Bibledoorajar: In Word Thought and Deed

      By giving Ten Commandments to His people, it is clear that God was not interested in having a careless, thoughtless people. Certainly not with Him and certainly not with others. When they heard what God said, they recognized how extensive God's rules were in countering the problem of sin. So profound was the strength of His Commanding Voice, the needy sinful people asked Moses if he would be the go between for them with God.  Their exact words were “Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us lest we die” ( Exodus 20:19). So Moses went into the darkness to speak with God because the people were afraid and kept their distance.

     God responded by making sure the people understood fully their duty to honor Him and no other. In the Law they could see how much they needed Him. But He also gave them a way to practice that duty by requiring them to build an altar. “An altar of earth shall thou make unto Me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and they peace offerings, thy sheep and thine oxen”. Legislation and spirituality would be intertwined. Men are sinners. We need the law to show us just how much and we need the altar to go before our One True God who promises to help us. As we please Him by making efforts to live holy lives and worship Him, He will shower us with blessings. God told Moses to tell the people He liked what they said about needing a Mediator. He promised He would raise One up from their people.
     That Mediator started living for His Father at an early age. The "lost" child was pursuing duty in a spiritual environment (temple). Later, He put it this way:
                            “I must work the works of Him that sent Me” ( John 9:4).

We are given grace to do those things pleasing to Him and those things that He has set in motion to have done. They are eternally decreed and must take place before man cannot work any more. In church today we sang:
 

"He wills that I should holy be, in word, in thought, in deed. Then I His Holy Face may see..."

Fred Filmore

It's going to be worth it!