Exodus Chapter 32 Verse 1
• There is so much going on in this single verse. The work of God is taking longer than expected, and in the delay the people basically abandon God altogether. We have the same temptation and tendency and I see it all the time. Waiting on the Lord is difficult if you are doing nothing…I’ve taught this several times before…that as the Bible says in Isaiah 40:31 says, “Those that wait on the Lord will be renewed and strengthened,” that waiting is not inactive…there is no strength in slack…but inactivity, laziness in faith leads to unfaithfulness.
• Also, listening to the popular opinion of the people is a dangerous place to be… What has God said? What does He say? It says here that the people gathered and what they demanded was wrong…hard to stand your ground and frankly, Aaron doesn’t, but when the crowd is wrong, its wrong…and they are REALLY wrong…
• No man brought them out of Egypt. God has said to these people time and again, “I am the God that brought you out of Egypt,” but in their idleness of faith, its crazy, you forget even the basics of your own situation…this flesh and this heart are so wacked and warped!
• Finally, they say, “We do not know.” Listen, when you don’t know what’s up or why or when or whatever, that’s not when you abandon ship…that’s when you fortify what you DO know! I don’t know MUCH MORE than what I do know…I know that at least, HA! But what I do know…doesn’t get tossed when I have times of doubt. That is foolish and leads me to destruction…
Exodus Chapter 32 Verses 2 – 4
• It’s like everything just went to pot in two verses! God breaks them out of Egypt not with weapon or war but with miracles and wonders. He destroys the entire Egyptian army as they pursued the people through the dried sea bed with walls of water on either side. He feeds them with happy meals from heaven every morning and refreshes them in the desert with Dasani flowing out of a rock…and in a few verses of moments, everything is stupidly wasted.
• You know, in a few verses of moments, everything could also be reversed. Aaron takes the calf and throws it off a cliff and corrects the kingdom. One man, one woman stands amongst the crowd and refuses to allow this to happen…I see all too often and ALL THE TIME, people that have everything others folks would want…and they are throwing it all away for the sake of the flesh and honestly its just stupidity! You know what it is…its boredom…
• Here is why rich kids and pastors kids and Americans are so in need of getting high and going after the flesh…because they do not know suffering. No one growing up in a hard situation of having to work for what they have ends up serving pleasure rather than those they love. It just doesn’t happen…and in the foolishness of the flesh, in just a few moments of verses, their life is again in the ditch.
• Well let me tell you that the reversal is just as easy. The peace in the marriage, the restoration of the relationship, the life becoming firm and strong and founded on the foundation of truth and righteousness…the enemy wants you to believe that you’re so far gone, might as well as go…but the truth is, right now, that’s it, no more…and God will heal. 2 Chronicles 16:9 says, “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him!”
Exodus Chapter 32 Verses 5 – 6
• This is interesting…so Aaron, perhaps trying to salvage any bit of integrity that he could, after making the idol and even an altar for the idol, he then declares a feast day unto the Lord. This isn’t the idol…this is the Lord! I think this is actually worst-case scenario…because instead of rejecting God and having to face that and deal with that, he’s simply adding the idol…that’s extremely dangerous…because now deception and cowardice are in the mix. Go a few years like that and you become a self-centered, self-deceived Christian…a church-hopper as you look for what works for you….you work for God! Beware of allowing idolatry to become an accepted element of your personal faith.
• Notice it says they rose early…they had already brought all of their gold…it’s amazing to me how generous and eager we are to serve the idols of our making. No one is late to work constantly or you get corrected and perhaps even fired…but no problem being late to church or missing church all together, HA! Not trying to bag on you or me…just pointing out something so interesting…they rose early to get to idol worship and they went without their gold happily…it should be more so with the Lord…that’s all I’m saying…
• Idol worship makes you so stupid though! Yesterday this calf didn’t even exist. Today they are calling it the god that did something months ago…it’s crazy stupid…but that’s where the flesh leads me, and I know it.
Exodus Chapter 32 Verses 7 – 8
• This must have absolutely KILLED Moses. All that he has been through, all that he has seen…even where he is at…in the wilderness doing his best to figure out each day what to do with these millions of peoples…and then God calls him away to meet with him, give him hope, next steps, clarity…and then God tells him this…
• I just want you to know, whichever side of the equation you’re on and truly at sometimes all of us have been on both, when you are seeking the Lord, and those who you love are not, it’s a real killer. Other side of the coin…when two walk together in agreement, man there is such joy. Psalm 133:1-3. Moses’ heart must have sank…
• And although notice, although the people ignore God, He is not able to ignore them…He is there with Moses and He is there with the people…He knows exactly what’s going on…but Moses loves them…look…
Exodus Chapter 32 Verses 9 – 10
• God essentially offers Moses to become like Abraham…, “I’ll wipe them out and start completely over with you.” Every promise given God could have still fulfilled without any of the people…all He needed was one. Interestingly, before we move on, “stiff-necked” is a word to refer to the ox in the field or on the plow that will not respond to the whip…we call that today, “stubborn.” Do you know how to cure being stubborn? Grow in wisdom.
Exodus Chapter 32 Verses 11 – 13
• I believe this was a leadership lesson and maturation for Moses and this proves that Moses was qualified to lead. Why? He loves the people. “Moses, can you see past betrayal? Can you love past stupidity? Are they more important then what they do?” This is a heart like God’s. Moses is a leader in many ways that I want to be so more like. First thing he does is give the people back to God.
• Back in verse 7 God calls them, “your people.” Moses heard that…for some they would puff up on that…but verse 11, Moses gives them back to God. Do you do this with people? Do you remember that they belong to Him…especially when they are entirely stupid and under your skin? If so then you maintain grace, even in the midst of rebuke…and you should lead. If not, you should not lead yet.
• Then Moses pleads to God for them, filled with compassion beyond his own frustration and even his own hurt. He remembers God’s faithfulness in speaking of Abraham, Isaac and Israel…and strengthens even himself through prayer and love…he is a good leader in this scene…and God is pleased with him.
Exodus Chapter 32 Verse 14
• Some trip here because this obviously says that God relented and yet in Numbers 23:19 (of course this is Balaam speaking), “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent.” Exact same word, seems like a contradiction. Listen, if you want to see it, then you can…fine…but there is also a number of perspectives which answer the contradiction question…if you want see it, you will…
• Here’s what I see going on…God doesn’t repent in Exodus 32, He answers Moses’ prayer. God is allowed to do that. Did you know that? There is entirely to be expected a certainty of judgement and consequence upon folks when they walk in sin…that’s the Word of God…but, here’s a reason why prayer is so important, God also is a God that answers prayer. So, judgment on its way…gonna happen, God has spoken…and then one Spirit-filled compassionate self-less citizen of heaven approaches the King with a request…God can answer that prayer.
• And so, God does not sit on His throne and contemplate the evil that He has commanded and say, “Oh man, I shouldn’t have done that…” And so no, God does not repent in the manner of men, ever…because all that He does is just and it is righteous, according to His Word…but He can show mercy and He can answer prayer…and this relent in verse 14 is just that…and I think that’s just wonderful.