Worship in Spirit and in Truth
Exodus 32:1-4 NKJV
[1] Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” [2] And Aaron said to them, “Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” [3] So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. [4] And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”
God had just saved Israel from Egypt through many powerful miracles and had led them through the wilderness to Mount Sinai. He spoke His commands to them, but they all shrank back and insisted that Moses go up the mountain to talk to God alone.
While Moses is gone, the people lose patience. They go to Moses’s brother, Aaron, and demand that he make them gods to lead them into the Promised Land. Now, the word they used for “gods” is Elohim, which is used in the Old Testament to refer to both pagan gods and the true God, so we don’t really know who they are talking about yet.
Aaron bows to their demands, fashions a golden statue of a calf, and they say, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt” (Exodus 32:4). We still don’t know which God they’re talking about, but Aaron makes it clear right away.
He says, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord” (Exodus 32:5). Now when it says, “Lord,” what’s written there is the name, “Yahweh,” the name of God. Now we know who they are talking about.
Here’s what’s going on: They are declaring, “Yahweh is our God. Yahweh saved us from Egypt. Yahweh is our Lord,” yet they are worshiping an idol. We must see this warning, because if they could have all the right declarations while still worshiping an idol, we can too.
In fact, many Christians do this every day. They declare, “Jesus is Lord,” but they don’t follow Jesus. Just as Israel said they worshiped Yahweh, but followed their desires instead of God’s declared will, many Christians pick and choose which passages of Scripture they want to follow, and then ignore the rest that challenge them!
This is creating a knockoff Jesus—an idol. It is not worshiping Jesus in truth.
II Corinthians 11:2-3 NKJV
[2] For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. [3] But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
The question we must ask is, how can we know we are worshiping the true Jesus, not a knockoff Jesus? Do you worship Jesus in Spirit and in Truth? Do you worship Jesus with a lifestyle of obedience?
[1] Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” [2] And Aaron said to them, “Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” [3] So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. [4] And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”
God had just saved Israel from Egypt through many powerful miracles and had led them through the wilderness to Mount Sinai. He spoke His commands to them, but they all shrank back and insisted that Moses go up the mountain to talk to God alone.
While Moses is gone, the people lose patience. They go to Moses’s brother, Aaron, and demand that he make them gods to lead them into the Promised Land. Now, the word they used for “gods” is Elohim, which is used in the Old Testament to refer to both pagan gods and the true God, so we don’t really know who they are talking about yet.
Aaron bows to their demands, fashions a golden statue of a calf, and they say, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt” (Exodus 32:4). We still don’t know which God they’re talking about, but Aaron makes it clear right away.
He says, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord” (Exodus 32:5). Now when it says, “Lord,” what’s written there is the name, “Yahweh,” the name of God. Now we know who they are talking about.
Here’s what’s going on: They are declaring, “Yahweh is our God. Yahweh saved us from Egypt. Yahweh is our Lord,” yet they are worshiping an idol. We must see this warning, because if they could have all the right declarations while still worshiping an idol, we can too.
In fact, many Christians do this every day. They declare, “Jesus is Lord,” but they don’t follow Jesus. Just as Israel said they worshiped Yahweh, but followed their desires instead of God’s declared will, many Christians pick and choose which passages of Scripture they want to follow, and then ignore the rest that challenge them!
This is creating a knockoff Jesus—an idol. It is not worshiping Jesus in truth.
II Corinthians 11:2-3 NKJV
[2] For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. [3] But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
The question we must ask is, how can we know we are worshiping the true Jesus, not a knockoff Jesus? Do you worship Jesus in Spirit and in Truth? Do you worship Jesus with a lifestyle of obedience?
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