Chapter #2 – God’s Desire To Be With Man

Text: 2Cor 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve in his craftiness, your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity that is toward Christ.

      In every period of his existence man has had the opportunity to experience the very presence of God. One might say that this was the very reason God created man in the first place. And, from Adam till now this potential was available, and is even now a principal feature of the Kingdom of Christ.

      In Eden this privilege was direct and personal. Adam and Eve walked and talked with God, as did apparently his two sons. The Patriarchs enjoyed the same privilege. We read: Gen. 5:22 And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: . . . 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. . . . 6:9 . . . Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. . . .

      One of the absolutely most important lessons that man needed to learn then, and even to this day seems reluctant to accept, is that the Holy Almighty God can not tolerate the presence of wickedness. We ended Chapter #1 with the account of Adam and Eve being driven out of his presence because of their disobedience. Why the flood that destroyed all the living except Noah and his family?

“And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them . . . The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.(Gen 6:5-7; 11-12).

      Our emphasis in this chapter will be that the Almighty did not totally disregard his creation, but let them see that “it is not within man to direct own steps” (Jer 10:23). Noah was a notable exception to the way of the world; the Record states that “Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God” (6:9). “And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth” (v.13).

      No history of mankind can exclude the story of Abraham, his walking with God, his listening to God, and his faith that was counted as righteousness.

“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. his is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised” (Gen 19:1-10).

      At the end of Jacob’s life, he states the complimentary truth about the forefathers of Joseph: “And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day . . .” (48:15).

      Later we will also consider the many statements of the Lord, “If you will . . . I will,” an indispensable part of all Covenants with man.

God And Moses

      The Record says that “in the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai” (Exo. 19:1),

“And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, . . . 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. . . .” (vs 3-6).

      Note that this was not a “negotiated” agreement, such as men might make with his fellow man, but an offering by a superior that can only be accepted or rejected. We will see on many occasions that there will be a difference between God’s offerings and man’s attempts to negotiate.

Note the acceptance by the people:

“And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD” (vs. 7,8).

Note that God will speak to all the people.

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD” (v.9).

The people now prepare themselves:

10 And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, 11 And be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai. . . .

      Sanctify themselves? Why? The Sacred Record now introduces a principle of fellowship with the Almighty that was a vital part of relationship then, and surely is today. Sanctify means to consecrate, make holy, set apart, hallow, etc. Coming into the presence of God is an awesome thing. Even today when we realize that we are in the presence of a noble and honorable person we tend to make ourselves as presentable as possible. So it ought to be when we come together in an assembly to share worship with others of God’s people. And, why should every child of God always – in every situation – keep himself decently and presentable? If not, why not? We will pursue this principle in several instances in our studies.

16 ¶ And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether (lowest) part of the mount. 18 And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. 19 And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. 20 And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up.

We note a series of steps preparatory to the giving of the commandments.

21 And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 22 And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them. 23 And Moses said unto the LORD, The people cannot come up to mount Sinai: for thou chargedst us, saying, Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it. 24 And the LORD said unto him, Away, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee: but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest he break forth upon them. 25 So Moses went down unto the people, and spake unto them.

      And now we have the Record of the giving of the Commandments. But, as becomes human nature, the people did not appreciate the presence of God in his awesome power. Hebrews is later to record, “It is a fearful (terrifying, dreadful) thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (10:31)

Exo. 20:18 ¶ And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. 20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. 21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.

Concerning this passage commentators state:

“Be of good courage, for the design of God is not to destroy you, but to instruct you, and do you good” (John Gill). “ ”It (the Law) was designed (once for all) to give a sensible discovery of the glorious majesty of God, for the assistance of our faith concerning it, that, knowing the terror of the Lord, we may be persuaded to live in his fear” (Matthew Henry). “. . . do not fear with such a fear as brings consternation into the soul, and produces nothing but terror and confusion; but fear with that fear which reverence and filial affection inspire, that ye sin not -- that, through the love and reverence ye feel to your Maker and Sovereign, ye may abstain from every appearance of evil, lest you should forfeit that love which is to you better than life” (Clarke). “ . . . Ever since Adam fled upon hearing God's voice in the garden, sinful man could not bear either to speak to God, or hear from him immediately. To keep them to their duty, and prevent their sinning against God. We must not fear with amazement; but we must always have in our minds a reverence of God's majesty, a dread of his displeasure, and an obedient regard to his sovereign authority” (Wesley).

At the conclusion of God giving Moses the law that he was to give to the people, God says:

Exo 23:20 ¶ Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. 21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him. 22 But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. . . . 27 I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. . . .

