I don’t suppose that there are many mountain climbers with us today. Now I am not talking about those of you who may have hiked in the mountains before. I am talking about real mountain climbing. I am talking about harnesses and GPS systems and base camps and planting your flag on a peak. It is not that I doubt any of your mountain climbing capabilities. It’s just that there is an obvious lack of mountains in Lenawee County.

Because of this many of you may never have heard of the strange phenomenon in mountain climbing called a “false summit.” A false summit is a lesser peak of a great mountain. When standing at its base it looms large, often blocking sight of the true summit. A false summit can lead climbers far off their intended course. Now from the true summit of a mountain you can look down on the false summit. The false summit may have appeared high and impressive from below, but no one would trade it for the view from the true summit of the mountain. Many a mountain climber has labored up a false summit only to find out they had gone the wrong way and missed the real peak of the mountain.

Today our Scripture lesson shows us two different mountains, Mt. Sinai, the false summit and Mt. Zion, the true summit. Make sure that you “don’t choose the wrong mountain.” Mt. Sinai is just a stopping place, but Mt. Zion is your home.

The letter to the Hebrews adamantly urges Christians to stand firm in their faith. With this encouragement we are told that we could never stand on Mt. Sinai. Why not? Our lesson states, “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm…” The reference here is to Mt. Sinai – the mountain at which the Israelites stopped at on their way to Promised Land. It was at this place that God gave his people the Ten Commandments written on stone tablets. He instructed his people on how they were supposed to live.

To impress the importance of this message he made the mountain a terrifying place. A place of trembling and fright with fire, and darkness and storms. God’s commands were pronounced amid great terror. When his voice spoke, the people cried out, “No more! Let Moses speak to us!” They couldn’t approach God by climbing Mt. Sinai for they would die and any animal that touched the mountain would meet the same fate. Even Moses, who had talked to God before and was God’s chosen leader of the people cried out, “I am trembling with fear.”

Why such terror? Why such doom and gloom? That mountain was not where God wanted his people to linger. He wanted them to move forward to reach the Promised Land of Canaan and receive his richest blessings. But it was much more than that. You see God gave his commands to his people. The Ten Commandments were laid out for them to see, to learn, to follow. But no matter how hard they tried, no matter how good they were, they would find no comfort in this law. They would find no comfort at Mt. Sinai.

For the law condemns sinful mankind. It shows sin as plain as day. Even when the law is used as a guide, it still shows how incredibly short we have fallen from God’s will. Go down the list of commandments and see your sins. You shall have no other gods. You shall not take the Lord’s name in vain. Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy. Honor your father and mother. You shall not murder or even hate. You shall not commit adultery or even lust. You shall not steal. You shall not lie. You shall not covet anything of your neighbors. When we stare into the mirror of the law we clearly see how disobedient we are to God. That is what law does. It shows us our sins.

And that ought to be terrifying for us just as Mt. Sinai was terrifying. If you think your sins are no big deal, if you take them lightly, you better think twice. God demands a terrible punishment for those sins. If you are trying to reach God in heaven by way of Mt. Sinai, by way of the law, you will fail. Just like anyone who touched that mountain, you will surely die a horrible death in hell for all eternity. And so Mt. Sinai is just to be a stopping place for us, a place to examine our lives, a place where our failures before God are exposed, a place where we learn that we need God to lead us to the Promised Land.

And God will lead us. He will lead us to a new mountain, Mt. Zion. The people of Israel were eventually led by God away from that false summit of Mt. Zion to the Promise Land – a land flowing with milk and honey, a land rich with blessings. The Almighty God established them as a great nation in this land with the city of Jerusalem as their capital. Jerusalem was founded on another mountain, Mt. Zion. This is where the temple was built. It was where the people approached God in worship. It was where countless animals were sacrificed, their blood spilt to mark that the sins of the people forgiven.

It was also on this mountain that Jesus gave himself to be sacrificed. The blood of the spotless Lamb of God was spilt on the cross. With his perfect sacrifice, people of all nations were forgiven their sins. Atonement for all transgressions was made and the wrath of God was appeased. Yes, Jesus Christ, true God and true man made Mt. Zion a place of refuge for all who have gone to Mt. Sinai and seen their sins laid out, for all who understand the fury of the Almighty over sin. The Savior’s sacrifice took away the sins of the world.

As God’s people enjoyed the riches of the Promised Land, all those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior will enjoy the riches of heaven. In Jerusalem Jesus rose from the dead and made it possible for all believers to live eternally. And now we can look forward to a new Jerusalem, a new Zion, the city of the Living God. There in this new Jerusalem the angels join in their heavenly assembly serving and praising God. There in this new Zion, the Church triumphant will gather around the throne of God worshiping him for all eternity. This Promised Land is filled with riches beyond compare. This Mt. Zion is your true home because Jesus lived for you, died for you, and rose for you.

Now, which mountain will you choose? Don’t choose Mt. Sinai. Sure you can stop there and see your sins for what they are – offensive to the Almighty God. You can stop there to repent of all your sins and make your promise to change your lives of sins. But don’t stay there. Go on. Go on to Mt. Zion and see Jesus. Go on to see your sins forgiven. Go on to put on your white robe of righteousness. This is your Promised Land. Believe in Jesus and it is yours.

Too often in life, people choose the false summit of the law. They try to earn their way to heaven. But when they get to the top they realize they have not gone far enough. They have not reached the peak. When we go to Mt. Zion, we see that the Savior has done it all for us. At Mt. Sinai the law was written on stone tablets. At Mt. Zion, our names are written in the Book of Life. Amen.