In God’s Presence
On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently, and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.
When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die."
Natural catastrophes are a common occurrence in our era. Earthquakes, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and volcanic eruptions. A recent tornado in Atlanta and several in the mid-West last month are powerful examples. One of the few volcanic eruptions to hit the United States occurred in 1980 Mount St. Helens in Washington State erupted, sending almost 2 cubic miles of ash and rock skyward which then plummeted down the side of the mountain at over 200 miles per hour, killing people and wildlife and destroying all vegetation in its wake.
The text before us teaches repentance and fear and the necessity for confession.
Man is Frightened in God’s Presence
Nature’s wrath boldly speaks of what it is like to be in the presence of God, when sinful human beings are called to stand before the all-knowing, all-powerful, and awe-inspiring Creator of heaven and earth. He is holy. We are not. Who here could stand before all that described in our text? In the face of natural disasters, we are helpless, but even more so, who can possibly stand before God? That’s how the people of Israel must have felt when they were confronted by the Lord of hosts, with all the rumblings, fire and smoke and thunder coming from Mt. Sinai, for they clearly perceived how different from him they were. How could they ever approach him? How can we?
The Ten Commandments appear in the middle of this text. They mirror our unrighteousness.
God tells us, “Obey all of these and you will Be righteous.” We try. We fail. We fail
every day. A friend of my used to remark, “I conclude that by sundown every day I have disobeyed all of the commandments at least once and have been forgiven as many times.” You cannot keep them. Your nature is against it. The fall into sin at Eden assures it. “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”
Man stands in the wrathful presence of God
In the immediate wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack, there went out an unprecedented call for blood. In a matter of days the American Red Cross received far more blood from donors than it needed. People knew that where there is blood, there is life or, at least, the chance for life.
Blood – the stuff of life. Blood that is mentioned hundreds of times in the Old Testament – the blood of sacrificial animals used to bear away the sins of the Israelites and to show that forgiveness of sins and an ongoing relationship with God came with the cost of a life, foreshadowing the shedding of blood and loss of life by our Lord.
God chose Israel to be his own. He lovingly and graciously led them out of slavery in Egypt. He protected them as they passed through the Red Sea and drowned their Egyptian pursuers in the waves. In our text, the Lord now desired to enter into a covenant, that is, into a solemn and binding agreement exclusively with them, in which he would be their God and they would be his people. The terms of this covenant were simple. The Lord would guide, lead, prosper, and protect the people of Israel, and they would do everything that he commanded. To seal this covenant, young bulls were sacrificed and blood was shed. Half of this blood was poured on the altar, symbolizing God’s forgiveness of the people and acceptance of their offering, and the other half was sprinkled on the people themselves. This blood bound them to God in obedience. It was on the basis of blood, therefore, that forgiveness was obtained and a relationship with God was established foretelling salvation through the shed blood of Christ.
The Lord kept the covenant, but the people did not. They abandoned him and the covenant he made with them for other gods. They adopted the wicked practices of the world around them. They became like rebellious children, unfaithful, straying sheep. Many times the Lord disciplined them, but they refused to repent. Instead of listening to the word of the Lord, they persecuted and killed his messengers. Finally, despite this and out of his great love for them, God sent his Son.
We so often have copied the people of Israel. We have been rebellious children, unfaithful followers, straying sheep. How often have we known the Lord’s expectations of us, but instead of doing his will, we disobeyed.
It is so easy to make excuses, “Oh, I didn’t mean to do it” or “It was a trying day” or “I was afraid what might happen to me if I displeased the boss or parents or spouse or whoever.” “It wasn’t my fault.” “Frank did it too!” or “Don’t blame me. We all are at fault.” as if to justify our actions based on someone else’s performance or complicity.
No matter how you stack it, it is no less sin, and the wages of sin is death.
How often have our eyes been dazzled and our gaze been averted by the toys, trinkets, temptations and treats of this world. In our use of money, for example, have we been faithful to God alone or has the “stuff” of this become our goal?
Stuff! We all want “stuff”. Stuff, stuff, Stuff! It appears to be the standard All-American goal. Get some stuff!
It’s odd, though, that every time I lust for some geegaw, gadget, or whatsit and get it, I am never really that elated by the acquisition and it invariably ends up in a drawer or unused on a desktop or in my workshop. So much for the pleasure of owning!
The lusting’s the thing! Worship of earthly things is, after all, one of the wages of sin and those wages are death.
