that by setting aside times when we especially draw near to God through prayer, fasting, and confessing our sins.\u00a0\u00a0We can do that by having a view of God\u2019s holiness and purpose for our lives in whatever we do.<\/p>\n

But above all, to be consecrated is about believing in what Jesus Christ did on the cross for us.\u00a0\u00a0For only through the cross where Jesus died was God’s wrath against our sin satisfied. Jesus’ blood cleanses us of all our unrighteousness, and because of Jesus we can approach God without fear of being destroyed.\u00a0\u00a0When we place our faith in Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross for us, He consecrates us, makes us holy and sets us apart for His special purposes.\u00a0\u00a0Because of Jesus, you are consecrated (set apart) for God!<\/p>\n

Exodus 19:16-19 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n16\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0On the morning of the\u00a0third day<\/strong>\u00a0there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled.
\n17\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.
\n18\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the\u00a0LORD\u00a0descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently,
\n19\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 16-19:\u00a0\u00a0On the third day, the LORD shows up with thunder, lighting, fire, and smoke, and His people respond with fear and trembling (v16).\u00a0\u00a0Compare this to the third day after Jesus\u2019 death when Jesus rose again and appeared to His disciples. On that day the LORD showed up and His people respond with rejoicing and celebration.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s how Jesus changes everything.\u00a0\u00a0Because Jesus rose again, we can rejoice and celebrate at God\u2019s appearing rather than running and hiding in fear.<\/p>\n

Exodus 19:20-25 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n20\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0LORD\u00a0descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up
\n21\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0and the\u00a0LORD\u00a0said to him, “Go down and\u00a0warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the\u00a0LORD\u00a0and many of them perish<\/strong>.
\n22\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Even the priests, who approach the\u00a0LORD, must consecrate themselves, or the\u00a0LORD\u00a0will break out against them.”
\n23\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Moses said to the\u00a0LORD, “The people cannot come up Mount Sinai, because you yourself warned us, ‘Put limits around the mountain and set it apart as holy.'”
\n24\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0LORD\u00a0replied, “Go down and bring Aaron up with you. But the priests and\u00a0the people must not force their way through to come up to the\u00a0LORD<\/strong>, or he will break out against them.”
\n25\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0So Moses went down to the people and told them.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 20-25:\u00a0\u00a0The LORD told Moses to warn the people not to force their way through the barriers around the mountain to see the LORD.\u00a0\u00a0Otherwise they would perish.\u00a0\u00a0Similarly, many people today think they can enter heaven on their own terms, based on their own goodness.\u00a0\u00a0In this way, they\u2019re trying to force their way to see the LORD, not realizing that because the LORD is holy, they will perish when God\u2019s wrath breaks out against them.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Trying to force your way into heaven based on your own merit is a dead end<\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s why over and over God\u2019s Word warns us not to try to force our way into heaven.\u00a0\u00a0Instead, respect the limits God has placed around His presence and realize that the only way into see the LORD is through the way God has provided, which is faith in Jesus Christ.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0That is why Jesus says, \u201cI am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved\u2026\u201d (John 10:9)<\/p>\n

Heavenly Father, thank You for showing me that on my own I can\u2019t force myself into Your presence because You are holy.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s only by the blood of Jesus that I become forgiven, consecrated (set apart) and fire-proof to see You in Your holiness.\u00a0\u00a0Thank You.\u00a0\u00a0In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Exodus 19:14-25.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Exodus 19:14-15 (NIV)
\n14\u00a0\u00a0After Moses had gone down the mountain to the people, he consecrated them, and they washed their clothes.
\n15\u00a0\u00a0Then he said to the people, “Prepare yourselves for the third day. Abstain from sexual relations.”<\/p>\n

On verses 14-15:\u00a0\u00a0In\u00a0Exodus\u00a019, there is a word that comes up repeatedly which we hardly use today in our daily conversation.\u00a0\u00a0It’s the word “consecrated” (see for example verses 10, 14 and 22).\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0What does it mean to be “consecrated”?\u00a0To be consecrated means to be set apart for a special, holy purpose.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Why would God require the people to consecrate themselves before meeting Him (Exodus\u00a019:10, 22)? And why did God say that He would break out against the people if they approached Him without first being consecrated (v22, 24)? It’s because God is holy.\u00a0By “holy” we mean morally perfect, without sin, completely righteous and pure in every way. God is so holy, so righteous, and so pure that anything with sin would perish in God\u2019s presence.<\/p>\n

That’s why the people had to consecrate themselves. They would wash their clothes and abstain from sexual relations, not because dirty clothes and sex are sinful in God’s eyes, but as a practical way to get the people to focus on seeking God with special intensity and getting ready to encounter Him.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19791,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19788"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19789,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19788\/revisions\/19789"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19791"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}