April 24, 2019
The Best Gift You Could Ever Receive
Exodus 24
Cameron Cushman
Central Truth
God's gifts are free, but we must receive and accept them.
Key Verse | Exodus 24:3
Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, "All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do."
Exodus 24
The Covenant Confirmed
1 Then he said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship from afar. 2 Moses alone shall come near to the LORD, but the others shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him.”
3 Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the rules. 1 24:3 Or all the just decrees And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do.” 4 And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. 6 And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. 7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” 8 And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. 11 And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank.
12 The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there, that I may give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” 13 So Moses rose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. 14 And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. And behold, Aaron and Hur are with you. Whoever has a dispute, let him go to them.”
15 Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 16 The glory of the LORD dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. 18 Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
Dive Deeper | Exodus 24
Presents. There may not be anything that makes my kids more excited than receiving presents for their birthdays or for Christmas. They are always happy to accept them, but sometimes they are disappointed by what is underneath that pretty wrapping paper. Why do we sometimes struggle with receiving the most perfect gift that has ever been offered to us?
The preceding chapters in Exodus detail the experiences that Moses had in establishing another covenant with God, commonly called the Mosaic Covenant. This covenant brought God's ten commandments and the law to the Israelites. God gave these laws to Moses, and Moses delivered them to his people. But it was up to the people to receive and accept them. Chapter 24 represents this acceptance and confirmation of the covenant agreement between God and his people. In Exodus 24:3, the people gave their unified response and said, "All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do." The next verses detail the animal sacrifices, sprinkling of blood, and the ceremony that Moses prepared to formally accept this covenant with God.
Similarly, the new covenant that came with Jesus' death on the cross required that blood be shed to grant forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22). Only in this case, it was not the blood of an animal, but the blood of God's only Son, who died for the forgiveness of all our sins (John 3:16). Jesus was sacrificed so that we can live forever with our Creator in heaven, if we accept that Jesus died for us and believe that the spilling of His blood forgives our sins. This gift of salvation must be accepted by us in order for us to truly become His. It's not something we have to reach for, it is something that is given to us if we believe and if we accept it.
God gave Moses the gift of the law on Mount Sinai. God gave us the gift of His Son on the cross. He gave us the ultimate gift of salvation, if we will just accept His gift. It's the best gift you could ever receive.
Discussion Questions
1. Have you accepted God's free gift of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ?
2. When was the last time you told others about the free gift that they can receive from the Creator of the universe?
3. Though God's gift of salvation is free for you to accept and receive, the book of James warns us that "faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead." (James 2:17) How are you working out your faith today?
4. What can the reminder of God's salvation for you rescue you from today?
5. Can you see how this story of the covenant God made with Moses and the Israelites points to the salvation He sent through His Son Jesus hundreds of years later? Can you see how this story from the Old Testament plays into God's ultimate rescue plan for the world?