Whoever sinned against me.. (Exo 32)

Whoever sinned against me…

Exodus 32:1-35

Key verse 32:33

Introduction: Today’s passage is about Israel’s first sin against God. What is the nature of sin? How did the Israelites come to commit sin? What is the consequence of sin? Is it  possible to undo the effects of sin? These questions are important because the world that we live in is going through many difficult times because of the sins of men. Sooner or later, we will face these sins and we need to learn how to handle the sins in and among us. I pray that, as we go through today’s passage, God may guide us to the answers to these questions.

1.       Make us gods who will go before us.

Not long before this, Israel’s leaders, including Aaron, had seen Moses and Joshua ascend the mountain where he was to meet with God personally. This  scene was described in this way:

Exodus 24:13-17

“Then Moses set out with Joshua his aide, and Moses went up on the mountain of God. He said to the elders, "Wait here for us until we come back to you. Aaron and Hur are with you, and anyone involved in a dispute can go to them." When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai... To the Israelites the glory of the LORD looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain.”

They saw Moses going up to the mountaintop and  the glory of the Lord settling on the peak, like a consuming fire. After this, some time passed, maybe even a few weeks; and yet,  there was still no sign of Moses’ return. Actually, four weeks passed,  and the full moon appeared again. The Israelites wondered what had happened to Moses. To their minds, it seemed as if he were gone for good. The Israelite leaders got together and approached  Aaron.

"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." Aaron answered them, "Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me" (Exodus 32:1-2).

Being surrounded by the all the leaders, Aaron could not refuse their request. Though he had worked side-by-side with Moses, his thoughts were not much different from the ordinary Israelites. He offered them a suggestion: bring all their gold rings to him, so he could make an idol for them. Gold is a very precious metal and one of the Israelites’ treasured possessions. If one  gave it up, it was quite a commitment and must be for a very important cause. Also, if they were going to make a golden idol, even an idol the size of a small doll, it would require hundreds, or even thousands, of earrings. As we noted in v4, from Aaron’s comment that “these are your gods”, he did not make just one idol; he made many golden idols for many families or tribes. What I am saying is that those who were involved were numerous and committed fully themselves to this idol. As many people brought their gold earrings and bracelets, Aaron put them into  an idol  shaped like a calf. He fashioned the idol with tools to make it beautiful. Thus, the calf idol was created, according to Aaron’s taste and design.  When the Israelites saw the idol, they were happy and said this:

"These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt." Aaron was satisfied with the responses of people and built an altar in front of the calf and declared a festival to the Lord. In their joy, they ate and drank and indulged in revelry” (Exodus 32:4b-5).

Moses had been with Israel from the beginning of their struggles against the Egyptian tyranny. He had been the source of God’s power,  protection, and salvation for Israel. The Israelites knew that the help and love that God had given them through Moses were so good and  powerful that they could not live without. Likewise, Moses was believed to be in the immediate presence of God’s power. So, for Israel, Moses’ absence meant no access to the God that had led them so far, so mightily, so caringly. This concerned them, not just because Moses had not come back for so long, but also because of their fear and uncertainty for their future. They had a long way to go before they reached the land of God’s promise. They were bound to face many difficulties on the way there,  from both the desert and the many powerful warlords and kings with whom they would come into contact. How could they do all this without Moses’ and God’s help? The Israelites knew that they couldn’t handle all of this by themselves, so in their minds, God’s power needed to be with them and Moses, the source or mediator of that power, was also a must for their journey.

Also, Moses had gone up to God and come down many times before, but he had never stayed up there for this long. So, as a month passed by, Israel’s anxiety grew. Forty days was a long time to wait for someone who was needed to help with everything. Also, no one could stay up on top of a mountain for forty days with nothing to eat. What had happened to Moses? Once Moses’ return became  questionable in their minds, there came a great void in and among the people. This void needed to be filled; though it seemed to have been created by Moses’ absence, the root of this void was actually caused by God’s absence and that of His help or  immediate presence. Out of this anxiety and uncertainty, the Israelite leaders flocked together in search of a solution.

As a priest, Aaron offered a solution. If the Israelites would bring him all their golden earrings, he would make a god. This was an idea that they had known throughout their lives in Egypt, where there were many gods in the Egyptians’ houses. So, many Israelites offered their golden objects. In order for Aaron to make a golden calf that was a foot tall, it would take hundreds or even thousands of earrings; so many offered their earrings that Aaron could make  many golden calves. The idol was looking plausible and good,  seeming to embody  glory as well. As soon as the Israelites saw the golden calf, their hearts were filled with  great relief from the anxiety,  uncertainty, and fear. In joy, Aaron presented the golden calf this way: “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt” (4b). They all got together and offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to the calf; they also enjoyed drinking and eating during the revelry that followed these ceremonies.

It is interesting that Israel called the golden calf the gods who brought them out of Egypt. They were not creating or calling for a totally new god; rather, they needed  an idol that would represent the God that had led Israel out of Egypt.

