Covenant and Glory
Notes
Transcript
Call to Worship
Call to Worship
Praise Yah! How blessed is the man who fears Yahweh, Who greatly delights in His commandments.
His seed will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed.
Wealth and riches are in his house, And his righteousness stands forever.
Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous.
It is well with the man who is gracious and lends; Who sustains his works with justice.
For he will never be shaken; The righteous will be remembered forever.
He will not fear an evil report; His heart is set, trusting in Yahweh.
His heart is upheld, he will not fear, Until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
He has given freely to the needy, His righteousness stands forever; His horn will be raised in glory.
The wicked will see it and be vexed, He will gnash his teeth and melt away; The desire of the wicked will perish.
Old Testament Reading
Old Testament Reading
“Call out from your throat, do not hold back; Raise your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins.
“Yet they seek Me day by day and find pleasure in knowing My ways, As a nation that has done righteousness And has not forsaken the judgment of their God. They ask Me for righteous judgments; They find pleasure in the nearness of God.
‘Why have we fasted and You do not see? Why have we afflicted our souls and You do not know?’ Behold, on the day of your fast you find your desire, And oppress all your workers.
“Behold, you fast for contention and quarreling and to strike with a wicked fist. You do not fast like you do today to make your voice heard on high.
“Is it a fast like this which I choose, a day for a man to afflict himself? Is it for bowing one’s head like a reed And for spreading out sackcloth and ashes as a bed? Will you call this a fast, even an acceptable day to Yahweh?
“Is this not the fast which I choose, To loosen the bonds of wickedness, To release the bands of the yoke, And to let the oppressed go free And break every yoke?
“Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry And bring the afflicted homeless into the house; When you see the naked, you cover him; And not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
“Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your recovery will speedily spring forth; And your righteousness will go before you; The glory of Yahweh will be your rear guard.
“Then you will call, and Yahweh will answer; You will cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you remove the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the finger and speaking wickedness,
Gospel Reading
Gospel Reading
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out to be trampled under foot by men.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.
“For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
“Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
“For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
INTRO:
INTRO:
AG
Imagine a couple on their wedding day, exchanging vows filled with love and commitment; they are serious about the covenant they are entering. In the same way, Exodus 24 details a solemn promise between God and His people. Our New Covenant, however, comes with an unwavering assurance, as Jesus promises to never leave us nor forsake us. This love binds us to Him, inviting us to an intimacy that surpasses simple obedience—echoing the passion and fidelity of a heart fully surrendered.
TS: In Exodus 24, Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel affirm the covenant with God and witness His glory. This passage reveals the seriousness of covenant relationship and the transformative experience of being in God's presence.
Exodus 24 serves as the formal ratification ceremony of the Sinai covenant.
Chapters 19–20 introduce Yahweh’s appearance and foundational covenant words;
chapters 21–23 provide detailed stipulations (“judgments”).
Exodus 24 brings these elements together into a single, legally binding covenant act.
Without this chapter, Sinai would contain instruction but no formal covenant enactment.
Literarily, Exodus 24 serves as a hinge:
Backward: It concludes the law-giving section (Exod 19–23)
Forward: It prepares for the tabernacle instructions (Exod 25–31), which presuppose a ratified covenant relationship
This chapter is rich in the culture of the ancient near east.
Application: This message encourages us to recognize the seriousness of our covenant with God and the privilege of abiding in His presence. It invites us to reflect on our relationship with God and the importance of obedience and reverence in worship.
Big Idea: We are called to a profound covenant relationship with God that transforms our lives as we encounter His holiness and glory.
1. Commitment through Covenant
1. Commitment through Covenant
Exodus 24:1-8
Suzerainty treaties in the ancient Near East were formal agreements between a dominant state (the suzerain) and a vassal state, outlining obligations and protections that shaped interactions and governance.
These treaties were meticulously crafted to ensure clarity and enforceability, reflecting the political and social dynamics of the time.
The structure of these treaties included elements such as
the identification of the suzerain
a historical prologue
covenant stipulations
provisions for periodic reading and safekeeping of the covenant
witnesses to the covenant
blessings and curses for the vassal.
These treaties were not only historical documents but also keystones in understanding the politics and societal structures of ancient civilizations.
God follows that same pattern in HIS covenant with Israel
Divine Summons
Then He said to Moses, “Come up to Yahweh, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and seventy of the elders of Israel, and you all shall worship at a distance.
“Moses alone, however, shall come near to Yahweh, but they shall not come near, and the people shall not come up with him.”
The text establishes specific and restricted access:
Moses alone may approach Yahweh directly
Leaders may ascend partially
The people must remain at a distance
Historically, this reflects royal court protocol familiar in the Ancient Near East, where proximity to the king signified authority and trust.
This marks Moses as distinct since enter into the Lord’s presence
This also is a foreshadowing of the distinctiveness of the priesthood we will see soon.
Theologically within the text, it underscores Yahweh’s holiness and the necessity of mediation.
God is holy. The Bible declares and illustrates that
Only those He summons can come into that holy space and those only by HIS declaration of righteousness.
Moses was granted this access by God’s will and no other reason. He didn’t earn it nor did he deserve it. What a beautiful picture of grace.
The narrative makes no attempt to explain or justify the restriction; it is presented as an accepted reality of covenant relationship.
Covenant Proclaimed
Moses came and recounted to the people all the words of Yahweh and all the judgments; and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which Yahweh has spoken we will do!”
Moses acts as the covenant mediator.
