On the Mountain With God

What can we do to regain some of the inspiration and excitement we felt at the Feast of Tabernacles?

When we come back "into the world" from our Feast of Tabernacles trip, we can find ourselves in the valley of a post-Feast letdown. Let's see how we can cling to the inspiration we received and stay on the mountain with God.

Mountaineering With Moses

Moses died in faith and will be in the "better resurrection" (Hebrews 11:13These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
See All..., 23-29, 35). But because of Moses' mistake and sin at Kadesh, God told Moses that he would die before the Israelites crossed over the Jordan River. God would not allow him to lead the Israelites over into the Promised Land (Numbers 20:7-12 [7] And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
[8] Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
[9] And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him.
[10] And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock?
[11] And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.
[12] And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.

See All...; Deuteronomy 31:2And he said unto them, I am an hundred and twenty years old this day; I can no more go out and come in: also the LORD hath said unto me, Thou shalt not go over this Jordan.
See All...).

But God in His mercy offered Moses this blessing: "Go up this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, across from Jericho; view the land of Canaan, which I give to the children of Israel as a possession" (Deuteronomy 32:49Get thee up into this mountain Abarim, unto mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho; and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession:
See All...). Later, as God directed, "Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is across from Jericho. And the LORD showed him all the land [much of Canaan]" (Deuteronomy 34:1And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the LORD shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan,
See All...).

Moses must have been very grateful and inspired to at least and at last see the land that they had longed to see and inherit for 40 years. His last moments before he died were filled with the joy of seeing the Promised Land stretching far and wide before him. He had long had a vision in his mind's eye, and now he could literally see it for himself.

In the Bible, "mountain" often represents government, and a powerful government compared to "hills" of lesser governments. But going up a mountain sometimes represents approaching God, seeking a closer relationship with Him. Just as one sees more when on top of a mountain, one sees more spiritually when close to God.

An Uplifting Experience

Each year, God's people go up on a mountain to receive a vision of God's plan for mankind, a vision of our ultimate destiny, a vision of the wonderful world of tomorrow, a vision of the spiritual Promised Land!

We experience small mountains with each Holy Day, and we experience the larger mountain when we go to observe the Feast of Tabernacles and the Last Great Day. It should be the most uplifting experience of the year. We experience a spiritual high with God's Spirit (Ephesians 5:18And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
See All...) and become spiritually recharged for the coming year.

Jerusalem was on a small mountain, and that is why traveling to Jerusalem was spoken of as going "up to Jerusalem." But when they "came up to worship at the feast," there was a dual meaning (John 12:20And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast:
See All...). Anytime we worship or draw closer to God, we are being elevated. During the Millennium, whether or not Jerusalem is at a higher elevation than surrounding areas, all people "shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles" (Zechariah 14:16And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.
See All...).

A Vision of the Kingdom

When Jesus was going to be transfigured, He took Peter, James and John up on a high mountain. There they received a vision of Jesus in His glorified state along with Moses and Elijah (Matthew 17:1-9 [1] And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
[2] And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
[3] And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.
[4] Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
[5] While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
[6] And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.
[7] And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
[8] And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only.
[9] And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.

See All...).

We as God's people go up to His feasts to receive "visions" of life after Christ's second coming.

Reflecting the Light

After Moses had been with God on Mt. Sinai for 40 days, his face shown so brightly the people were frightened and he had to put a veil over his face (Exodus 34:29-35 [29] And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him.
[30] And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.
[31] And Moses called unto them; and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned unto him: and Moses talked with them.
[32] And afterward all the children of Israel came nigh: and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him in mount Sinai.
[33] And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face.
[34] But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he took the vail off, until he came out. And he came out, and spake unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded.
[35] And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone: and Moses put the vail upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

See All...). He had in a sense absorbed light from God and was reflecting light from God.

We need to take advantage of every opportunity to absorb light from God and to reflect His light. When we return from God's Feast, our faces should be glowing with smiles of joy. More importantly, our hearts should be glowing with joy and renewed dedication to God and His great work.

For us to be lights, we must continually go to the source of light. May this become our habit or "instinct," like some bugs instinctively are attracted to light. Jesus said, "He who does the truth comes to the light" (John 3:21But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
See All...). "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you," James wrote (James 4:8Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
See All...). We must continually and zealously come to the light and draw near to God.

Solidly in "Mount Zion"

In the Bible, "Mount Zion" often refers to God's Church. "For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire...but you have come to Mount Zion...to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven" (Hebrews 12:18-23 [18] For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
[19] And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:
[20] (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:
[21] And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)
[22] But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
[23] To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,

See All...). One important way to stay close to God is to be solidly in "Mount Zion"—in God's Church.

This includes obediently going up to His assemblies—to His holy convocations when He commands us to come and worship Him (Hebrews 10:23-25 [23] Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
[24] And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
[25] Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

See All...). "O Zion , you who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain," Isaiah wrote (Isaiah 40:9O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
See All...). We have more than one mountain each year. We are invited to come up on the mountain with God every Sabbath and every Holy Day.

And we can and must climb the "mountain of God's holiness" daily (Psalm 48:1(A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah.) Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness.
See All...). Our prayers rise all the way to the third heaven! These weekly and daily ascensions are vital to keeping us inspired, motivated and empowered all year. "Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth" (Colossians 3:2Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
See All...).

Although we are sad to see the Feast end, God intends that we come back into "the midst of a crooked and perverse generation" so we can "shine as lights in the world" (Philippians 2:15). After we have received, we must give. Light is not something that can be selfishly bottled up. It must flow through us and reach out to others through a good example and good works (Matthew 5:14-16 [14] Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
[15] Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
[16] Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

See All...). Whereas we tend to feel a letdown after the Feast, focusing on giving and serving brings continued joy. "There is more happiness in giving than in receiving" (Acts 20:35I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
See All..., Today's English Version).

We are warned not to "neglect so great a salvation" (Hebrews 2:3How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
See All...). Jesus said, "A little while longer the light is with you. Walk [actively put the light of knowledge into practice] while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you" (John 12:35Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.
See All...).

Follow the Flashlight

Someday, end-time events will progress very rapidly. The analogy Jesus was using is like trying to walk through a very dark woods following the one person who has a flashlight. The farther behind the leader you are, the less you see the stumbling blocks. And if we fall very far behind, the flashlight could disappear behind a hill, and we could be helplessly lost. It could be too late to catch up.

We might say that the most important mountain each year is God's Feast of Tabernacles. God wants us to have zealous determination to keep His Feast, such as is expressed in Isaiah 2:3And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
See All...—"Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways." As much as possible, let's plan to be there every year forever.

Each year at the Feast we take a good look across the "Jordan River" at the "Promised Land." We look across into the Millennium with its peace and idyllic conditions for the humans on earth. But more importantly, we look across into the next life—the glorified life in the Kingdom of God. That vision is vital to our endurance and growth.

And after each Feast, may we strive to hold on to the glow—the inspiration and strength we have received—throughout the coming year. We do that largely by going up to the Source of that glow—daily, weekly and yearly. UN