2.       God’s anger against idol worship

At this time, God was finishing His instructions to Moses concerning the temple, priesthood, and worship. This was about how,  where, and in what fashion God would be present among His people Israel. Here the key purpose was for God to be literally living in the midst of the Israelite camp. In order for Him to do so, His dwelling must be right and holy, fitting of His glory and honor. It is interesting that, while God and Moses were preparing for His presence to dwell among Israel, Israel was growing increasingly anxious because God’s power might be absent for good, along with  His liaison, Moses.

As God saw what Israel was doing at the foot of the mountain, He told Moses to go down and charge Israel with  the violation of the covenant:

“They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, 'These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt'” (Exodus 32:8).

God pointed out Israel’s violation of the second commandment:

a.       They were quick to turn away from what God had commanded. Less than several weeks before this, they had heard God directly speaking the Ten Commandments. When they heard God’s voice, they were so fearful that they had asked Moses to talk to them, instead of God Himself. Literally, they were quick to turn away from God and His commandments.

b.      They gave  the idol the kind of honor that was only worthy of God Almighty. Israel was His, and it was repugnant that His people bowed down to a golden calf, nothing but an idol! How dare they  place an idol on the same level with the Lord Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth? But this is what they did.

What does this tell us about Israel? God’s assessment is very pointed:

“"I have seen these people," the LORD said to Moses, "and they are a stiff-necked people”” (Exodus 32:9).

God characterized Israel with one word; they were a stiff-necked people. Here God was saying that He had noticed their stubbornness  for a while. This was not just a one-time mistake or a failure to discern. So God repeated this phrase again and again (a stiff-necked people - Exodus 33:3, 5; 34:9; Deuteronomy 9:6). In other words, this had been a persistent way of life for the Israelites;  this was an ingrained habit for these people. ‘Stiff-neck’ means  persisting in what one knows and does, instead of accepting  teaching. It is rejecting  the Lord’s teaching in order to hold on to what the Israelites knew,  believed, and were comfortable with. This was a full expression of Israel’s inability to honor God in His word,  power, and  authority, as well as their inability to perceive the truth.

a.       All these say  that Israel’s attitude was man-centered and self-oriented; everything they did was for themselves, their own desires, and their own needs. They acted utterly out of materialistic motives and were devoid of God’s spirit. Their lives were built on mankind’s fallen nature. God chose Israel to be His people. He showed them His power,  love, and  will to them. But all these events were unable to change  their basic ‘tenets’ of belief. We can see that this was also an expression of the Israelites’ unwillingness or inability to change from relying on their own understanding to trusting in what God had shown,  demonstrated, and taught them. Israel’s understanding was deeply rooted in what they saw and experienced; they had observed many idols in Egypt and how the people honored many different gods. Invariably, all of these gods were formed according to some familiar shapes, such as the sun, moon, trees, animals, rivers, mountains, and so on. They were all tangible images of things  God had created. They could be seen,  touched, and  easily identified. This was also indicative of Israel’s inability to overcome their own existence as a tangible and finite nation on the earth, depending daily on what they ate and lived on. Israel’s nihilism, materialism, and inability to see beyond themselves and the world they were living in  were the nature of them being cut-off from God.  This was also explicit disobedience to what God had said in the second commandment: you shall not make an idol. This was an open defamation of the Lord who had showed Himself to Israel in such  mighty power and glory — thunder, billows of fire and smoke, lightening, and the rumbling sound of a voice that had said explicitly: you shall not make an idol. This was a display of unbelief in God’s promise that He would be their God and  would provide for  all their needs!

The most important thing in Israel’s relationship with God was their understanding and perception of who God was. God is the Spirit, and He did not give Israel any description of Himself. As we looked at the Ten Commandments, especially the first four commandments, we see that they are negative commands. Who  God is, is revealed in what He did for Israel —leading them out of Egypt and showing them His mighty power. At best, the ‘visible’ nature of His presence was seen as ‘clouds, billows of smoke, thunder, and lightening’. Israel had personally heard God’s  voice utter the Ten Commandments with  power and glory.

But as they were then, Israel was not much different from the Egyptians in their understanding of God. They were unable to overcome their way of misunderstanding His nature. In some sense, this God was one of the many Egyptian gods; only He was great and outstanding in His power and  love for Israel.

It seemed like what God did for Israel was a total failure, as far as revealing Himself to them. They were still relying on their own understanding of God, making YHWH seem like just  another Egyptian god! Failure to honor God as Lord is serious, especially after He had given such a full revelation of Himself.

3.       My anger may burn against them

“Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation"” (Exodus 32:10).

God poured out His love and  power, yet He was rejected, dishonored, and defamed. He was angry and  determined to destroy the nation Israel. To Him, all the efforts He had made turned out to be futile, so God would wipe out  Israel and  create a new nation out of Moses’ descendants. This was a crisis; the nation was on the brink of total destruction by God’s holy judgment.

