September 13, 2025 Morning Devotional

Morning Devotion: Read Exodus - Separated for Holiness

Exodus 19:16  And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. 17  And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. 18  And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. 19  And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. 20  And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. 21  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 22  And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them. 23  And Moses said unto the LORD, The people cannot come up to mount Sinai: for thou chargedst us, saying, Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it. 24  And the LORD said unto him, Away, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee: but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest he break forth upon them. 25  So Moses went down unto the people, and spake unto them.

How often do we believe we are ok with God and are good before His eyes? How often do we imagine ourselves to be righteous when in fact we are unrighteous. I see more and more of that with people in recent days. I am see more of that in me. The closer I get to the Lord the more I realize I am not worthy enough to be there. That is exactly why we need Jesus.

In our text we find God coming down in smoke and fire with quaking and thunders and lightenings. We read of an exceeding loud trumpet of God, so loud that the people trembled. The trumpet grew louder and louder and then, God spoke.

When we moved to the town where we now live, we discovered a that every Monday at 12:30 pm, there is a siren that sounds for several minutes. The siren is a test siren. The siren is for warning purposes; if there was a gas leak or a hazard of some type in the oil fields it sounds to warn us to take measures to protect ourselves. The first time that siren sounded it caused me great consternation for I knew not what it was. Now we expect it.

God told Moses to set boundaries around mount Sinai lest the people should break through and see God.

Exodus 19:21  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 22  And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them.

This is the setting just before God delivered the ten commandments to Israel. These commandments are so powerful and so righteous that no one on planet earth has ever been able to keep them all, no one except Jesus.

Men, by virtue of their birth and by nature are sinners, each and everyone. These Israelites were no different. The result of having a sin nature means separation from God. That is why God set the boundaries on mount Sinai before delivering His commandments. No sinner can ever approach unto God because of sin.

Around mount Sinai there was a separation between God and man. Today there is a separation between God and man.

Isaiah 59:2  But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

Romans 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

The only way to come near to God is to have your sins dealt with, paid for, covered and to be made free from the guilt and penalty sin. Jesus is the only way for that to happen.

1Timothy 2:5  For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6  Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

Never believe you are good enough to approach the presence of God without Jesus. Israel was about to receive the law of God which would prove their unrighteousness. They need Jesus just as much as the rest of us.

John 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

The choice is till yours,

Pastor Cook