God Guides Us Through:
His Word and His Presence
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 19 and said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die."
20 Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning."
21 The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was.-Exodus 20:18-21
This morning as I read this passage about the 10 commandments, I couldn't help but think about how God used both His words and commands as well as His presence to guide the people and "keep them from sinning." I wonder what the word "test" means exactly in this context. It doesn't seem to quite fit as I think of the word.
But, even more powerful that what God says is the way He says it. Thunder and lightening, thick darkness. When you see or feel the presence of the Lord, it is a very powerful thing. I am so blessed by His presence. At moments I have felt it more fiercely than others, but I always feel it in church, in my quiet time, surrounded by the community of my brothers and sisters in Christ. Lord, let me always be in tune to Your presence. I praise You for that in my life.
Jesus' Example & Jesus' Command
2"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' 34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." -Matthew 18:32-35
At Bethany last Spring, I remember that we read this passage and discussed how different denominations would read it with the purpose to learn the right praise (orthopathy), right practice (orthopraxis) and belief (orthodoxy). Let's have a mini look at this concept.
Orthopathy: We praise God because of the example He gave in Jesus for forgiveness. Jesus came and forgave all the sins of the world, so we take joy and celebrate that forgiveness in forgiving others.
Orthopraxis: We see the example of what Jesus did and His reaction to the wicked man. Based on Jesus' ultimate example of infinite forgiveness, we are also challenged to forgive our brother 7x70 (which really means... infinitely, because who would count that high? or keep track?) We need to practice the forgiveness that Jesus lived out in His life and spoke of in this passage.
Orthodoxy: We see how Jesus is condemning the wicked man because he did not forgive the debt. Jesus' frustration with the man comes from the fact that Jesus himself forgave all of that man's debt. Then, after the story, Jesus comments that everyone will be treated like the wicked man if they fail to forgive their brothers/sisters as Jesus forgave them. (This is the hardest for me. Ironically it's the style of everyone in GCF; conservative Christians focus on orthodoxy.)
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