Verse of the Day: Matthew 22:37-Jesus answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind.’ 38 This is the first and most important command. 39 And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’
Memory of the Month: 2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Today's reading: EXODUS 34-35 MATTHEW 22:23-46
Just Like That
Exodus 32 tells of the golden calf that the Israelites had Aaron make while Moses was on the mountain with God. They grew impatient and wanted to make something happen. It had been the best part of forty days and they started to mumble against Moses and finally cornered Aaron and told him to make a god they could worship. Aaron did not protest. He asked for their gold.
Chapter 32, verse 4 says: 4 He collected the gold they brought and used a tool to fashion an idol in the shape of a calf.
Just like that. Aaron did what the people said and they were immediately taken with their new 'god' and started to worship (sing and dance and party).
Human beings are so predictable. People think that if they cannot see it, it is not real or worthy of consideration. They have to see a sign. If a man is not successful, he cannot be a great Christian. A great Christian must have something tangible to prove how great his God is. Otherwise, the world pays no attention. We worship success. We worship accomplishment. The man who gets the applause must be the closest to God. The man who has all the money had all God's blessings?
Jesus said, "The Son of man has no place to lay His head", Matthew 8:20. Jesus did not have a house or flocks or fortune. He walked up to fourteen miles a day speaking for the glory of God and His kingdom and His salvation to man (and against the established church that had all the money and power).
So Moses comes down the mountain and sees the sin and in his anger broke the tablets God had written. He cornered Aaron and asked him why he did what he did. Basically, this is what Aaron said:
" Calm down, master. These people, that you left me in charge of, pressured me and so I asked for their gold; they gave it to me; I threw it in the fire and out popped this golden calf-just like that".(Exodus 32:22-24)
What does that sound like? Does the 'big bang' sound familiar? Let's go set off a bomb in the closest junkyard and then celebrate the new international space station that appears-just like that. Why not?
Proverbs 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death.
It took our perfect God a week to complete creation-but it wasn't just like that. It took Jesus three years to make it to the cross and provide a perfect sacrifice for us-not just like that.
But, it takes a turn of the human heart-just like that. It takes a person giving their heart and life to Jesus to have God write their name in His book-just like that.
It does take a life of daily dying to self and obeying God to be conformed into the image of Jesus for God's glory. It takes a lifetime to learn what God has for each of us. It takes only a moment to come to Jesus but it takes a lifetime to be like Him.
To employ the mind of Christ... to be transformed by the renewal of our minds... to experience the bliss of God's presence that is new everyday... to love as He loves-none of this happens just like that. It takes what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:31:
"I die every day!"
Death to self and the temptations of the world and surrender to God in Christ cannot be reduced to 'just like that'. This life is seriously considered and relentlessly pursued and God will give us all we ever need.
...because He loves us...
Father in Heaven,
I have fallen to the lure of the world. Have mercy and forgive me. Impress on my heart and mind how eternally serious this is.
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