People will go to great lengths to protect what’s important to them. It could be their family, their online privacy, a dream car, an endangered species, or a stamp collection. It really doesn’t matter what it is just that it’s important and worthy of securing with diligence, care, and thoughtfulness. People protect what’s important to them.

And so does God. After sin came into the world God began a restoration project to rebuild what had been lost. He swore to never again flood the world (Gen 9), thus establishing a predictable foundation on top of which he could build. He then promised a particular location for a specific population, a group through whom he would bring global benediction (Gen 12–22). But, for that to happen, this population needed to be preserved against the dangers of deviation, corruption, capitulation, and eradication. This restoration project is important to God, and so he goes to great lengths to protect it.

SERMON MANUSCRIPT

People go to great lengths to protect what’s important to them. It could be family, online privacy, a dream car, an endangered species, or a stamp collection. It doesn’t matter what it is, just that it is important.

When I was young my parents put my brothers and I in piano lessons. Every week we’d go to Mrs. MacDonald’s house and take turns at the keyboard. While waiting our turn the other was relegated to separate room. It was uncomfortable. Mrs. MacDonald’s home, as I remember it, was pristine, and she had rules for keeping it that way. No touching, no moving, no feet on the furniture (which was covered in plastic), no eating, no breathing. 

Her home was important to her and she had rules in place to protect it from enemies, to guard it from damage, and to preserve it for the future. To a child, many of her rules seems harsh, arbitrary, unnecessary, and even silly. But I have no doubt that, if Mrs. MacDonald is still alive today, she’s enjoying a stain-free home. 

Like my childhood piano teacher, we all protect what’s important to us. And so does God. That’s what we’re going to see this morning as we come to the third of six stops in our study of the biblical covenants.

A quick recap. God created a perfect world in which he desired to dwell with humanity. But we rebelled, wrecking everything and plunging creation into estrangement from our Creator. 

Amazingly, God didn’t abandon the project but, instead, began planning restoration, a plan that can be traced through the biblical covenants—oaths to which God has obligated himself. We call them the Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, Priestly, Davidic, and New covenants. Each expresses a unique facet of God’s revealed intentions for restoring what was lost and provides a unique contribution for our anticipation.

Each week we’ve been looking at one covenant and asking three questions: What is it? Where does it fit? And why does it matter? What are the contents of the oath? How does it relate to the others? And what difference does it make for us today? This morning we’re going to do the same with the Mosaic covenant. Turn to Exodus 19.

What is the Mosaic covenant?

Since we’re dropping into a passage, we need to start with its context. Exodus begins by describing the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (now a significant population) enslaved in Egypt and crying to God for help (3:9).

And God responds, raising up Moses to shepherd them (3:10), miraculously and theatrically delivering them (7:14–12:32, 14:21), providing for them (15:25; 16:4, 12; 17:6), and fighting for them (17:13). And how do they respond? They resist (4:25; 5:21), doubt (14:11–12), disobey (16:20), grumble (15:24; 16:2; 17:3), and quarrel (17:2).

It’s a good thing I’m not God because at times like this I think I’d walk away from these annoying ingrates. But then the Holy Spirit reminds me of the times I’m annoyingly ungrateful—grumbling, disobeying, and doubting in the face of provision and protection. God’s so patient. He’s also faithful. Remember that he has sworn an oath with these people to grow a population and bring them to a promised location. So, no matter how much they bicker and belly-ache, he’s going to do it.

Finally they arrive at the foot of a mountain called Sinai, and God gathers his rag-tag people around its foot and, in the first verses of chapter 19, explains the purpose of the covenant he’s about to make. 

[19:1–6] By this covenant Israel will be God’s own possession among all the peoples, uniquely exalted and useful. They will be a kingdom of priests, bringing one another, and the other nations with them, before God. And they will be a holy nation, morally pure and dedicated to the King’s service. The purpose of this covenant is the setting apart of Israel unto God, making and keeping them peculiar so that they can do what they’re called to do.

[19:7–8] Here we catch a glimpse of the nature of this covenant. The Mosaic covenant is unique because it’s the only bilateral covenant. As we saw with the Noahic and Abrahamic, God himself swore the oaths. Noah and Abraham were passive. God alone bound himself to the terms of those covenants. 

Here, however, the people are entering the covenant as well. They aren’t asleep nor passive but wide-awake and shouting, “We’ll do it all! We want to be your possession, God! We want to be unique and priestly, holy and set apart for you! We’re in!” This is the handshake before signing the mortgage papers.

And with that, preparation for the covenant begins. The rest of the chapter records God’s instructions to the people to get themselves ready. [19:10–11] Israel must cleanse themselves, purify their camp, and get themselves ready. We can feel the significance of what’s about to take place. The God of the heavens was about to descend and speak. [19:16–19] This is serious business.

And with that awesome stage set, God details the contents of the covenant, the conditions, expectations, and requirements. And, unlike those he cut with Noah and Abraham, this one is seemingly exhaustive, running from chapter 20 to 24, the totality of which is called the book of the covenant. It’s the meat of the contract, the not-so fine print to which both parties are about to bind themselves.

And, unlike most of us when we get an alert asking if we’ve read and understand the terms we’re agreeing to, Israel is actually going to read and understand these terms. God makes sure of it.

