Remembering God's Teachings: Avoiding Spiritual Forgetfulness

### Summary

Good morning, everyone. Today, we continue our series through the book of Exodus, focusing on Exodus 32. The theme of today's message is "Falling into Forgetfulness." We began with a humorous story about an elderly couple struggling with memory, which serves as a metaphor for how we often forget God's teachings and commitments. The Israelites, despite their initial commitment to obey God's laws, quickly fell into forgetfulness and sin when Moses was away on Mount Sinai.

In Exodus 24, the Israelites made a solemn commitment to obey all of God's commands. Moses, understanding human nature, wrote down these laws and read them to the people to reinforce their commitment. However, by Exodus 32, we see the Israelites reverting to idolatry, creating a golden calf to worship in Moses' absence. This act of disobedience was not just a lapse in judgment but a return to their comfort zone of idolatry, a practice they were familiar with from their time in Egypt.

Aaron, Moses' brother, played a significant role in this downfall. Despite witnessing God's miracles firsthand, Aaron succumbed to the people's demands, revealing his weakness as a people-pleaser. This incident serves as a stark reminder that even those closest to spiritual leadership can falter.

God's anger burned against the Israelites for their quick turn to idolatry. He was ready to destroy them and start anew with Moses. However, Moses interceded on their behalf, calling them to repentance. This story highlights the seriousness of sin and the importance of genuine commitment to God's teachings.

In our lives today, we often face similar temptations to revert to old, comfortable ways when following God's path becomes challenging. The key is to remain steadfast in our commitment, continually reinforcing our faith through regular worship, prayer, and study of God's Word. We must choose to follow God wholeheartedly, understanding that His teachings are for our good and His glory.

### Key Takeaways

1. **Commitment Requires Reinforcement**: The Israelites initially committed to obeying God's laws, but their commitment waned without constant reinforcement. Like them, we need regular reminders of God's Word through daily devotionals, prayer, and community worship to stay on track. [27:00]

2. **Comfort Zones Can Be Dangerous**: When faced with uncertainty, the Israelites reverted to their old ways of idolatry. Our comfort zones can lead us back into sin if we are not vigilant. We must strive to break free from old habits and fully embrace God's ways. [47:19]

3. **Leadership and Accountability**: Aaron's failure to stand firm against the people's demands shows the importance of strong, accountable leadership. Leaders must prioritize God's truth over pleasing people, even when it's challenging. [50:16]

4. **God's Anger Against Sin**: God's anger burned against the Israelites for their idolatry, showing that He takes sin seriously. As believers, we must understand that willful disobedience stirs God's anger and has severe consequences. [53:19]

5. **A Clear Choice**: Moses called the Israelites to make a clear choice—either follow God or face the consequences. We, too, must decide whether to fully commit to God's teachings or continue in our sinful ways. This choice determines the blessings and protection we receive from God. [01:04:25]

### YouTube Chapters

[0:00] - Welcome
[25:33] - Introduction: The Forgetful Couple
[27:00] - Falling into Forgetfulness
[28:32] - The Israelites' Initial Commitment
[30:01] - God's Laws: A Blessing, Not a Burden
[31:27] - The Enthusiasm of Commitment
[32:58] - The Importance of Writing It Down
[34:22] - Reinforcement Through Repetition
[35:44] - The Call to Obedience
[37:07] - The Purpose of God's Instructions
[38:26] - The Israelites' Quick Turn to Idolatry
[41:21] - Moses' Absence and the Golden Calf
[43:57] - Aaron's Compromise
[45:39] - The Comfort Zone of Idolatry
[47:19] - Human Nature and Comfort Zones
[50:16] - The Danger of People-Pleasing
[51:48] - The Illusion of Sin's Pleasure
[52:33] - God's Anger Burns Against Sin
[53:19] - The Stiff-Necked People
[55:00] - The Seriousness of Sin
[56:01] - A Higher Standard for Believers
[57:21] - Moses' Intercession
[58:37] - Aaron's Feeble Excuse
[59:43] - The Lame Excuses for Sin
[01:01:01] - A Clear Choice: Follow God or Sin
[01:02:21] - The Levites' Commitment
[01:04:25] - The Consequences of Sin
[01:06:05] - The Blessings of Obedience
[01:07:37] - Closing Prayer and Invitation
[01:11:37] - Prayer for Mike
[01:12:49] - Family Prayer
[01:14:49] - Communion and Offering
[01:15:49] - Announcements and Closing

### Bible Reading
1. **Exodus 32:1-14** - The story of the golden calf and Moses' intercession.
2. **Exodus 24:3-8** - The Israelites' initial commitment to obey God's laws.
3. **Joshua 24:15** - Joshua's call to choose whom to serve.

