In Exodus 19 and 20, we have the giving of the law at Mt. Sinai. First a word about the law…The law demands perfection. Nothing less. No provision was made in the law for failure. It is all or nothing — keep the whole law, every point, every moment of the entirety of your life; or the whole thing is broken. One hole in the bowl, one crack in the pitcher unfits it for its purpose. One flaw in your character mars the perfection God requires under the law.
So why was it given? In order for us to know our exceeding sinfulness. The did not make us sin. It shows us that we sin (and that we do so because we are sinners at heart). The law is God’s mirror to show our exceeding sinfulness. Only one Man since it was given has kept the law perfectly: Jesus Christ. Christ not only kept the law, but he also paid the complete penalty for the broken law. Christ suffered that we might be spared!
Now about the Mt. Sinai…. It has been said that there are two mountain peaks that stand in contrast to each other in the bible. The first is Mt. Sinai. Mt Sinai, with all of its horror thundered forth the law and none could approach it lest they die. Opposite this, God places Mt. Calvary. Calvary took away all the fire and thunder (in that the fire was poured out upon the sacrificial Lamb of God) and made possible a meeting place between God and the sinner. We each have a choice about how we shall approach God, either by law or by blood. As for me, I choose His blood.
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