We are to God a kingdom of priests and a holy nation!
January
24 Bible Reading: Exodus Chapters 19-21
We are to God a kingdom of priests and a holy
nation!
In the third month after the children of Israel had left Egypt, they have now reached the Wilderness of Sinai (Exodus 19:1). God had fulfilled the first part of His original plan that He had revealed to Moses from the burning bush (Exodus 3:12) that they would serve God on Mount Sinai. As part of the preamble of God’s expectations from His people, He called Moses up to the mountain top and told Moses to convey to the children of Israel a few things that they should never forget, which we read in Exodus 19:3-6. Let us check out what God’s plan was for the children of Israel then, and what His plan are for us now as the ‘new’ spiritual Israel:
- They were to never forget what God did to the Egyptians (v. 4a) – how He troubled Pharaoh and the Egyptians with the ten plagues (including death of their firstborn during the last plague), and finally destroyed Pharaoh and his choice army in the Red Sea. We should never forget that God has already destroyed the powers of Satan through His death on the cross (Hebrews 2:14-15).
- They were to always remember that God bore them on eagles’ wings (v. 4b) – protecting them from the attack of the Egyptian army and providing them bread, meat and water in the wilderness. We should always remember that God both protects us and provides for us daily in more ways than we can count (Psalms 68:19).
- They were to reflect how God brought them to Himself (v. 4c) – by allowing them to visualize His glory and grandeur on Mount Sinai (v. 10-20). God wanted the children of Israel to be drawn to Him in worship. Jesus Christ has broken the middle wall of separation (Ephesians 2:14) and has drawn us to the throne of grace so that we can obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16).
- They were to always understand their newly obtained status with God – a special treasure, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (v. 5-6). This is how Apostle Peter describes our status in Christ: “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy” (1 Peter 2:9-10).
As we live in this world, let us never forget what God has done for us in the past, always remember what God is doing for us today, and always understand our position in God’s kingdom.
We are to God a kingdom of priests and a holy nation!
