From Fear to Faith

“For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,…..But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.”  Hebrews 12:18,22

The author of the book of Hebrews, who is unknown, reminded Jewish believers in Christ of the fear and trembling that their ancestors experienced when they had arrived at Mt. Sinai after their miraculous escape from Egypt.  He used Old Testament history to bring his readers to see what trials their forefathers had endured which were far more difficult than what they were facing.  In Exodus 19:12-13, the people were warned not to come near the mountain nor touch the border of it under penalty of death.  In Deuteronomy 4:11, the mountain is described as burning with fire, with darkness, and clouds.  The LORD descended the top of the mountain in fire, and the mountain shook violently (Exodus 19:18).  Imagine how fearful that was to be standing far enough away to obey God’s command, but at the same time, to be close enough to feel the heat of the flames and the ground shaking under their feet.  Several years ago, there was a small earthquake several hundred miles away which caused my town to experience a shaking bad enough to wake us up.  It was very frightening.  An earthquake is probably the worst kind of natural disaster because it comes unexpectedly and causes tremendous damage.

In Exodus 19:19-25, God made it clear to the people by way of Moses that they were to obey His commands concerning Mt. Sinai.  In Exodus 19:16, we find that a loud trumpet was sounded to alert the people that something awesome but also very serious was about to take place.  It was an atmosphere of great fear, dread, and trembling.  This is what it is like to come before Almighty God, the sovereign and great Judge of all people.  Some presumptuous folks think that they can talk their way into the good graces of God, that He will make exceptions for their excuses, and that He will “let them walk” free from accountability for their sins, but that would make Him a weak God who didn’t stand by His own word, and those of us who take Him at His word know that He will follow through on every promise to His children and every threat to His enemies.

It was such a frightening and fearful display of God’s power that the people promised to listen to Moses, but begged Moses to “not let God speak with (them), lest (they) die” (Exodus 20:19).  What they had already heard scared them so badly that they couldn’t bear to hear any more.  The harsh penalty for disobeying God was to instill in the hearts of the people the seriousness of their sin and judgment that would await the disobedient.  Even so, people test the limits that God has given them because their sin nature is bent that way.  For example, tell a child that he is not to touch a certain object, and he will make it his goal to touch it.  We may not even consider committing a particular sin until the devil provides a temptation toward that sin.  That’s when we must look for our God-given “way of escape” (I Corinthians 10:13).

Moses was just as fearful as the Hebrew people.  There are some children of which it only takes “the look” from a parent to get them to “straighten up and fly right”, while other children require a much harsher reminder of the need to obey.  I think that Moses would likely have fallen into the first category.  He had a very intimate walk with the God of the universe, in constant communication with Him, learning God’s ways, and was an obedient servant.  One would think that this relationship would cause Moses to have less fear, but knowing God as well as he did, Moses understood that God didn’t make casual threats.  Moses also understood the fickleness of the Hebrew people and how easily they could be led astray.  The golden calf incidence was proof of that.

What a contrast between the Old Covenant under the law and the New Covenant under Christ.  While the ancient Hebrews stood at the foot of a literal mountain, their knees knocking together, their bodies shaking in fear, and their palms sweating, the recipients of this letter were now standing at Mt. Zion, the spiritual mountain of the heavenly city of God.  There was no need to fear and shake.  They were no longer under the impossible law.  They had hope which was unavailable to their forefathers who could never have kept the law perfectly.  The ancients were not even allowed to come near Mt. Sinai under penalty of death.  However, now, believers are actually in Mt. Zion, God’s holy kingdom.  They do not have to fear death.  Believers are in the company of innumerable angels who serve God night and day, a completely different and joyous atmosphere from the time when angels delivered God’s law unto Moses (Deuteronomy 33:2; Acts 7:38,53), a law that could never save one soul.  Faith in Christ conquers all fear.