The Journey of a New Year

Rusty Miller

We are about to embark on a journey. It begins with this first month and will end at midnight on the last day of the year. Our journey is the one that will carry us through 2005, and like any traveler, we do not want to be unprepared for our journey.

In Exodus 19, the children of Israel camped at Mt. Sinai. They did not leave this camp until the eleventh chapter of Numbers. In actual time, they were in this camp for eleven months until God, in the visible form of the cloud lifting, showed them it was time to leave. What was it about the journey they were about to take which caused God to keep them for almost a year in front of the mountain? Is there something we can learn about our own journey?

Three important things happen at Mt. Sinai from the perspective of God’s relationship with the children of Israel. In those three things we get some idea of how God would equip us for our journey this year.

The first thing that happened was the receiving of the Law by Moses. The camp of Israel had barely been set up when Moses went up on the mountain and God began to give him instruction as to what He would require of His people. It begins in Exodus 20 with the Ten Commandments, but contrary to what many religious people believe, it does not end there. In fact, God’s instruction in His law continues for much of the rest of the time they would spend at this mountain. The book of Leviticus is almost entirely composed of the reading of God’s commandments. All of this was received while Israel was at Mt. Sinai.

What lesson is there for us? Before we begin our journey, we need to determine what God’s will is. God wanted to ensure, long before the trip to Canaan began, that His people would understand what He expected of them. Far too often, we begin a new year without thought to what God may want from us in the coming months. We need to be like the blessed man of David’s first Psalm, whose “delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night” (v.2). When we spend time in God’s word, we determine what He would have us do, and there is no other way to determine such. We can use the manmade philosophy of “it’s a good work” or we can use some other means to justify what we wish to do, but only in the study of God’s word do we truly find His will for us. If we desire to begin a journey in which we will follow God’s will, we must begin by studying and finding out that will is.

The second major event of the camping at Mt. Sinai was the building of the tabernacle. This temporary building that would become the model for the Temple was the place where God would make His presence felt in Israel. When they finally finished the construction, and when all was in place as God had commanded, “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle” (Ex. 40:34-35).

The Israelites were able to see a physical reminder of the glory of God. As they prepared for their journey, they were able to look to His glory, remembering that He was with them. This should have given them great confidence, and indeed, knowing God was with them gave them the ability to face the conquest of the land of Canaan.

We are in a similar position. We can know that God is with us, because when we do His will, He has promised to abide with us (1 Jn. 4:7-5:3). We need to remember the glory of God. Read the fourth chapter of Revelation, which describes the throne room of God, and be awed by this magnificent scene, just as John was. Read Revelation’s description of the city of God (chapter 20) and marvel at the beauty and majesty of God’s presence there. Before you begin your journey this year, remember God’s glory.

The final event of the Sinai encampment was the keeping of the Passover feast (Num. 9). This feast served to remind them what God had done for them. The passing over of the houses of Israel during the Egyptian plague of the death of the firstborn is a symbol of their salvation and deliverance at the hand of God. They were commanded to remember this annually, and God saw fit to keep them at Sinai until this remembrance was completed.

We too, have much to be thankful for when we remember what God has done for us. He sent His Son to die for us (Jn. 3:16). There has never been, nor will there ever be, a greater sacrifice. We need, as we prepare to go forth this year, to remember God’s precious gift of salvation and deliverance from sin.

Understanding God’s will for us, remembering His glory, and contemplating the great things He has done for us will keep us focused on what we need to accomplish in this journey of a new year.