No Forcing

DEVOTION

EXODUS

NO FORCING

Ex 19:20-25

20 The LORD descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up 21 and the LORD said to him, "Go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the LORD and many of them perish. 22 Even the priests, who approach the LORD, must consecrate themselves, or the LORD will break out against them." 23 Moses said to the LORD, "The people cannot come up Mount Sinai, because you yourself warned us, 'Put limits around the mountain and set it apart as holy.'" 24 The LORD replied, "Go down and bring Aaron up with you. But the priests and the people must not force their way through to come up to the LORD, or he will break out against them." 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them.

NIV

We are getting ready to receive the Ten Commandments, which are the next verses right after these, but first we should find our truth for today. Why would the LORD call Moses up to the mountain just to tell him to go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the LORD? Even after Moses repeats the words of the LORD about him putting limits on the people and their proximity to the mountain, that even they are not permitted to even touch the foot or base of it, then repeats his command that they should not force their way through to come up to the LORD. Moses was told to bring Aaron, but no one else. Aaron was going to be able to come up to the LORD. He was going to be the high priest, the first high priest. But this not forcing their way up to the LORD has something for us today as well. It is possible we could get in a trap of forcing our way up to the LORD. What that might look like is quite different than those people trying to climb up the mountain. We could mistakenly think being spiritual is being close to the LORD, in fact that might be considered as forcing our way. It is possible that when we put our own limits on ourselves as with that list of don’ts, like not smoking or drinking or dancing or whatever else each of us considers a don’t, we are trying to force our way up to the LORD. It is also possible that we try to force our way up to the LORD with our “Good deeds”. We cannot even wash ourselves in the blood of the Lamb, for it is up to the LORD to wash us. We can accept the cleansing, but we cannot cleanse ourselves in an effort to come to the LORD. It is possible that when we sing those words on the screen or in the hymnal we think we are entering the presence of the LORD but we might just be trying to force our way up with our mouth and not our heart.

Isa 29:13

 "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.  

NIV

 This might just be the key here, our heart. Our relationship with our Lord is a heart issue. Have we allowed our Father to circumcise our heart? Have we allowed him to cut alway the outer layer so the most sensitive portion of our heart is exposed to him? We are told to come near to the Lord, not force our way up to him, but just come near;

James 4:7-10

7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

NIV

There is certainly some preparations we need to do, as the LORD instructed Moses to consecrate the people, we are to consecrate ourselves, which is set ourselves apart from the world. This again is not in the physical sense, with that list is don’ts, but it is in the sense of being unequally yoked, not being in partnership with the world. It means not ascribing to the world’s ideologies, it methods of operating. If we are truly aliens here, then we do not even speak the same language as the world does. We are set apart, different from them in our thinking. It still comes down to our heart, allowing God access rather than forcing our way up to him. He is the one who does the work in us.

Phil 1:6

6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

NIV

Let us not force, but rather submit.