daily java

Daily Java:

When they came near the camp, Moses saw the calf and the dancing, and he burned with anger. He threw the stone tablets to the ground, smashing them at the foot of the mountain. He took the calf they had made and burned it. Then he ground it into powder, threw it into the water, and forced the people to drink it. (Exodus 32:19-20)

Moses had gone into the mountain to get the commandments of God. During this period of time (Exodus 24 says it was 40 days), God told him everything he wanted his people to do and how they were to worship.

But those on the ground beneath were afraid. After a long time, they told Aaron, Moses’ brother, who was High Priest, that they were afraid Moses wouldn’t come back.

What they needed, they said, was a god to lead them.

Aaron capitulated and too gold from everybody, put it in a furnace and formed a golden calf. This was a fairly common god in Egypt so the Israelites felt comfortable with it.

And they began to worship it as the god who led them out of Egypt.

Their problem was that they knew the power of God. They had seen it. And they knew that Moses was the speaker for God. But he had been gone for over a month. And they were alone out here and were afraid.

I suppose that Aaron felt the same way. What if Moses had died or something? What was he to do? Aaron was not the leader, Moses was. Aaron just didn’t have that special spark that enabled him to stand up to the assembly and tell them no.

So what he thought he could do was control the situation by leading it.

When Moses came down he was angry at the Israelites. But he was also angry at Aaron. Why did you do this, he asked? What could cause someone to substitute a golden calf for the Lord of Hosts?

In fact, Aaron told Moses that it wasn’t his fault. He threw the gold into the fire and this calf came out (Exodus 32:14).

But here is the kicker. Moses took the calf, ground it up and the scripture says, he made them eat it. What kind of man could bully almost 3 million people into doing something so audacious?

Moses was a man upon whom the presence of the Lord rested strongly. People knew he was from God. There was no doubt. They had seen the miracles and they had seen him come back down after a month and a half on the mountain.

They were scared to death of him.

When Moses died, Deuteronomy 34 says: Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, who did all those miraculous signs and wonders the LORD sent him to do in Egypt—to Pharaoh and to all his officials and to his whole land. For no one has ever shown the mighty power or performed the awesome deeds that Moses did in the sight of all Israel.

The human race peaked out at Moses.

I went to a private seminary in Dallas that was directed by a man named Eldred Stevens. Tall, white headed, only 55 at the time – although he seemed ageless – he looked in many ways like Moses would if Moses were alive today.

I remember coming into his office. It was almost as if I were approaching a mighty presence. I know all students feel that way about their teachers to a point, but he was a man to truly inspire respect. I am not sure why. A lot had to do with his demeanor, but a lot had to do with the fact that he was a godly man.

Moses was all this and more. It was no wonder why God would not tell where he had buried him, or it would have become a national shrine beyond shrines.