The author uses Mount Sinai and Mount Zion as symbols of the old covenant and the new covenant. Just as the new covenant is better than the old, and just as the priesthood of Christ is greater than the Levitical priesthood, we find that our new relationship with God (through Christ) is far superior than the relationship that mankind was able to have with God before the advent of Christ---our great high priest.
"You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: 'If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.' The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, 'I am trembling with fear.'" (Hebrews 12:18-21) This incident occurred in Exodus 19 when the children of Israel, after being rescued from Egypt, reached Mount Sinai. The Lord told Moses to consecrate the people for two days because on the third day He intended to speak to Moses in their presence. He told Moses to warn them not to approach the mountain or touch it. On the third day, the Moses assembled the people and the Lord descended on the mountain in fire and smoke, with a loud blast of a trumpet, and the earth shook. The Lord then spoke to Moses from the cloud of smoke, and Moses and all the people trembled in fear. The presence of the holy and righteous God was so pure that if any mortal being had approached the mountain or even touched it with their little toe, His glory would have burned them up.
This is how holy God is, that no man can see His face and live, that no man can approach the awesome cloud of His glory and survive it. This is why, when Christ calls His church out of the world, we will all be changed. (See 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) Our weak and mortal flesh cannot stand in the presence of God, so we will be given a body like Christ's.
Is the God of the old covenant the same God as that of the new covenant? Of course He is, but under the new covenant we are able to relate to Him in a new way. We have at last seen Him in the face of His Son, and His Son intercedes for us in ways no mere mortal priest ever could. When the Son gave His life on the cross, the Lord tore the veil of the temple in two, granting us access to Him like never before. This is why the author now compares the new covenant to Mount Zion---the mountain of grace, not fear, "But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel." (Hebrews 12:22-24)
Only Moses was allowed to approach God at Mount Sinai. But when Christ took His blood into the Most Holy Place in heaven, He granted us access to the very throne of God. Instead of shaking with fear like the people at the foot of Mount Sinai, we have been granted the right to come into the presence of God and address Him as "abba" (daddy). (See Mark 14:36, Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6) Christ has consecrated us in ways we could never consecrate ourselves, so instead of fearing we will be burned up by the presence of God, we can approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that God our Father will give us the mercy and grace we need. (Ephesians 3:12, Hebrews 4:16)
Considering all this, why would we want to live under the old covenant? Why would we not want to embrace the new and better relationship we can have with God through Christ? Let's have the attitude of the Apostle Paul, who said, "One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13b-14)
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