God is making a covenant with the people of Israel
Moses carries the terms between them
Sacrificial Preparation
And Moses wrote down all the words of Yahweh. Then he arose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.
And he sent young men of the sons of Israel, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to Yahweh.
And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and the other half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
Before ratification, Moses wrote the covenant terms
Moses had the memorial prepared:
the alter (for God)
The 12 pillars (for 12 tribes)
Blood covenant
Ancient near east custom to seal the bond by and exchange of blood.
The pagans even included consuming it at times, a practice GOD would forbid.
He had it poured out, sprinkled, etc. but demanded they NOT consume it because life was in the blood.
Binding Oath
Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, “All that Yahweh has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!”
Blood Ratification
So Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant, which Yahweh has cut with you in accordance with all these words.”
AP:
This ceremony prefigures the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, whose blood secures our New Covenant with God.
Heb 9:18-22
Our covenant is discussed in Heb 9.
The OLD covenant was merely a picture pointing to the new.
The old tabernacle/temple a mere shadow of Heaven where Jesus serves
Our covenant was always in God’s plan!
Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood.
For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the Law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people,
saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God commanded you.”
And in the same way, both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry he sprinkled with the blood.
And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
We must consider our own commitment and obedience within their covenant relationship with God
He still demands holiness and dedication in our worship and daily lives.
2. Presence and Privilege
2. Presence and Privilege
This whole chapter has parallels to suzerain treaties from ancient near east.
In 9-11, we see the covenant meal paralleled.
Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel,
God called representatives to ascend the mountain.
They stood in the place of the whole nation.
and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.
God revealed HIMSELF to them
This theophany,
A theophany is “an appearance of God.”
Wayne Grudem
MacArthur Study Bible NASB Commentary
The representatives accompanying Moses up the mountain, as per God’s instructions, were privileged to have seen God without being consumed by His holiness. Precisely what they saw must remain a moot point and must stay within the description given, which focuses only on what was under His feet. This perhaps indicates that only a partial manifestation took place such as would occur before Moses (33:20), or that the elders, in the presence of divine majesty, beauty, and strength (cf.
This had to be an overwhelming experience!
It should have remained etched in their memories.
Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they beheld God, and they ate and drank.
They were allowed a rare privilege of being in Yahweh’s presence w/o repercussion.
This was the formal covenant meal which “sealed” the agreement between God and Israel.
AP:
This theophany highlights the privilege of coming into God's presence, an experience that is made possible for us today through Jesus.
We come boldly to His throne only because of Jesus and the New Covenant He instituted
Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
We are encouraged to approach God with confidence
Seek to recognize the presence of God
He is always with us!
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, that He may be with you forever;
the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him. You know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
We don’t have to wait at the foot of a mountain for God to call us up, He lives within us!
It is a call to engage deeply with God in our spiritual journey.
3. Transformation through Revelation
3. Transformation through Revelation
Exodus 24:12-18
Moses’ Summons
Now Yahweh said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and remain there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commandment which I have written for their instruction.”
So Moses arose with Joshua his attendant, and Moses went up to the mountain of God.
But to the elders he said, “Remain here for us until we return to you. And behold, Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a legal matter, let him approach them.”
Moses' ascent to the mountain represents the transition from just witnessing God's glory to receiving His law directly.
Here we see the first mention of the stone tablets
Later they are also called
tablets of testimony 31:18
Tablets of the covenant Dt 9:9
The elders were to remain behind and oversee Israel while Moses was with God
Glory of Yahweh
Then Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain.
And the glory of Yahweh dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; and on the seventh day He called to Moses from the midst of the cloud.
And the appearance of the glory of Yahweh was like a consuming fire on the mountain top, in the eyes of the sons of Israel.
Then Moses entered the midst of the cloud as he went up to the mountain; and Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
This is the 1st of 2 40 day trips up Sinai for Moses.
MacArthur Study Bible NASB Commentary
The awe-inspiring sight of God’s glory cloud, the Shekinah, resting on the mountain and into which Moses disappeared for 40 days and nights, impressed everyone with the singular importance of this event in Israel’s history.
MacArthur Study Bible NASB Commentary
During these days Moses received all the instructions on the tabernacle and its furnishings and accoutrements (chaps. 25–31).
MacArthur Study Bible NASB Commentary
The settling of the Shekinah upon the tabernacle at its completion impressed the Israelites with the singular importance of this structure in Israel’s worship of and relationship to Yahweh (40:34–38).
Israel had visual confirmation of GOD’s presence!
AP:
This part foreshadows the giving of the law written on hearts through the Spirit in the New Covenant
I know opening the Bible doesn’t seem as dramatic as a fire covered mountain, but remember, it is still GOD giving HIS word to us!
We must heed God's words, as Moses did, with a heart open to transformation.
His word still sets the boundaries of righteous and unrighteous
His truth guides us in all of life’s decisions.
Like Moses, we are invited into a deeper understanding and connection with God, embracing His commands as a path to holiness and transformation.
Conc
Conc
In Exodus 24, the Israelites stood at the base of Mount Sinai, witnessing the divine covenant sealed in blood. They pledged, ‘All the words which the LORD has said, we will do.’ Today, as we reflect on our New Covenant through Jesus, we too stand at the foot of a mountain—not of law, but of grace, where His blood was shed for our redemption. This moment compels us to examine our own commitments, just as the Israelites did, reminding us that our promise to God requires an active, heart-led response.
We live under the New Covenant secured by the blood of Christ.
We should take it as seriously as Moses, the elders, and Israel should have.