### Observation Questions
1. What did the Israelites do when Moses was delayed on Mount Sinai? ([42:30])
2. How did Aaron respond to the people's demand for a god? ([43:57])
3. What was God's reaction to the Israelites' idolatry? ([53:19])
4. How did Moses intercede for the Israelites, and what was the outcome? ([57:21])

### Interpretation Questions
1. Why do you think the Israelites quickly reverted to idolatry despite their commitment in Exodus 24? ([28:32])
2. What does Aaron's behavior reveal about the challenges of leadership and people-pleasing? ([50:16])
3. How does God's anger towards the Israelites' sin reflect His view on willful disobedience? ([55:00])
4. What does Moses' call for a clear choice in Exodus 32:26 teach us about commitment to God? ([01:02:21])

### Application Questions
1. Reflect on a time when you made a commitment to God but found it challenging to keep. What steps can you take to reinforce your commitment daily? ([34:22])
2. Are there any "comfort zones" in your life that might lead you back into old habits or sins? How can you break free from them? ([47:19])
3. How can you ensure that your actions as a leader or a follower are aligned with God's truth rather than seeking to please people? ([50:16])
4. In what ways can you remind yourself of God's teachings and avoid falling into forgetfulness? ([27:00])
5. How do you respond to God's anger against sin in your own life? What steps can you take to repent and seek His forgiveness? ([53:19])
6. Moses called the Israelites to make a clear choice. What clear choice do you need to make in your life today to follow God more wholeheartedly? ([01:02:21])
7. Think of a specific area in your life where you struggle with obedience to God. What practical steps can you take this week to align your actions with His teachings? ([37:07])

Day 1: Commitment Requires Constant Reinforcement
Description: The Israelites initially made a solemn commitment to obey God's laws, but their dedication quickly waned without constant reinforcement. This pattern is not unique to them; it is a common human tendency to forget commitments when they are not regularly revisited. Just as Moses wrote down the laws and read them to the people to reinforce their commitment, we too need regular reminders of God's Word. Daily devotionals, prayer, and community worship serve as essential tools to keep our faith and commitment strong. Without these, we risk falling into forgetfulness and straying from God's path. [27:00]

Deuteronomy 6:6-9 (ESV): "And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

Reflection: What specific steps can you take today to ensure that God's Word is a constant presence in your daily life? Consider setting reminders for prayer or reading Scripture at specific times.


Day 2: Comfort Zones Can Be Dangerous
Description: When faced with uncertainty, the Israelites reverted to their old ways of idolatry, creating a golden calf to worship. This act was not just a lapse in judgment but a return to their comfort zone, a practice they were familiar with from their time in Egypt. Our comfort zones can be equally dangerous, leading us back into old habits and sins if we are not vigilant. Breaking free from these comfort zones requires intentional effort and a steadfast commitment to embracing God's ways, even when it feels challenging or uncomfortable. [47:19]

Jeremiah 7:24 (ESV): "But they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward."

Reflection: Identify one comfort zone in your life that may be leading you away from God's path. What steps can you take today to break free from this comfort zone and fully embrace God's ways?


Day 3: Leadership and Accountability
Description: Aaron, despite being Moses' brother and a leader among the Israelites, succumbed to the people's demands and facilitated the creation of the golden calf. This incident underscores the importance of strong, accountable leadership that prioritizes God's truth over pleasing people. Leaders, whether in spiritual, professional, or personal contexts, must stand firm in their convictions and be willing to make difficult decisions that align with God's teachings, even when it is unpopular or challenging. [50:16]

1 Timothy 4:12 (ESV): "Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity."

Reflection: Think about a leadership role you hold, whether in your family, workplace, or community. How can you ensure that you are prioritizing God's truth over the desire to please others? What specific actions can you take to be a more accountable leader?


Day 4: God's Anger Against Sin
Description: God's anger burned against the Israelites for their quick turn to idolatry, demonstrating that He takes sin seriously. This story serves as a stark reminder that willful disobedience stirs God's anger and has severe consequences. As believers, we must understand the gravity of sin and strive to live in obedience to God's teachings. Recognizing the seriousness of sin helps us to appreciate the need for repentance and the importance of maintaining a genuine commitment to God's ways. [53:19]

Nahum 1:3 (ESV): "The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet."

Reflection: Reflect on an area of your life where you may be willfully disobeying God's teachings. What steps can you take today to repent and realign your actions with God's will?


Day 5: A Clear Choice
Description: Moses called the Israelites to make a clear choice—either follow God or face the consequences. This call to decision is equally relevant for us today. We must decide whether to fully commit to God's teachings or continue in our sinful ways. This choice is not just a one-time decision but a daily commitment that determines the blessings and protection we receive from God. Choosing to follow God wholeheartedly requires intentionality and a willingness to forsake anything that hinders our relationship with Him. [01:04:25]

Joshua 24:15 (ESV): "And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Reflection: What is one specific area of your life where you need to make a clear choice to follow God? What practical steps can you take today to demonstrate your commitment to His teachings?

Good morning again, everyone. We're so glad you're here with us today. Welcome, Smarton Campus; we love you guys. Glad you're connected there. Everybody that's connecting with us online, we're so happy to have that. Thanks for that connection with you online.

As we continue our message series that we're in through the book of Exodus, today we're going to be in Exodus 32. If you want to be turning there and holding that in readiness, we're going to look at another passage first as we lead into Exodus 32.

There was an elderly couple who, as they were getting older, noticed that they weren't remembering things really well. So they went to see their doctor. They were concerned, you know, it may be some kind of dementia or something beginning to set in. The doctor said, "I don't see any signs of dementia. So what you might want to do as a first step is just start writing everything down if you're having trouble remembering things or details and things like that." And they said, "Okay, we'll try that."

