Pastor Mikes Daily Devotion Sunday November 15, 2014 Hebrews 12:18–19, For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore. Hebrews 12:22–23, But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, Here the writer of Hebrews contrasts two mountains. The first is Mount Sinai - an illustration of mans attempt at righteousness through the keeping of the law. The second is Mount Zion - an illustration of God-given righteousness by the grace of God. Mount Sinai is the place that we cannot go to, nor should we send anyone there. Mount Sinai is seen today in religious routine that does not bring us closer to God, but instead actually keeps us from a right relationship with Him. When the writer tells us For you have not come to the mountain... he wants us to know that this is not where a walk with the Lord leads to. When we forsake grace and go the route of legalism, we then find ourselves at this place that tells us what we can and cant do... all under the penalty of death. But Mount Zion is the destination that a walk with the Lord will take us to. The only means of entry into Mount Zion (heavenly Jerusalem) is by grace through faith. This is the place where God lives, angels are without number, and the church will dwell forever. Notice the contrast between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion. At Mt. Sinai there was a burning; at Mt. Zion there is a refining. At Mt. Sinai there was blackness; at Mt. Zion there is the glory of the presence of God. At Mt. Sinai there is a tempest; at Mt. Zion there is perfect peace. On Mt. Sinai there is the blast of the trumpet of judgment; at Mt. Zion there is the sound of the heavenly choir. All of our past religious experiences, apart from a relationship with Christ, always ended at Mount Sinai. But for those who have a relationship with Christ, our citizenship is now in Mount Zion - the place where we enter by grace, and enjoy God for eternity. Psalm 125:1, Those who trust in the LORD Are like Mount Zion, Which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 17:36:47 +0000