Who was this “Angel,” and this “Fear?” Was it not His Word, later to be revealed in “flesh?” (Joh. 1:14). Surely it was!

God further commands Moses:

Exo 24:1 ¶ And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off. 2 And Moses alone shall come near the LORD: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him. 3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do. 4 And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the LORD. 6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.

8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words. 9 ¶ Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: 10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. 11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

      The Scriptures that follow describe the giving of the Two Tablets of Stone With The 10 Commandments. What an experience this must have been for Moses; what an experience it should be for us today when we come to understand and appreciate the Word that Christ is to give to the world.

Meeting God In Worship And Sacrifice

      God continues to give Moses the Law that will govern the Israelites for the next 1500 years. He wants the people to obey Him, and he wants them to honor and serve him, and he wants them to know that He is among them. During these days man was assured of the presence of God in sacrifice. Under the Mosaical system there were more visible and demonstrative evidences of his presence than were seen during the Patriarchal age. In this Period God came nearer to man; for he then talked with Moses “face to face,” and through him gave the Israelites His guidance and His protection.

Exo 24:12 And the LORD said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them. . . . Exo 25:22 And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.

Exo 29:42 This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD: where I will meet you, to speak there unto thee. 43 And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory. 44 And I will sanctify the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar: I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minister to me in the priest’s office. And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.

      Still, the relationship that man enjoyed with the Creator under these developments did not reach, in nearness and fullness, that of man’s original state, nor that which God has now planned for his people under Christ. This resulted from the simple fact that the system of redemption and reconciliation which God had instituted was but partially developed. When this system reaches its stage of perfect development, then the primitive and perfect relation of man to God and God to man will be attained.

      When Miriam and Aaron rebelled against Moses because of the Cushite (Ethiopian) woman he had married, God rebuked them severely with these words,

“Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house: with him will I speak mouth to mouth (face to face), even apparently (openly, clearly, plainly), and not in dark speeches (sayings, riddles); and the similitude (form) of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” (Num 12:1-8).

      Are there false prophets today? Peter stated that there were false prophets in his day, and no one can doubt that they are plentiful today. I have a taped TV program where one very successful influencer of many actually claimed that God talked directly with him, calling him by his first name, and stating that he of all men was the one the Almighty was to depend upon to accomplish his will. Strangely, this “friend” of God lost the respect of millions, and much of his wealth and influence by committing unbelievable acts of adultery. Peter stated:

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies ... 2 Pet. 2:1

      “Whatever it may be in our Christian experience that originates outside of Scriptures should, for that very reason, be suspect until it can be shown to be in accord with them. If it should be found to be contrary to the Word of revealed truth no true Christian will accept it as being from God. However high the emotional content, no experience can be proved to be genuine unless we can find chapter and verse authority for it in Scriptures. ‘To the word and to the testimony’ must always be the last and final proof. Whatever is new or singular should also be viewed with caution until it can furnish scriptural proof of its validity. Throughout the twentieth century quite a number of unscriptural notions have gained acceptance among Christians by claiming that they were among truths that were to be revealed in the last days. The truth is that the Bible does not teach that there will be new light and advanced spiritual experiences in the latter days; it teaches the exact opposite! Nothing in Daniel or the New Testament epistles can be tortured into advocating the idea that we of the end of the Christian era shall enjoy light that was not known at its beginning. Beware of any man who claims to be wiser than the apostles or holier than the martyrs of the Early Church. The best way to deal with him is to rise and leave his presence!” (A. W. Tozer).

God’s Presence And God’s Expectations

The Great Day Of Atonement – Leviticus 16:1-10, 20-22

      In the 16th chapter of Leviticus a beautiful story is told of the atonement, and of the scapegoat. Only in this place is the expression "scapegoat" used, yet it has become a common expression. We use it over and over today, usually without any religious significance.

      The Lord God Almighty created man with the intent to keep him, and not lose him. And after man fell through Adam God never gave up this intention. We can say with all confidence; God still intends for mankind to be saved. It is not the wish of the Father that anybody should perish. He earnestly desires that all should come to know and accept His offer of salvation through Christ. (2 Pet. 3:9; etc.)

      But there must be a reason -- a good reason -- for God to save mankind when mankind does not deserve to be saved. There must be a defense -- a plausible defense -- when Satan seeks to destroy the human race – when he indicts us, and tries us, and condemns us because of our sin. There must be an explanation -- a good explanation -- for God to take a sinner, an unrighteous man, and count him as righteous. Now this is exactly what God does for you and me. The reason that we can escape hell and enter heaven is because God treats us as though we have never sinned. But we have sinned. All of us! How then can God be just? How then can God be honest with Himself? How then can God be fair? How can He take that person who is willing to confess his sins and count him as though he has never sinned. The answer is: only by the sacrifice of another person in his place; only by the giving up of the life of a Holy Person in place of the life of the unholy one could God give salvation to mankind. This is exactly what God is going to do in Christ, His own Son, on Calvary.

