“Are you prepared for what’s coming?” This is the question Prepper Journal inquires on their website. A quick Google search on prepping brings up about 38,500,000 results ranging from emergency food, water, lighting, heating, shelter, gear, etc.

But what about prepping to meet God?

Up to this point, God has shown the Israelites the importance of keeping their part of the covenant by obeying the laws He’s about to reveal. And the people have eagerly agreed to follow God’s laws. Now God has some specific prepping instructions for Moses and the Israelites.

The LORD said to Moses, ‘I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you. . . . Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes and be ready by the third day, because on that day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. Put limits for the people around the mountain and tell them, ‘Be careful that you do not go up the mountain or touch the foot of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.’” –Exodus 19:9-12

You may read Exodus 19:9-15 here: Bible Gateway. Verses 10-15 outline God’s expectations for the people as they prepare to physically and spiritually meet with Him. In order to dedicate themselves to God, Moses is instructed to consecrate the people by setting themselves apart from sin and ordinary daily routine.

Warren Wiersbe, (Be Delivered), writes: “The act of washing their clothes helped the Israelites prepare their hearts and minds to meet with God. Washing and changing clothes in the Old Testament is equivalent of 1 John 1:9 and 2 Corinthians 7:1.”

Boundaries on the Mountain

Suppose a survivalist or adventure seeker—perhaps driven by curiosity—pushed past God’s boundaries marked on the mountain? His/her life would end in death, no matter the amount of prepping he/she did.

Why does God set boundaries on the mountain with such harsh consequences for trespassing?

Wiersbe writes: “The structure of Old Testament worship emphasized man’s sinfulness and God’s ‘otherness’. . . . The emphasis was always ‘Keep Your Distance!’” Those who dared to press past God’s boundaries would display an attitude of irreverence.

God never takes irreverence lightly.

Later, Abihu and Nadab would be killed because they became careless with this principle (Lev. 10). Although Uzzah’s intentions (to keep the ark from falling from the ox cart) stemmed from good intentions, his irreverence resulted in God striking him dead (2 Samuel 6:6-7). Moses’ slip of irreverence (striking of the rock) exempt his entrance into the promised land (Numbers 20:12).

Layman’s Bible Commentary Bible observes: “Irreverence is the by-product of an inadequate sense of the holiness of God. The Israelites do not yet have an adequate grasp of the holiness of God. The manifestation of God on Mount Sinai is a spectacular demonstration of God’s power and majesty. His coming necessitates preparatory consecration, and it also motivates continual consecration, as people could see themselves in the light of His glory and grace (Exodus 19:23).”

Reflect

Both in this age, and in the age to come—when we stand before God—we will either be prepared or unprepared to meet Him.

God taught the Israelites—in dramatic fashion—the distance between sinful people and a holy God. While the Old Testament emphasizes “Keep your distance from God”, the New Testament emphasizes God’s nearness. When God’s Son became flesh and dwelt on earth (John 1:14), He was named ‘Immanuel—God with us’ (Matt. 1:23). Jesus opened a new and living way into the presence of God (Heb. 10:1-25) through His death and resurrection.

This doesn’t mean we are God’s buddies or equals. But our Heavenly Father longs to have a loving relationship with us. Because Jesus paid the death penalty for our sins on the cross, He acts as our mediator to the Father. We can now come directly to God the Father through Christ. When we ask for forgiveness of our sins and submit ourselves to His Lordship, God the Father embraces us as His child.

Maybe you have prepped for earthly emergencies. But have you prepped to meet God face to face? It’s not about stockpiling good works in order to earn eternal life, but rather coming to Christ in faith and submitting to His Lordship. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” (Romans 6:23).

How can we prep to meet God in worship? What daily distractions do we need to set aside in order to give Him the reverence He deserves?