The first part is well-known even to most unbelievers. It’s commonly called the ten commandments and this section of the book of the covenant functions as a tone-setting summary of its contents. We’re likely all familiar, but let’s read them anyway and, as we do, notice their specificity and the severity. [20:1–17] Notice the response. [20:18–21] 

Moses then receives more details, instructions on how to deal with slaves and clothing, accidental injuries and homicides, miscarriages and assaults, property rights and sexual ethics, economic disparity and legal proceedings, sabbath-keeping and feast-observing. Expectations are laid out and consequences described. The terms are being set.

Finally, we come to the ratification of the covenant. [24:3–8] Did the people understand the expectations and conditions of the oath? How many times did Moses go up and down, relaying the words of the Lord to the people? How many times did he rehearse the expectations? And three times the people declared, “We’re in. We’ll obey. We’ll keep it.”

The blood sprinkling symbolized the legal transaction between God—represented by the altar (v. 6)—and the people—represented by the twelve pillars (v. 4). It’s an oath sworn and sealed with blood.

Now, let’s not loose sight of the purpose of this covenant in the sea of its content. What is the Mosaic covenant? The Mosaic covenant is an oath sworn by both God and Israel, full of detailed instructions meant to set and keep Israel apart as a holy, God-serving, and God-displaying people. They were God’s nation. He was their King. This covenant, which they willingly entered, was intended to keep it that way.

This is where we quickly move to our second question:

Where does the Mosaic covenant fit? 

Remember, God is working to rebuild a sin-broken world. So, he lays a foundation with the Noahic covenant building on top of it the Abrahamic covenant—a population living at a specific location through whom he will send global benediction. 

But what if that population rebels against the God who blesses? What if they become corrupt, indistinguishable from other peoples and, eventually over the centuries, disappear? From where, then, would the blessing come? How is that population going to inherit the location if they’re no longer a distinct nation? 

Well, God takes care of that in the Mosaic covenant, a covenant of preservation. He’s going to make sure they remain a distinct people, a people belonging to him, representing him, understanding holiness, illustrating helplessness; a people he can use to bring about that much needed global blessing, a blessing that, ultimately, culminates in the sending of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This restoration project is important to God, blessing the world is important to God, saving sinners is important to God. And, just like we do, God protects what’s important to him. And so, in the Mosaic covenant, God puts detailed rules in place to make sure it happens. Some of those rules we may consider harsh, arbitrary, unnecessary, and even silly. But there’s no doubt that, in the end, because of this covenant of preservation, God will enjoy a new creation free from the stains of sin. That’s how the Mosaic covenant fits.

Why does the Mosaic covenant matter?

I have two suggestions for us to consider. First, we’re not Israel. The Mosaic covenant forces us to acknowledge the difference between Israel and the church. Brothers and sisters, we did not enter that bilateral covenant. It wasn’t even offered to us. It was offered to a particular population en route to a particular location. It was meant to set Israel apart from the surrounding nations and preserve them as the people that would bring promised blessing. We are not subjected to the terms of that covenant any more than you are subjected to the terms of my phone contract. We’re not Israel.

Now, there are parts of this covenant that are repeated elsewhere in Scripture, making it binding for us. For example, we shouldn’t murder, dishonour our parents, or worship idols. But not because the ten commandments say so. We’re not under the Mosaic Law.

Some will try and say that part of the Mosaic covenant is still active for us—not the ceremonial or civil parts, but surely the moral parts. The problem is that Scripture never divides up the covenant like that. In fact, the NT always refers to the Law as singular. [Gal 5:3; Jas 2:10] It’s a package deal. It’s all part of the covenant given for the preservation of a particular population. And that’s not us. We’re not Israel.

But that doesn’t mean the Mosaic covenant has nothing to teach us. Which leads to my second suggestions: God is awesome. [19:16–19] He is holy, holy Lord God Almighty. If there’s nothing else that this oath communicates it’s that God is separate from his creation, high and lifted up. He owns the whole earth, does with it what he wills, and commits himself to us in condescending grace. He is in the thunder and lighting, shroud of divine fog and trembling earth. God is awesome.

The church in North America has long flirted with the incredible mistake of domesticating God like a lapdog that comes and goes, eats and lays down with a single word. We pray, God jumps. We sin, he shrugs. We’re offended by him, he apologizes. Times change, so must he. No wonder the church today is often indistinguishable from the world around us, no wonder there’s so much flagrant sin within God’s people. We lack a fear of the awesomeness of God. [20:18–20]

Brothers and sisters, we need to recapture awe. It’s true, God is love and he has come near in Christ. He is gracious and patient. But he is also transcendent and fearful. It’s this balance we want to be careful to pursue and protect. God is awesome.

I want to encourage us to, when we come into this place, when we prepare to gather with God’s people to worship, that we remember to humble ourselves, that we may prepare to meet with our God, the God who laid the foundation, called a population to a location promising a global benediction, and then supplied their much needed preservation. The God who sent his Son to die for us that, by believing in him we shall not perish like we deserve but have an undeserved eternity in his awesome presence.

May the church today recapture a sense of the awesomeness of God, an awesomeness only somewhat captured and communicated in the Mosaic covenant, a covenant of gracious preservation. 

 

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