Exodus 32
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Exodus 32:1-6, When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”
Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”
When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the Lord.” So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.
So, we have made it to the famous "golden calf" passage. Moses has spent awhile on the mountain with God getting holy instructions for living and the people have grown restless. They complain to Aaron, Moses' brother (the one who will soon lead the family of priests!) and he melts all their gold to make a golden calf for them to worship. I know what you are thinking, this is totally crazy! What in the world are these people doing???
It helps to understand (but not excuse) their behavior if we remind ourselves that the Israelites were living in Egypt, with its many gods and idols, just a few months prior. Now Moses has been detained for an important purpose but he isn't there to babysit them. They fail the maturity test. It also demonstrates how quickly people will drift from God. Without intentional connection (Moses provided this for the people), we are a fickle and distracted bunch.
For us as Christ-followers, we also have to be very intentional about walking with God: daily prayer, communing with God through the Scripture, staying in connection with other believers, and being part of a worshiping community. If we don't do these things, it becomes easy to simply...drift. Maybe we don't start worshiping a golden calf, but we certainly place other things, activities, and people before God. I hesitate to say this but I'm going to risk it and say it anyway. Because of COVID, many people were forced to pull away from their family of faith for quite some time. At first, maybe they stayed connected and worshiped every week online very diligently. As time went on, though, it was easy to let things slide. Many churches are now battling an epidemic of complacency and apathy. It's not a golden calf but could it be worse?
Let's pray...Heavenly Father, how quickly we drift from you. Lord, help us stay connected and strong in our walk with you. When we start to fall away, pull us back to you using any means necessary. We love you and trust you. In Jesus' Name, Amen.