18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” 21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”
In a grand overview of the comparison of Christ with the entire Mosaic system of approaching God, verses 18-21, our text for today, summarizes the fearfulness in that old approach, while verses 22-24 summarize the benefits of the new approach in Christ. One might say the first emphasizes the transcendence of God, while the latter the immanence of God. The separateness of God versus the closeness of God. Night versus day.
When Moses ascended Mt. Sinai to receive the Law from Yahweh, the God of Israel, it was a very physical experience. Israel’s worship was to be very earthy and tangible. God represented Himself in fearful terms to human nature: fire, darkness, gloom and storm. Ominous and menacing, like something out of a horror movie! Sights were accompanied by sound, the voice of God that solicited a foreboding sense of annihilation. The experience overwhelmed the people to the point of desiring to escape at all costs. It was reminiscent of Isaiah’s response in his vision of Yahweh of hosts, high and lifted up: “Woe to me! … I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty” (Is 6:5).
The experience of God on Mt. Sinai has left an overwhelmingly pervasive impression on the people of God throughout the rest of biblical history. Have you ever noticed how often God, speaking through the prophets and visions, has said, “Fear not” or “Do not fear”? It is as though our baseline in approaching God was established on Mt. Sinai, from which we can then proceed to learn or appreciate God in His less forbidding characteristics. He is God Almighty, a fearful God who must be approached first and foremost with the greatest respect. We may waltz into the presence of a manmade god, but not when we have audience with the Creator God of the Universe, the Judge of all the earth, the One who in His core is absolutely holy.
The writer of Hebrews now helps us see that “trembling with fear” gives way to the tremendous benefits of faith in Christ. The image of God in Christ presented in Hebrews solicits our entry into His very presence.
Lord, I recognize that You are a fearful God. And I also recognize that in Christ we can approach You in confidence without reticence or foreboding.
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