Well, one evening they were sitting there on the sofa in the den, and the wife said to her husband, "Would you go and get me a bowl of ice cream and bring it back to me?" He said, "Yeah, I'll do that." She said, "Write it down." He said, "No, no, I can remember. You want a bowl of ice cream? No problem. I can do that." She said, "Oh, and if you would put some whipped cream on it." He said, "Whipped cream. Okay, got it." She said, "Write it down." He said, "No, I got it. You want a bowl of ice cream with whipped cream on it?" And she said, "That's right."

So then she said, "Oh, and by the way, I would love to have a cherry on top." He said, "Cherry on top. Okay, bowl of ice cream, whipped cream, cherry on top. I got it." She said, "You should write it down." He said, "No, I got it."

He goes off into the kitchen to get it ready for her, and he's gone a long time. He's gone about 30 minutes. Finally, he comes back in with a plate with eggs and bacon on it. She looks at it for a few minutes. She looks up at him and says, "Where's my toast?"

We all struggle once in a while with remembering things. I mean, it's okay to admit that. As you get older, I think the biggest challenge is we've got more to remember, right? We've already stored a lot more information. So there's not as much space there on the hard drive to add new information. So we have to work at it.

But in the book of Exodus, as we have gone through it already, the passage we're going to be looking at today, I've titled this message "Falling into Forgetfulness." Because what happens with Israel, remember, everything is foreshadowing. It's looking ahead to even our day. It's looking ahead to that. And what we see is a cycle that's repeated with the Israelites.

And we might just think, "Well, that's the Israelites. I can't believe they were like that. I can't believe they so quickly forgot what God had done and what God taught them and what they had committed to." I can't believe they forgot that so quickly. But remember, it was pointing ahead. Because even though he gave them the law and tablets of stone, he wants us to have God's law written on our hearts.

And he wants us to remember what God has taught us. And he wants us to remember what we've committed our lives to in response to what God has done for us so that we don't forget. So he gives us these things to remind us, to help us remember what he's done and what we have promised to do in response.

Well, in this occasion, we see the first thing that I want us to see in the Israelites is that a commitment was made. Before we get to chapter 32, way back in Exodus chapter 24, I just want to remind you of the commitment that the Israelites had made to God back in Exodus 24 when Moses first begins to introduce to them God's law, what God is calling them to, the teachings that he wants them to follow.

And when he gave them these laws to introduce, when he introduces these laws, when he tells them this is God's will, this is God's plan, he also teaches them what we need to remember. Remember, it's looking ahead, that God was giving them these laws to set them apart as his people.

God was giving them these instructions to set them apart as a people that give glory and honor to God, that show that God's way is different than the way of the world, and that he's calling us to his way. And not only that, but in his plan, in his teaching, his way is actually better than the way of the culture around them, the way of the nations around them, the way of the inclinations of their heart, that God's way is better than any of those things.

And that God is not giving us his law to burden us. He's not giving us his law to restrict us from good things. He's giving us his law to bless us with a life that's better than we would have if we didn't follow that law. You see, God wants to bless his people. That's his intent. It has always been his intent.

And God, the creator and designer of life, knows better than anyone, including us, what things would be best for us, what things would bless us, and what things would hurt us, what path takes us where we have the care, and the love, and the protection of God, and what path takes us away from that in our lives, and the choices that we make.

And so, let's go back to Exodus 24, beginning with verse 3. It says this about when Moses is introducing the law to them. He says, "When Moses went and told the people all the Lord's words and laws, they responded, how? With one voice. Are they all in? Everybody's in on it, right? Everybody's saying, 'All right, here's our response.' They responded, and they're saying, 'All right, here's our response.' They responded, with one voice, 'Everything the Lord has said, we will, what? Do.'"

I think they realize what they just said. Sometimes we get caught up in the enthusiasm of the moment, don't we? And the excitement of what's going on. I see that all the time in churches where, you know, people, pastors, and the music, you get everybody all worked up, and they're all excited, and they're all into it, and they'll just say amen to almost anything.

I was tempted one time at a funeral. I had a funeral where we had people from a lot of different religious backgrounds who heard preaching, you know, from different styles, and everything I said, I couldn't get three words out without, "Amen, brother, preach it," every couple of minutes. So, I was tempted to say, "My dog died yesterday," just to see what response I would get, going, and a cycle that was happening, and then the more I said it, the more they would keep saying it and responding that way.

Sometimes I think we're not even paying attention when we say amen. Yeah, that's good. We're not even really thinking about what it is we are agreeing to. Amen is not the end. Amen should be our saying, "So let it be, God. Yes, I'm in agreement. Let's do this." That's what amen means.

We are saying, "Oh, everything the Lord has said. We're going to do everything the Lord has said." Verse 4, Moses then wrote down everything the Lord had said. Moses, I think, had an inclination. We better write this down. Now, I know God's leading him to do this. God is inspiring him to do this, but I think Moses understands, too.

You know how you sit here in the sermon week after week, and you don't take notes because you say, "I'll remember that. I'm going to remember that." You know, all the studies show the same thing. You remember a smaller percentage of what you only hear. If you hear it and write it down, you remember a lot more of it. If you hear it, write it down, and immediately put it into practice, that's when it really starts to stick. That's true for everybody.