In the first chapter of I John we read, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”(I John 1:8-9)
They say that confession is good for the soul. Often this just means that we love the
that good feeling we get when someone realizes or at least, thinks, we are sorry. It’s a human trait: I will feel good if you feel good. It’s a give and take. Both get rewarded.
But true sorrow and repentance mean that I don’t get a reward for my attitude. True confession means that “I am heartily sorry for my transgressions and sincerely repent of them and ask for mercy based on the holy, innocent, suffering and death of Jesus Christ. True confession means that I rely on His saving work to justify me not my act of contrition.
In a dream, Martin Luther found himself being attacked by Satan. The devil unrolled a long scroll containing a list of Luther's sins, and held it before him. On reaching the end of the scroll Luther asked the devil, "Is that all?" "No," came the reply, and a second scroll was thrust in front of him. Then, after a second came a third. But now the devil had no more. "You've forgotten something," Luther exclaimed triumphantly. "Quickly write on each of them, 'The blood of Jesus Christ God's son cleanses us from all sins.'"
Lent is a time of reflection on our sins and the great price our Lord paid for them. It is a time for a renewed attitude of sorrow over our lost human soul and a confirming our baptismal vows of renouncing the devil, his works and all his ways, the world and our tainted souls; of reaffirming our belief in God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and the whole narrative of Christ’s life from birth to death; a time of bowing in silent wonder over our God – a God who roars on the mountain and demands justice, yet who give us justice not in the keeping of countless laws, but giving His own Son and washing us in the blood of the lamb. What a comparison: made white in the blood of the Lamb. Blood turns everything a rusty color. For it to turn anything white is a contradiction to us. But He did the impossible. He died for us. Our Lord is incomprehensible and his mercies last forever. Washed white in the blood of the lamb.
God made a covenant with his people on that mountain and continues to keep it today through the gift of his Son.
It’s no big surprise then that Paul confirms it: “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. .. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:6–8). Jesus himself became the sacrifice. Jesus himself gave his life. Jesus himself shed his blood for you and for me. “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Is 53:5–6).
It sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? How may we be sure of this message? How can you really know? Listen: “Drink from it, all of you,” Jesus says, “This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Mt 26:27–28). Our Savior knows and understands that we are people who live, move, and have our being in a physical world where seeing, hearing, touching, and tasting are all very important to us. So he comes to us in a very real, very physical way with his temporal and eternal grace and forgiveness.
Imagine what would happen if I daily told my wife that I loved her, but never hugged her, squeezed her hand, put my arm around her shoulder, complimented her for her patience, or gave her a peck on the cheek or admired her for her accomplishments. Before long she wouldn’t believe anything I said. Why? Most of us need consistent and loving physical contact as a way of ensuring that we are loved. Jesus knows this, and so he comes to us often, meets us personally at the communion rail, and says: “Here I am for you. Eat my body. Drink my blood. I am here for you because I love you. Your sins are forgiven. Your faith is strengthened. Enjoy the fellowship you have with me, and when you leave, know that my peace is with you ALWAYS.”
That is really why confession is good for the soul. Unlike the Israelites who trembled and said, “but do not have God speak to us or we will die,” through the Holy Spirit we are empowered to approach our Lord, admit that we are lost and condemned beings and given forgiveness, peace, hope for our daily lives and the assurance of eternal life.
Luther summarizes confession and absolution in his Small Catechism. He notes John 20:22-23: "Jesus breathed on His disciples and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; and if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.'" This gives us the power to forgive sins.
What is Confession? Confession consists of two parts: one, that we confess our sins; the other, that we receive absolution, or forgiveness, from the pastor as from God himself, and in no way doubt, but firmly believe that our sins are thereby forgiven before God in heaven. What sins should we confess? Before God we should acknowledge ourselves guilty of all sins, even of those which we do not know about, as we do in the Lord's Prayer. But before the pastor we should acknowledge those sins only which we know and feel in our hearts.
Mountains quake, wave smother, winds blow, nature threatens, disaster looms ahead, but we are now in the gracious presence of God. In God’s presence you need fear not! The blood of the new covenant has been shed for you. The rumblings of nature remind you of the mighty saving power of our Lord. So, come up to the mountain. Your Lord and Savior is waiting, and he is anxious and eager for you to be in his presence and eat and drink frequently of the salvation prepared for you.
Be comforted, you are in the saving presence of God.
True confession IS good for the soul!
Take comfort, you are in the saving presence of our Lord.
In the name of our suffering Savior, Amen.