In Exodus 32:1 we read these terrifying words, “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.”
As the chapter continues we are told of how Aaron makes a golden calf and the people bow down and worship it with all their heart, soul and strength (32:6).
If you don’t find the story frightening, you should. Consider the facts. Here are the people of God who have just experienced God’s power, presence and grace in a very real and tangible way. They’ve been rescued out of slavery by God’s mighty hand. They’ve seen with their own eyes how God consumed their enemies in the Red Sea (14:30). They’ve drunk water made clean by God’s provision (15:25), eaten manna in the desert (16:4), and fed on quail from heaven (16:13). We would hope that if we experienced any one of these miracles we would be a faithful God follower to the very end. But that’s not the case here in chapter 32, what we see instead is the people of God turning their back on him and worshipping an idol of their own making.
I find the event frightening because it happened so quickly and so completely. I find it frightening because miracles that we think should have rooted their faith deeply in God seem to be forgotten. I find it frightening because these are not some pagans who don’t know any better, these are the people of God who have been rescued by his strength. But most of all, I find it frightening because their story can be our story if we aren’t careful.
The worship of the golden calf makes us look in the mirror and ask ourselves, “Are we truly worshipping the living God or are we worshipping idols of our own making?”
It’s a question that Mat Redman’s church asked itself some years ago. They felt that they had lost their way in worship and had turned into a congregation of consumers rather than participants. They were looking to get something out of worship rather than offer something to God in worship. They were worshipping the idol of self. What happened next is extraordinary. They decided to strip their services of everything that didn’t come from the heart of the people. Worship was reduced to what the people brought as an offering on a given Sunday. The pastor wanted to help them come to the services as worshippers and not as concert goers. Mat says that it was pretty uncomfortable at first but then people began to break out in accapella songs and heartfelt prayers. They began to encounter God in heartfelt ways.
He wrote a song about the experience and called it “The Heart of Worship”. It’s an expression of repentance and seeks to refocus our attention away from our idols and on the person of Jesus Christ.
Why don’t you take a moment to worship God now? Play Mat’s video once https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4RUjGsTfks asking the Holy Spirit to speak to you. Then play the song again, but this time pray through the song, asking God to forgive you for the times when you have made worship to be something that is about you. Ask him to forgive you for the times you have sought to be a consumer of worship rather than a participant. Ask God to refocus your attention on the one who has miraculously redeemed you and touched your life by his presence and power – our Lord Jesus Christ.
Seeking to worship God and him alone with you, Tom.