4th October 2026

Can you imagine standing at the foot of Mount Sinai with the Israelites? Thunder rolled across the sky, lightning flashed, the mountain was covered in smoke, and a loud trumpet sounded. The people trembled with fear. They stood at a distance and said to Moses, ‘Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not let God speak to us or we will die’ (Exodus 20:19). Their response is understandable. They have encountered something overwhelming: the awesome holiness and majesty of God. Yet there is something significant about their reaction. They wanted Moses to stand between themselves and God, because they feared that a direct encounter with God was dangerous. 

Moses, however, gave them a different perspective: ‘Do not be afraid’ (v.20). There is an important distinction between reverent awe before God and being terrified of him. Yes, God is awesome, holy and majestic, but he also has a heart of love, mercy and grace. The ultimate revelation of who God is does not come through the thunder and lightning of Sinai, but through Jesus Christ. The Israelites at Sinai kept their distance (vv.18, 21). In Jesus, we see the God who comes near. 

The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is ‘…the exact representation of [God’s] being’ (Hebrews 1:3) and when Philip asked Jesus, ‘Lord, show us the Father’, Jesus replied, ‘Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father’ (John 14:8-9). Jesus is not a different god from the God revealed at Sinai; rather, Jesus reveals the Father more fully. The God whom Israel encountered at a distance has, in Jesus, drawn near to humanity.

This is the heart of the gospel: God does not remain at a distance waiting for us to become worthy of approaching him; in Christ, God has already come to us. This changes how we understand our relationship with God. We do not approach him as frightened servants attempting to avoid punishment. We come as accepted children who have been welcomed into the life and love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ.

There may still be times when God’s presence seems overwhelming. There may be circumstances when, like Israel, we feel small, uncertain or afraid. But the answer is not to keep our distance or run away from God: the gospel invites us to draw near. Again, the writer of Hebrews tells us, ‘Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need’ (Hebrews 4:16). Rather than staying at a distance, we can confidently approach God, and when we come to him, we find that his throne is a throne of grace.

So, when fear tells us to stand at a distance, grace tells us to come closer. God’s holiness is real, but so is his grace. His majesty is awesome, but his heart toward us is love. In Jesus, we discover that the God we might fear is the God who invites us home.

Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead 
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA

Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm

Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church

Word of Life contact:  
wordoflife@gracecom.church