      And this is what the imagery of the scapegoat in the ceremonies on the Day of Atonement point to. In this incident of the scapegoat some thirty-five hundred years ago, recorded in Leviticus 16, God has foretold and visualized that great event of the cross, that means so much to you and me today. It is called by the Jews "Yom Kipper." By the Christian world, "The Great Day of Atonement."

      The story begins with Nadab and Abihu having died because they offered strange fire upon the alter of God. We need to be impressed that these men were destroyed in the very service of God, in the very act of worship. They died because they dared to change and alter the worship of Jehovah God. It would appear that God thought it a strategic time to give a lesson on obedience and respect while in the act of worship. Nadab and Abihu, the sons of the High Priest had just died because they had violated God's sacred ordinance. And so God says to Moses:

"Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: . . ." (vs.2,3).

The Sin Offering

      Aaron goes back through the tabernacle, into the outer court. They have brought before him two goats. You didn't need but one. But one goat must die and it is impossible for one goat to live and to die at the same time. And so there are two, but in reality it represents one. They are just as close alike as you could get them to be. These are for the sins of the people. They are but a shadow of that which is to come at a later day when Jesus Himself would be offered for the sins of the world.

      When Aaron placed those two goats, facing west, the audience fell before him, literally prostrate upon the ground. There was an urn that had two pieces in it, one had, "for Jehovah," and one had, "for the Scapegoat." So Aaron put both hands in the urn at the same time. He lifted from that urn two pieces. On the right hand he placed one piece on the head of one goat; with the left hand he placed one piece on the head of the other. He looked to see the lot each had drawn. One would be a sacrifice; one would be the scapegoat. To mark the difference he put a scarlet thread, so I am told, around the neck of one, and around the horns of the other. One of the goats was now to be killed. One was now to escape. This is where we get the expression, "scapegoat."

      It is significant to remember that God was to make the choice. A lot had to be cast. God picked the one for sacrifice typifying that fact that God would some day pick the man who would redeem us from our sins. God made the choice of goats, and He would make the choice of the sacrificial lamb.

We Must Needs Go Home By The Way Of The Cross

      There are those today who choose to be saved in their way, by their choice of methods, but this is not to be. "I am the way," says Jesus (John 14:6). As glorious as your way might be; as high in respect as your Savior might have attained; as consecrated to that cause of righteousness as you might have become; you must go home by the way of the cross. "No one comes to the Father but by me" (Joh 14:6). God has made the choice and he has made it through Jesus Christ.

      The people of course knew that all this was for their sins. The Scriptures say,

"And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness: and the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness" (vs.21,22).

      And so Aaron confessed the sins of all the people upon the head of that goat. One goat was slain and the blood was taken inside of the tabernacle. Aaron goes to the mercy seat and sprinkles the blood upon it seven times. And then he repeats it. As he comes out of the tabernacle the second time he atones for every vessel that is in the tabernacle, the altar of incense, the table of showbread, the golden candelabra. He even goes to the altar of sacrifice and anoints the horns of the altar of sacrifice, all for the sins of the people.

      For the escape goat, upon which the sins of the people have been confessed, Aaron calls from the congregation a "fit" man, and this fit man comes and takes that goat and leads him away. Far away into the uninhabited wilderness. The "fit man" takes that scapegoat and walks out of that assembly and goes away into the wilderness, into the "cut-off" land. From this far away land the goat could never return.

Conclusion

      Israel would soon become a new nation, exalted above all nations of the then known world, because the Lord God Almighty was with them. Toward the end of his leadership Moses tells of God’s promises for Israel’s future, and, as He always does, emphasizes both blessings and curses; blessings if they will obey God’s commandments, and curses if they will not. Note:

Deu. 27:1 ¶ And Moses with the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandments which I command you this day. . . . 9 And Moses and the priests the Levites spake unto all Israel, saying, Take heed, and hearken, O Israel; this day thou art become the people of the LORD thy God. 10 Thou shalt therefore obey the voice of the LORD thy God, and do his commandments and his statutes, which I command thee this day. . . . 26 Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen. . . . 28:1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: . . .”

      We pause to ask this important question? Did God speak clearly to Adam and Eve about his expectations? To Noah? To Abraham? To Moses? Did they have the ability to understand, and to comply with his instruction? Did Moses enunciate clearly, and correctly God’s expectations under the Law? We will pursue these questions as we advance to the New Covenant era.

– Hank Tankersley