Two Ways God Reveals His Character
Aaron Lee | October 25, 2026 | FCBCW Children’s Worship | Exodus 19-20
What is God like?
When you’re introducing a new friend for someone to meet, it sometimes helps to say what they are like. For example, I have friends who are funny. I have friends who are smart. I have friends who are good at games and sports. I have friends who are good at music and art.
The Bible says that this is God himself describes himself, and this is our big idea for today:
Big Idea
God is holy and loving.
1. God gives a covenant to show that he is loving
The first way God reveals his character is by giving a covenant to show that he is loving:
4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.” (Exodus 19:4-6)
A covenant is like a contract, but it’s more like a promise. For God and his people, it’s like a proposal. When people get married, they promise to love each other in a special way that they will not share with anyone else. When God makes this covenant, he says that Israel will be his treasured possession. This is language that says that Israel will be God’s chosen, special people whom he loves. In response, Israel is to consecrate themselves to God.
Application
So, will you consecrate yourself for God? Consecrate means to set yourself apart and exclusively belong to God.
Setting ourselves apart from God begins in our hearts. Our love, our thoughts – we must know that we cannot do whatever we want, but we must be in agreement with God. Next, our actions must also be set apart from God.
In our world today, people like to think that we belong to ourselves. The truth is that we belong to God.
2. God gives commandments to show that he is holy
The second way God reveals his character is by giving commandments:
20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin. (Exodus 20:20)
The Ten Commandments were not giving without reason on purpose. God gives us rules so that we can know that he is holy – and God wants us to be holy, meaning that he does not want us to sin. Sin is when we do not listen and obey God’s commandments. It’s important that we know what God expects of his people, and that we keep God’s commands.
Application
So, will you keep God’s commands? To keep God’s commands means that we listen and obey his Word.
It’s important that we understand the commandments and why the rule is there in the first place. When your parents tell you that you cannot go out into the parking lot by yourself, it’s because they care about your safety – they don’t want your life to be put in danger. When God gives us rules, it’s because he cares about us.
Jesus said that the Ten Commandments can be summed up as loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves.
The Gospel
God does not just say that he is holy and loving, but he shows it to us: Jesus shows God’s holiness and love at the cross.
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
Conclusion
God is holy and loving.
When you meet Jesus, you meet God.
Notes
Adapted from More Than a Story by Sally Michael
Appendix
The Ten Commandments:
20 And God spoke all these words, saying, 2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before[b] me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands[c] of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. 13 “You shall not murder.[d] 14 “You shall not commit adultery. 15 “You shall not steal. 16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17 “You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.” (Exodus 20:1-17)