We always think we're the exception. "I remember everything." No, you don't. Nobody does. So Moses says, "Let's write this stuff down," because they're saying they're going to do everything. I want to have a record of that, of all that they're agreeing to do, everything God has said. Let's write it down. Let's remember. Let's not stray away from it.

So it says, "Moses wrote down everything the Lord had said." So he got up early the next morning, built an altar at the foot of the mountain, set up 12 stone pillars representing the 12 tribes of Israel. Then he sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as fellowship offerings to the Lord.

Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and the other half he splashed against the altar. Then he took the book of the covenant, right? He wrote it all down, and he read it to the people. Now, why? This is the very next morning. And then he writes it down. And then the next morning, they offer sacrifices to God, and what does Moses do again? He reads them what he just wrote down.

He writes it down. He writes it down. He writes it down. He writes it down. He writes it down. He understands how we work. God understands that in the heat of the moment, in the excitement of the moment, we might say, "Yeah, I'm all in." But when the excitement goes away, and other things start getting our attention, we might begin to wander back off into other things.

And so Moses not only wrote it down, the very next morning, he reads it to them again. Reinforcement, right? That's why just coming to church on Sunday, hearing a message is not going to get it done, friends. There needs to be some time in the Word on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday. That's why we send out a five-day devotional after the sermon on Sunday, so you could follow along and do a little more study every day.

That's why I do a midweek podcast where we go deeper into the message from the previous Sunday. It's because we need the reinforcement of what we just heard that day. "I'll remember." No, you won't. I won't either if I don't spend a little more time with it.

Now, I spent a lot of time preparing it. You didn't get that step, so you've got to have even more effort there to remember what was taught that day. And so Moses understands that process, so he reads it to them again that morning. So he took the book of the covenant, read it to the people. They responded.

What's their response this time? "We will do everything the Lord has said. We will what? Obey." All right, there's the commitment. We're going to obey everything God said. We heard it once. Moses wrote it down. Then he read it to us again. And all the way through that process, what have they said? As one voice, what have they said? "We're going to obey all this stuff. We're going to be that set-apart people. We're going to honor God."

The greatest way to honor God is not with your lips. It's with your actions. It's the obedience part that matters. Because anybody can say the words. Anybody can speak the words. Anybody can say they believe in God, but remember, even the demons believe that. So there's got to be more than just saying, "I'll do it." Saying you believe it. That has to be connected with the obedience that God is calling for.

Now, here's the thing about that obedience. Remember, when God gave these instructions, it was not to hurt them. It was not to restrict them. It was not to keep them from something good in life. These instructions are for them to be set apart as the people of God who demonstrate the blessings that only their God can give, and the life that only their God can provide.

He wants to bless them in such a way that other nations around them will be drawn to their God because they see what God has done for them. Amen. That's amazing. The benefits of following the teachings that are there.

And they said, "Okay, we will obey everything the Lord has said." This is true in churches all over the world. It's true sometimes at Lakeshore, and we can never judge this, and we're not supposed to be the judge of this. But the records show that so many people will come up front and repeat a profession of faith, and sometimes get baptized, and they're excited, and they're really on fire that day.

And so many, over a period of time after that, gradually just fall away. They don't stick with it. Part of it is, a big part of it is, we just don't put in place those spiritual disciplines that will keep us where we need to be. We're not attending services regularly. We're not in the Word regularly. We're not praying regularly.

And it's easy for Satan to get your ear when you're not doing those things. It's easy for the world to capture your attention when you're not doing those things to remind yourself. It's easy to get caught up in things that are outside of the will of God when you're not spending time remembering the will of God on a daily basis for your life.

And so this serves as a great example because the very next thing on your outline today is what happens next that we're going to look at in chapter 32. This is not a lot of time that's passed, and a terrible sin is committed by the people of God who made these promises that day.

A terrible sin is committed by the people who heard the teaching. They had it repeated to them again. They had it in writing to look at and spend time with. And in a short time, they're already doing something in total opposition to what they had just said they weren't going to do. They're doing something in direct opposition to being people who bring glory to God and would point people to God.

In fact, now what they do is going to bring ridicule on their God. And the reason I want you to understand that Exodus is pointing forward is because when we, as the church today, claim to love God and follow Jesus, and we live totally outside God's clear teachings, it brings shame and ridicule to the people who bring glory to God.

And that's what ridicule to our God. It causes God and Christianity to be ridiculed by those who aren't part of it. You see, the big mistake we make as Christians in our culture today is we think that becoming more like the culture and participating in what they participate in will actually have a better life that way. We won't have any opposition. It won't be hard for us.

But I've had enough experience as a pastor and working with people outside the church to know this. What they really would love to see is the real deal and those who claim to know and follow Jesus. They would like to see somebody who really lives that out consistently to show them that there really is something to this Christianity thing.

Because you know what? They want hope too. They want some answers too. They want to know that there's something better than the muck and the mire they're caught up in in their lives. And we're supposed to be those set-apart people that are showing the way, the way of God to the world by following the teachings that he gave us for our good and for his glory.

Let's look at Exodus 32 beginning with verse 1. We see that this terrible sin was committed. Moses is gone up on the mountain. There's this cloud of smoke and all covering the mountain, and Moses has disappeared up on the mountain. Now what you don't get in this verse is, but we see in the context of all the scripture talking about this, is Moses is up on the mountain.

