“The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”
~ Exodus 34:6
Hi James and Ellen,
Have you had a ‘mountain top’ experience with God? A ‘mountain top’ experience with God is to have God spend an intimate moment with a guy, gal or kid. Moses had two ‘mountain top’ intimate experiences with God. After God had Moses climb a second time to the top of Mount Sinai, God would again spend intimate time with him. During the second time that he was on the top of Mount Sinai, Moses would spend forty days and forty nights there with God. Using the cloud that He used to lead His specially chosen guy, gals and kids, God stayed close to Moses during the forty days and forty nights that He met with Moses on the top of Mount Sinai. Moses did not eat or drink anything during the forty days and forty nights that he spent on the top of Mount Sinai where he intimately fellowshipped with God. When God had Moses climb to the top of Mount Sinai the first time to meet with Him, God gave Moses two tablets on which He had written – using a finger, ten commandants that He expected His specially chosen guys and gals to obey. When he returned from his first ‘mountain top’ experience on the top of Mount Sinai with God to where the Israelite people group guys and gals – God’s specially chosen guys and gals, were encamped at the base of Mount Sinai, Moses found them worshipping a gold calf that his bro – Aaron, had molded from gold that they had given him. A very frustrated, angry Moses flung down on to the ground the two tablets – smashing the tablets, when he saw his people group tribal clans of guys and gals worshipping a gold calf. God would harshly punish His specially chosen guys and gals – with the exception of one tribal clan of guys and gals, with a horrific plague that killed them indiscriminately. Only the Levi tribal clan of guys and gals – who had corporately agreed to stand alongside Moses and to faithfully obey God, did not suffer the punishment that God inflicted on their fellow tribal clan guys and gals. Moses recorded in what is now Exodus 34 when God had him climb a second time to the top of Mount Sinai. This second ‘mountain top’ experience that Moses had with God was a radiant ‘mountain top’ experience for him. Because God was so close to him, Moses’ face began to literally radiate His glory.
Before God had Moses climb back to the top of Mount Sinai to meet with Him again, God told Moses to chisel two tablets out of rock similar to the two tablets that he had smashed. God also told Moses to tell the Israelite people group tribal clans of guys and gals that while He was with him on the top of Mount Sinai that they were to move away from the base of Mount Sinai, that no guy was to climb Mount Sinai and that they were not to let their flocks and herds graze on the sides of Mount Sinai. God told Moses – when Moses arrived back at the top of Mount Sinai, that He would rewrite the Ten Commandments on the two tablets. When Moses got to the top of Mount Sinai for the second time, God spoke to Moses from the cloud that He was in and using to lead His specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people group guys and gals, to the land area that was called Canaan that God was giving them to always to have to live in as their very own land. Moses scribes in verse 6 the affirmation that God gave him when he arrived again on the top of Mount Sinai “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘“The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” Moses would remain in God’s blinding presence on the top of Mount Sinai for the next forty days and forty nights. Moses would begin his second ‘mountain top’ experience on the top of Mount Sinai with God confessing to God the abject wickedness of the stiff-necked Israelite people group guys and gals – who God had tasked him the responsibility to lead to the land area that He was giving them to always to have to live in as their very own land. After Moses asked God to forgive the sins of the Israelite people group guys and gals – who God had specifically chosen to be His inheritance, God told Moses that He would make a covenant with him and with His specially chosen guys and gals that would involve wonders that no guy, gal or kid in any country, nation or people group of guys, gals and kids have ever seen before. God’s covenant with Moses was not a one sided covenant; God expected His specially chosen guys and gals to keep their side of the covenant that He outlined to Moses while Moses was on the top of Mount Sinai with Him for them to obey. God promised Moses that He would drive out all the enemy people groups guys, gals and kids who were living in the land that He was giving to His specially chosen guys and gals to always to have to live in as their very own land. God specifically said that did not want the Israelite people group guys to make any agreements or treaties with guys from any of these people groups of guys and gals, that no guy or gal was to marry a guy or gal from any of these people groups of guys and gals and they were to break all the altars, smash all the sacred stones and cut down all the Asherah poles that were being worshipped by these people groups of guys and gals. God then reminded Moses that He was a very jealous God – that He would hold accountable His specially chosen guys and gals if they defiantly cast idol gods, insolently did not celebrate each year for seven days the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the month of Abib in memory of their escape from Egypt in this month, did not gladly give back to Him – as being His, firstborn boys and animals and rebelliously worked on the seventh day of each week.
A ‘mountain top’ experience with God is hearing God’s still, quiet voice distinctly responding to the desire that a guy, gal or kid who is a Christ-follower has in wanting to spend time praising Him for Who He is – a loving, caring God. Your grandmaa and grandpaa hope that you will have many Moses like ‘mountain top’ experiences.
Exodus 34 (751)