Chapter Two: An Excerpt from “On The Mountain…”

Chapter 2: Be There

Then the Lord said to Moses,
“Come up to Me on the mountain and be
there…”
Exodus 24:12

The Lord is a jealous God who desires to spend time with us alone. Many people have not come into the realization that Jesus truly is our lover, the bridegroom. He seeks to have an intimate relationship with us, just as a husband and wife.

Marriage, Ephesians tells us, is the mystery of the relationship between the Church and Christ (Ephesians 5:32). It is a symbol, although grossly lacking, but serves to demonstrate to us how God the Father desires intimate fellowship with us. Jesus wants to be one with us even as He and the Father are one (John 17:21); so much, that this is His prayer. Paul even quotes God’s original intention for marriage in this same chapter of Ephesians:

For this reason a man shall leave his father
and mother and be joined to his wife and the
two shall become one flesh.
Genesis 2:24

In the context of marriage, this word from the Lord may seem harsh. Yet, as believers, we have forgotten that our Bridegroom also left his mother (Luke 2:41-50, Mark 3:33-45, and John 19:25-27) as well as the Father (John 3:16-17, Philippians 2:6-8, and Matthew 27:45-46) so that He could be joined with us.

If Jesus Himself made the sacrifice of leaving his earthly mother-and more than that, had made the choice to be obedient to the Father to die on a cross, then how can we forsake this intimacy? For the first time in eternity, Jesus was separated from the Father on the cross. He endured that, despising the shame, so that He could make the way for us to be one with Him. Oh, that we would forsake mere worldly things to spend time with him alone.

The Song of Solomon is the consummate example of how the Bridegroom calls to us. Many believers acknowledge the fact that Jesus is the Bridegroom and that the Church is the bride simply from their study of Ephesians and Revelation. However, have you ever stopped to consider and grasp this deeper concept of the Lord calling out to you as an individual?

My Beloved spoke, and said to me; “Rise up,
my love, my fair one, and come away.”
Song of Solomon 2:10

Notice that this verse does not say, “Our Beloved spoke and said to us the Church, ‘Rise up my loves, my fair ones, and come away.” No. This is an individual call. This is a serenade of a lover to his intended. Notice God’s call in the text from Exodus: the Lord called to Moses. The Lord calls us by name as an individual. Notice the command: to come up to the mountain and be there. God doesn’t ask us to do much; He simply asks us to be available to Him. You can see how Paul exhorted the Romans saying “…present your bodies as a living sacrifice… which is your reasonable service…” (Romans 12:1-2). It’s not the top of the scale, reserved only for radical Christians; this giving of ourselves is just reasonable.

When Jesus came to resurrect Lazarus, He spoke out his name when He commanded, “Lazarus come forth!” (John 11:43) He gave the call to the Samaritan woman, simply stating that the Father is seeking those who will worship in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24). This truth means a true reality; that it is really true for me. The Father is calling us out-out of the world to be separated unto Him.

Be still and know that I am God.
Psalm 46:10

Both David the Psalmist and Moses knew that the calling was to be. Moses was not given a command to do, or to complete a task, or to strive to be worthy. Like Moses, God assures us that if we will be obedient enough to simply go up and be in God’s presence, all of the rest would come to us. Our call is simply to be available. Our sufficiency does not come from ourselves, rather from Christ (2 Corinthians 3:6). It is when we make ourselves available that God will speak to us.

If we, as those called to facilitate worship in the congregation of the saints, have not spent time in the presence of the Lord, how could we ever expect to bring anyone else there? Oh brother! Oh Sister! Worship is so much more than music. Worship is the ability to be in the presence of the Lord. It is vital in our the walk of all Christians, in the
lives of all true worshippers, to go up to the mountain and be.