Anybody know how long? 40 days and 40 nights he's up on the mountain. So this is not just, "Well, he's been up there a couple of hours. What's he doing?" He's been up there 40 days and 40 nights. By the way, that's a significant number in scripture. You might know with the blood and all of that stuff. 40 days is a big deal. It's repeated many times in scripture.

40 days and 40 nights he's up on the mountain, and there's smoke covering. They can't see what's going on. They don't know what's going on. There's lightning, there's smoke, there's clouds, all of this stuff. And they're down at the foot of the mountain camped out down there. And Moses has been the one leading them this whole time. And now he's not around for 40 days and 40 nights.

All right. When the people saw Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. Now who's Aaron? You remember Moses' brother. He's been alongside Moses, right? God gave him his brother Aaron to help him, to lead the people out of the bondage in Egypt and lead them on their journey to the promised land.

So here's Aaron, his brother, right? So 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's going on. We don't know what's happened to him." Moses has gone now. Moses told them where he was going and why he was going there. But after it had been a little while, then he was gone, all of a sudden they're saying, "Where is this Moses guy?"

I love that. Listen, you got to read scripture and understand that there is some humor and sarcasm here. Can you imagine that? "I don't know what happened to that Moses guy." That was through Moses, all of that was through Moses. Remember the flames? That was all through Moses. "I don't know what happened to this Moses guy. I don't see him around anymore."

What's he up to these days? Well, he told you what he was up to. He's up on the mountain with God. But it went long enough that all of a sudden now they're thinking, "Where is this Moses guy?"

Verse 2, 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. These are the 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, sacrificed burnt offerings, and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward, they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry. That word translated revelry includes a whole lot of stuff. They had a big party with drinking and all kinds of stuff. They had all kinds of immorality going on during that time in their worship of this new idol God that they had formed.

Now remember where they got the gold? This is the gold that they had worked for over the years and accumulated. They got it from the Egyptians. Remember when God freed them that last plague and they were being sent out of Egypt? God told Moses to tell the people to go to the Egyptians and get gold and silver and get supplies, get all the stuff we're going to need for this journey, and the Egyptians gladly gave it to them to get them out of town.

We're tired of these plagues; we want you people out of here, so they gave up gold and silver and all kinds of stuff. So this is not even stuff they've worked for. It's easy to give it up when you haven't worked hard to get it, right? So we want this idol. "I don't know what happened to that Moses guy. Anybody heard? No, I don't know. Well, let's make us a new guy."

Now, not long before this, what did they promise to do? Obey everything. Do you remember the commandments? Do you remember the Ten Commandments? That's just that part of the law. God made it clear that they were to have no other gods before them, that they were not to worship any idols.

Moses has gone. "Who is this Moses guy? Where is he at? I don't know. Well, let's make us a guy to lead us now because Moses is not around with his God to lead us anymore, so let's get us a new one."

Now, you have to remember these are people who came out of idolatry and had been in a culture of idolatry for hundreds of years when they did this. Their comfort zone was actually idolatry, not the one true God. And so the thing that we usually revert to when it gets hard to follow what God says to do is whatever was comfortable for us before.

That's the thing we naturally, as human beings, tend to default back to is the thing that was comfortable. It doesn't mean it was good all the time. I mean, there are people that lived in abusive relationships, and they get away from it, and they get away from it, and they get away from it, and they get away from it, and when things get hard for them outside of that relationship, it's actually more comfortable for them to go back to the abusive relationship.

That's still their comfort zone. That's what they're used to. That's how they know how to function is in that kind of environment. You see, that's human nature. We go back to what we know and are comfortable with. That's why for the alcoholic it's so hard. You go back to those friends, you go back to that group, you go back to those activities and those places and those times that were part of that life.

It's easy to just slide back into the comfort zone again. If you were in a culture where there wasn't faithfulness to one person like your spouse, and that's the way your lifestyle was being lived before you got married, and things get hard in the marriage, it's easy to slip back to what was comfortable for you before.

You see, every part of your life is like that. You're trying to do finances God's way, and it's hard to do finances God's way. It's hard to get back on track and get back to where you need to be. It was easier to pull out the credit cards every time it got hard and pay for something that way.

So it's really easy to slide right back into what the comfort zone of going deeper and deeper in debt all the time. Now you don't remember how bad it was and the problems it's going to bring. It's just more comfortable to go back to that life that you knew for so long.

And so here they are. They had promised, "Oh God, we're going to do everything you command us." But the first thing they do when it gets tough and Moses is not right there to give them everything they want is go make another idol to worship, and they start participating in this revelry, this practice of everything that goes against what God had called them to.

One of the saddest parts to me is Aaron's participation in this. I mean, this is Moses' brother, and I know he's not even sure what's happening with Moses on the mountain. He can't see it. He doesn't know exactly how things are playing out up there on the mountain either, but he's been firsthand at the right hand of Moses through every amazing thing God has already done up to this point.

And how quickly he just says, "I'll give you your gold. I'll take care of this for you." You know what Aaron was more than anything else? His biggest challenge, he was a people pleaser. He didn't want the people mad at him. He wanted them to be happy with him.

