Steps: There are some simple things in Scripture that become difficult only after they have been filtered through layers of system and tradition. The law given at Sinai is one of them. It was introduced in time, given by God through Moses, and given specifically to Israel. Deuteronomy 5:2-3. The patriarchs before Sinai: Abraham, Noah, Isaac, and others, all lived without it. Galatians 3:17. It was not handed to the nations, nor established as a universal rule of life for all men but given as a distinct covenant to a particular people. “These are the statutes and judgments and laws, which the LORD made between him and the children of Israel in mount Sinai by the hand of Moses.” Leviticus 26:46. And even then, it was never intended as a final or abiding order, but as something temporary, pointing beyond itself to the One who would fulfill it. Galatians 3:24-25. In Christ, the law has reached its end, fulfilled and brought to completion, so that those who are in Him no longer stand before God on that ground at all, but on another entirely. “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth.” Romans 10:4.
Whatever our conclusions in reference to the law may be, when we look back to its first appearance among men, the point is clear: its effect upon Israel was not any sense of nearness or confidence, but a dreadful awareness that they could not stand before God. “And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking, and when the people saw it they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” Exodus 20:18-19. The voice they heard made it plain that sinful man could not stand before God on that footing. Hebrews 12:18-21. They shrank back and kept their distance. And in that moment, the need for a mediator and a way of approach was unmistakable. In all of this, Israel acknowledged that they could not stand before God on the ground of the law. If there was to be any approach, it must be by another way. A mediator was necessary, and Moses must stand between them and God. Deuteronomy 5:5.
And it is not without significance that the very next thing spoken of in Exodus 20 is an altar. If there was to be any approach at all, it would have to be on another ground altogether, one not found in man, but provided by God. The altar declares the provision of divine grace, not a lowering of God’s claims, but their full satisfaction. And in that provision, sinners who could never stand before Him on that ground are given a way to draw near without shame, fear, or death. This is not man coming up to God, but God making a way for man. Here we begin to see how that approach is made.
“An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen; in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.” Exodus 20:24. Notice how the direction is entirely changed. The people could not come to God, so God appoints a way in which He will come to them: “I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.” The altar speaks of God’s provision. It is not man coming up, but God drawing near in a way that satisfies His own claims. And notice how simple it is: “an altar of earth.” Nothing is elevated here, nothing shaped or adorned by man. It is of the earth – low and plain. From the very beginning, the Lord removes every ground on which man might rise. Isaiah 57:15.
But the Lord goes even further in defining the way of approach. As He gives instruction concerning the altar: “Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.” Even this detail is full of meaning. The approach to God is not only provided by Him but carefully ordered by Him. Nothing is left to man’s discretion. There is no rising, nothing exposed, nothing of man brought into view. Everything is ordered so that man is brought low and God alone is exalted. All is of God, and nothing of man. In Christ, this is fulfilled. I Corinthians 1:29-31.
In other parts of the sanctuary, there was a limited place for human workmanship. God Himself gave skill and understanding, and within His appointed bounds, those things were used. Exodus 31:3-5. But not so with the altar. The moment we come to that which speaks of atonement, all such liberty is removed. The stones must remain unhewn. Nothing shaped, nothing refined by man. It is entirely according to God’s own design. In this, the Lord makes it clear that the ground of approach cannot be touched by human hands. It must remain exactly as He has established it. Deuteronomy 12:32.
All of this speaks with one voice. There are to be no steps to the altar, no gradual ascent, no place for man to rise, no ground for him to stand upon in himself. If he attempts to come that way, he is only uncovered. Hebrews 4:13. There is no rising up to God, no elevation of man, no place for his strength, his effort, or his design. Everything is ordered so that he is brought low, and God alone is honored. And in Christ, this finds its full expression. He is not a step toward God, but the way itself, by whom those who could never draw near now have access unto the Father. “For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” Ephesians 2:18. MPJ