And friends, I pray all the time with our elder team and our staff that none of us get to be so much people pleasers that we don't teach the truth of God at our church. We don't hold up the standard of God at our church because there's way too many preachers and way too many pulpits that have so compromised us that we don't teach the truth of God at our church.

We don't hold up the standard of God at our church. We don't teach the truth of God at our church. We don't hold up the standard of God at our church.

If you look in the New Testament, when it's talking about the last days, here's what it says. They'll gather around them leaders that will tell them what their itching ears want to hear. It's talking about God's people there, by the way, when you read it in context.

God's people will put people around them who will tell them what their itching ears want to hear. So when it comes to gender identity, when it comes to greed, when it comes to how to treat the poor, when it comes to all of these things, we'll find people who will tell us what we want to hear because it's our comfort zone to practice those things.

So tell us that it's good. Tell us that it's okay. Lead us down that path instead of the path of God. And sometimes it looks like that's working. I mean, for a little while, they had a big party going on. It seemed like their choice had been fine.

"We got our gold. We got our gold and calf now. We've got our party going on. We're having a blast. It's really good." A lot of people involved in a sinful lifestyle. For a little while, the Bible says that sin is pleasurable for a season. I mean, yeah, for a little while, that's good. It's fun.

There's pleasure connected to it. And that's what they're experiencing for a little while. They're having fun. They're having this wild party. Wow. All kinds of stuff going on. Not even worried about the consequences. Not even worried about how God might look at that.

Which leads to the third thing, and that is, in response to this, the Lord's anger burned against them. Look at verse 7. The Lord said to Moses, "Go down, because your people whom you brought up out of Egypt have become corrupt. They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them, have made themselves an idol, cast in the shape of a calf. They've bowed down to it and sacrificed to it, and have said, 'These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.'"

Not only did they make a god, but they identified that god as the one who did what? Brought them up out of Egypt. Freed them from their slavery. That's how they've identified this calf idol god. That's the one who was their deliverer.

Verse 9, "I have seen these people," the Lord said to Moses. "They are a..." How does he describe them? "Stiff-necked people." I love that term. Again, this is not humorous this time, and this is not sarcasm. This is a descriptive term used to talk about people who are so stubborn in their rebellion against God. Stiff-necked.

He says, verse 10, "Now leave me alone, so that my anger may burn against them, that I may what? Destroy. Destroy them, then I will make you into a great nation." You know what God is saying? "I'm going to keep my covenant, Moses, but not with these people. Not with this stiff-necked group of people."

He said, "I'm going to destroy that group and start over with you, Moses, and then I am going to make you into a great nation. These people can't be part of that." Remember, everything in Exodus is looking ahead. It's a teaching tool for us today. Everything.

One of the greatest mistakes of the church today is taking sin too lightly, as if it's okay with God, and he winks at it and says, "Oh, it's no big deal." And people even joke about, "Well, you get what you see. I am what I am."

God's just got to accept me the way I am, too. That's not how God looks at sin, friends. God's anger rises up against sin. Now, sin is an intentional rebellion. It's not where we have unknowingly fallen into. Something which is not usually our case. Usually, we know what we're doing, and we make a choice that we know is against God's teaching.

And God's anger is stirred against that kind of action. Now, here's what you need to know. His anger is stirred against that kind of action with people who said they were going to follow him and his teachings. He understands the rest of the world doing that. He understands that non-Christians aren't committed to sin. They aren't committed to him or his teachings.

So, as much as he doesn't like it, it doesn't make him angry in the same way that it does when the very people who say they love him are the ones doing this. That's what stirs up the anger of God more than anything else.

So, we are a people who are supposed to understand that God holds us, if we're claiming Jesus as Lord and Savior, he's holding us to a higher standard than he is the rest of the world. And rightly so. We're the ones who said we're going to follow you. We're the ones who've said that we love him and are thankful for all he's done for us.

That creates a higher standard for people who claim that. And God's anger is stirred when we take that so lightly that we think sin is okay and no big deal, even to God. So, his anger is stirred. His anger burns against them. And he is telling Moses, "You leave me alone for a while because I am going to destroy them, and then I'm going to start over with you and create a great nation."

Well, Moses pleads on behalf of the people, and he goes down to call them to repentance, to call them to get back on track. And I love, I don't love it in that sense, it's sarcasm here. I kind of love the response that Aaron gives to Moses. A feeble excuse was then offered starting in verse 19. Look at this.

This is amazing. And before you think about how ridiculous this is, we might resemble this remark sometimes. When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them into pieces at the foot of the mountain.

And he took the calf the people had made and burned it in the fire. Then he ground it into powder, scattered it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it. Listen to this next part. They must have done something horrible or threatened something horrible against you to get you to do something that is so against God and what God wants for his people.

Verse 22, listen to Aaron's response. "Do not be angry, my Lord," Aaron answered. "You know how prone these people are to evil." Who's he pointing the fault to? The people, right? "They said to me, 'Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us out of Egypt, we don't know what's happened to him.' So I told them, 'Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.' They gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire."

I think that's how ridiculous we sound before God making excuses for our sins too. "Well, God, you know my marriage wasn't going well. That's why I had the affair." "Well, God, you know I was struggling financially. You didn't give me the money I needed. That's why I took that that didn't belong to me."

"Well, God, you know," excuse after excuse after excuse. And they're just as lame as this one. Every single time. Before God. We try to justify our sin all kinds of ways. You see, that's why Exodus is such a good lesson for us. We can see ourselves in the Israelites. We can see ourselves in Aaron, can't we?

"Oh, but in today's world, God, you have to understand that's just what everybody does. That's why we're being sexually active outside of marriage. We plan to get married, but, you know, that's the way everybody does it now. It just makes sense, financially, to do it that way. That way we know if we're really compatible or not, right?"

We've got our good reasons for doing what we're doing, we think. "We didn't mean for it to be anything offensive to you." The final point is this. A clear choice had to be made at that point. Moses is having none of this excuse stuff. God is not accepting this as a valid excuse for doing what they're doing.

Just because they didn't know what was going on. Just because they didn't understand what Moses was doing on the mountain so long. Just because their leader wasn't right there with them at the time for 40 days. It wasn't okay to go back to this idol worshiping. It wasn't okay to do it again.

So in chapter 32, verse 25, Moses saw the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control. And listen to this part. "And so became a laughing stock to their enemies." I think for pastors in churches today that really care about the truth and care about their churches, this is the thing that breaks our heart more than anything else.

That the world laughs at the church and at Christianity because the people who wear the name of Jesus are living like the world, and they think it's a joke to be in church and to claim to love and follow Jesus. If that's how we're going to live like they live, we think it makes us cool and acceptable to them. Behind our backs and sometimes in our face, they're laughing at Christians for our hypocrisy, for our lack of commitment, for the sins we try to hide but we're so much involved in and accepting is okay.

So in verse 26, he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, "Whoever's for the Lord, come to me." And all the Levites rallied to him. See, you see that thing repeated over and over again in scripture with the Israelites, with the New Testament church. Have you read the first few chapters of Revelation, the letters to the churches? It's the same thing over and over again.

You know what the teachings are? You've chosen to rebel. It's time to repent. A choice has to be made before God. Either you're with me or you're not. Either you're committed to this or you're not. You can't have it both ways. The Levites decided—that's the tribe of Levi, the family of Levi—they served as the priest and served in the temple.

The Levites rallied to Moses, which in fact, with what Moses said, was rallying to God and the things of God in the way of God. They said, "That's where we're going to take our stand." The others did not. And God's anger burned against them still, and you can read more of the story where they suffer consequences of their sinful choices that they make, that God honors the choice to come back to him and honor him.

You see, God has called us always to make a choice. He's given us free will. We can choose to honor Jesus and follow him, or we can choose to walk away and turn our back on Jesus. And sometimes it's not a blatant just turning your back on him and walking away from him. That's not usually even the way it happens for most Christians.

For most Christians, it's not a blatant "I reject everything about Jesus." To most Christians, it's "I still want Jesus, but I want this too. I want both. I want Jesus, and I want my sin. I want Jesus, and I want my choices to be accepted by God even when he says they're sin."

And the mistake that the church is making in America today is we're telling people, "You can do that. You can have Jesus and your sin, and it's going to be okay." I don't mean just occasionally sinning. I mean willfully choosing to go on sinning. That's what the Israelites were doing, and he says, "You can't do that. There has to be a choice. You either surrender to God and his word, or you choose your sin and the consequences of that sin. You don't get both."

The thing about God's word, remember, is that following the word is where you have the promises of the blessings that come with his teaching. So you have to understand when you choose not to follow the teaching, you also are choosing not to have the care and the love and the protection and the blessing that comes with the teaching. That's the choice you're making.

It's a choice I make. If I choose willingly to go back and sin, remember later on Joshua 24, verse 15, he says this before the people of the world and the people who are again have been in rebellion against God. He says, "But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods of your ancestors that your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates or the gods of the Amorites, the countries around them, right, and whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."

What's your choice?

Let's pray.

Father, we thank you. We thank you that we've been reminded through the teaching in Exodus of a people you called out, delivered from bondage and slavery, offered them a life, a set-apart life with your care and your blessing and your provision and your presence. And so many of them still chose to go back, to go back to idols, to go back to sin, to go back to a different way than the way you were calling them to.

Father, I thank you that that can serve for us as a reminder and as a warning as your people today to realize that you and your plan, it's an amazing plan. It is for your glory, but help us to remember it's also for our good that you give us this teaching. You want good things for us, but those good things are found in your teaching, which is good in every way.

Jesus is the way. He is the truth. He is the source of life as you intended life to be. Help us to keep our allegiance strong to Jesus and his word. And for those who are looking for the blessing that you could bring into their lives, I pray you would help them see today that it comes with the choice that they make to turn from the world, but they're turning to something so much better when they turn to Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen.

We're going to stand and sing today. If you have a choice you want to make today to come to know and follow Jesus, as we're going to sing today, we're going to sing today, we're going to sing today. We're standing and singing, just come up front. Maybe it's a choice to connect with the church family. We invite you to come if that's a choice you have to make today. Whatever it is, as we stand and sing, we invite you to come.

Everyone have a seat, please, for just a moment. Penny, come on up. Penny comes to ask for the church family to be praying for her brother who has been battling alcohol addiction for a long time and battling with getting his life back on track, and he's reached a critical state again at this point.

Tell us his name again, and we'll talk to you in a little bit more, but today we're going to be again, it's Mike, and Mike is right now saying that he knows he needs help, and that's a huge step, right, to get to that place where you actually are admitting and confessing, acknowledging that you need help now.

And so we just want to pray that the family, the friends, the people around him would understand the opportunity here, would be the example and give the teaching and the help that he would need to have, but that also, more than anything else, the Spirit of God, as he penetrates his heart, would help him turn and get his life back to where it needs to be while he has the opportunity to do that right now.

Now, let's pray for Mike right now.

Father, we just want to lift Mike up to you. We thank you for the love you have for him, like you have for all of us, and you have a plan that would bless him if he would turn and seek you and seek your face and humble himself and seek your way for his life.

I pray for the family and friends around him that are so concerned and want only what's good for him. I pray that you would give them wisdom and discernment in how they respond, and that, Father, we would be able to see how he accepts your call, and he takes the steps, and healing begins to take place in his life. We pray for it in the power and the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

God bless you. Thank you. Come on up. You want to share?

Sure.

Yeah, there you go. Absolutely. Absolutely. And this is, you know, families go through these stages, these seasons, where you have to deal with different things, and this is the place they're in now. And more than anything else, they just want to do the will of God, and the best thing, they believe God's will will be best.

So they want to seek that, and we want to pray for you, Mark, and for your whole family here in that. We can walk right up here. Here we go. Yeah. We can walk up here with you. Here we go. Yeah.

Let's pray for this family.

Amen.

Amen. Thank you.

This time we're going to have a time of Communion around the Lord's Table. If you want to go ahead and get your Communion elements out.

Amen. Got my mic back on here. We want to thank you for being here with us today. It's a joy to have this assembly time together. If you'd like to continue worshiping through giving an offering, we have offering boxes available. There's one in the back of the auditorium mounted on a post there. There's one in the hallway. As you exit, you can drop your offering in the top slot.

You can also give online at lakeshorechristian.com, or you can scan the QR code in your bulletin shell there. It will take you to that page, and of course, you can mail in your offerings to the church office. Giving your offerings is an act of worship as part of how you show God that you're honoring him and putting him first in your life.

It also is God's plan for how he supports the work and the ministry of the church, and so the church is funded to do ministry by the offerings that people give. So we thank you for being a part of that, letting God use you in that way.

At this time, Jeremy's going to come close us out with some announcements and with prayer. Thanks, Jeremy.

1. "But remember, it was pointing ahead. Because even though he gave them the law and tablets of stone, he wants us to have God's law written on our hearts. And he wants us to remember what God has taught us. And he wants us to remember what we've committed our lives to in response to what God has done for us so that we don't forget. So he gives us these things to remind us, to help us remember what he's done and what we have promised to do in response." [27:00] (32 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




2. "God was giving them these instructions to set them apart as a people that give glory and honor to God, that show that God's way is different than the way of the world, and that he's calling us to his way. And not only that, but in his plan, in his teaching, his way is actually better than the way of the culture around them, the way of the nations around them, the way of the inclinations of their heart, that God's way is better than any of those things." [28:32] (33 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




3. "The greatest way to honor God is not with your lips. It's with your actions. It's the obedience part that matters. Because anybody can say the words. Anybody can speak the words. Anybody can say they believe in God, but remember, even the demons believe that. So there's got to be more than just saying, I'll do it. Saying you believe it. That has to be connected with the obedience that God is calling for." [35:44] (34 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




4. "The big mistake we make as Christians in our culture today is we think that becoming more like the culture and participating in what they participate in will actually have a better life that way. We won't have any opposition. It won't be hard for us. But I've had enough experience as a pastor and working with people outside the church to know this. What they really would love to see is the real deal and those who claim to know and follow Jesus." [39:46] (34 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




5. "One of the greatest mistakes of the church today is taking sin too lightly, as if it's okay with God, and he winks at it and says, oh, it's no big deal. And people even joke about, well, you get what you see. I am what I am. God's just got to accept me the way I am, too. That's not how God looks at sin, friends. God's anger rises up against sin." [55:00] (28 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




6. "So, we are a people who are supposed to understand that God holds us, if we're claiming Jesus as Lord and Savior, He's holding us to a higher standard than he is the rest of the world. And rightly so. We're the ones who said we're going to follow you. We're the ones who've said that we love him. And are thankful for all he's done for us. That creates a higher standard for people who claim that. And God's anger is stirred when we take that so lightly that we think sin is okay and no big deal, even to God." [56:01] (37 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




7. "The thing about God’s word remember is that following the word is where you have the promises of the blessings that come with his teaching so you have to understand when you choose not to follow the teaching you also are choosing not to have the care and the love and the protection and the blessing that comes with the teaching that’s the choice you’re making it’s a choice I make if I choose willingly to go back and sin." [01:06:05] (29 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)




8. "But as for me and my household we will serve the lord what’s your choice let’s pray father we thank you we thank you that we’ve been reminded through the teaching and exodus of a people you called out delivered from bondage and slavery offered them a life a set apart life with your care and your blessing and your provision and your presence and so many of them still chose to go back to go back to idols to go back to sin to go back to a different way than the way you were calling them to." [01:07:37] (41 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)