Exodus32:11-13

Moses sought God’s favor and prayed and pleaded with Him for Israel’s salvation, based on two facts:

a.       The world, especially the Egyptians, knew that it was the Lord that delivered Israel out of Egypt; Israel was God’s treasured possession and He was their God. If He destroyed Israel, then God would be known as the worst God because He had killed all of His people. All of the other nations would think that the God of Israel was not a good god but an evil one.

b.      God promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that He would bless their descendants, Israel. If He destroyed the Israelites, then what He had promised would be false and He would be considered unreliable and untrustworthy.

If this became known to the peoples of the world, how would any nation or people come to be His people? When God heard Moses’ plea, He said:

“Then the LORD relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened” (Exodus 32:14).

God was right and fully justified in destroying the entire Israelite nation for their sins. He is holy and had demonstrated His glory, power and  word; so He had full authority to destroy those who had openly defamed Him, but after considering His promise and His name in the world that He had created, God relented and changed His decision to totally destroy them.

This was also a deep consideration of men’s predicament; they are sinners and have been cut off from God. They are totally ignorant of Him, and their hearts are devoid of godly truth. In order to bring them back to Him, God must not only  deal with men, but He also had to take into consideration  their opression under the power of sin. This is God’s mercy,  patience, and  will to bring sinful men into His fold.

Israel had violated the covenant, which affected the entire nation, bearing death as its consequence. Moses was so fearful of God and His anger. In the blink of an eye, the entire nation of Israel would be obliterated. It seems as if Moses brought about God’s change of heart, but in reality, it was  God’s decision to change His plan. Moses took a sigh of relief, having averted the total destruction of Israel.

4.       Moses’ handling of sin

Moses came down  the mountain with two tablets in his arms. On these tablets, the Ten Commandments had been inscribed. They started like this: you shall have no other gods before Me, you shall not make for yourself an idol, etc.; the tablets were made  and  written by God. He wanted His people to treasure these commandments, so He personally made and inscribed them with His own hands. The Commandments were set in stone; no one could change them so they might last forever. These were the covenant conditions between God and His people. In it was God’s wish or plan to keep this covenant permanent, along with His hope that Israel would not forget or violate this covenant. Unfortunately, even before the two stone tablets could be delivered, Israel had already  violated the covenant. The scene of this violation was a remarkable one.

When Moses came close to the Israelite camp at the foot of the mountain, he heard a noise; it was the noise of a carousing feast. The entire nation of Israel was eating, jumping, dancing, and singing, filled with fun and joy around the golden idol.

When he saw what Israel was doing, he could not overcome his fury and indignation over these foolish activities.

As we noted in Ch. 24, the covenant was sealed in this way:

“Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, "We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey." Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, "This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words"” (Exodus 24:7-8 NIV).

The covenant was sealed with blood; as Moses saw this open and flagrant violation of the covenant, the only solution or resolution that came to his mind was their death! Moses, in shock and fury, dropped the two tablets of the Ten Commandments and they shattered into pieces. Literally, the covenant between God and Israel was broken; the consequence for this was grim. All their great hope for God’s blessing and His kingdom evaporated. What was due  Israel for their rebellion? Moses could not see anything for Israel but blood and death! Moses took two actions:

First, he ground the golden calf into powder and scattered it on the water. He then forced the Israelites to drink the water; the god of the golden calf was totally destroyed,  demeaned, defiled, and permanently ruined. In and among God’s people, such an idol should never exist!

Idol worship was  repugnant to God’s glory and honor. Every human race has  idols; sometimes this is natural since they might not know God as their Lord. But even Israel, the nation God had created for His own possession, made an idol out of their foolish thinking. This covenant violation did not end there; as we know, during Israel’s entire history, idol worship was the primary cause of their fall. God cited Israel for their idol worship again and again, but they were not able to overcome it. Eventually, God sent them away into exile, according to the reconstituted covenant.  

Why  do people make idols? In his letter to the Romans, Paul addressed this clearly:

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles…They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator-- who is forever praised. Amen” (Rom 1:21-23, 25).

Paul pointed out that Israel neither glorified God nor gave Him thanks. They simply refused to give the Lord of heaven and earth the full honor of which  He is worthy. As a result of their rebellion, Israel’s foolish hearts were darkened. This  happened  when Israel 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" (Exodus 32:1b).

It seemed as if Moses’ disappearance was the source of Israel’s trouble, but, in reality, it was their lack of faith in the Lord who had called Moses. The Israelites did not fully honor the Lord as the Creator of heaven and earth and  the Sustainer of all lives.

In and among us, there should not be any hint of such idol worship. Be reminded that Israel called the golden calf “the Lord”, which is the unique name of the God of Israel. Even if we call the God of the Bible  our Lord, and yet  make an idol in the name of the Lord, it is a defamation of the true God YHWH, the Lord of heaven and  earth. God the Creator cannot be replaced,  represented by, or reduced to anything of this world, whatever they might be!

Many people hang a big cross on their necks. This is good if he or she knows what the cross means. But if they do not truly know who Jesus is, it can become another form of idolatry,  taken as a piece of jewelry, a source of  protection, prosperity, and godly association.

Idols and their worship are common. All idols are figures of mighty power,  made or created as a tangible form or figures, so that men may  easily identify  and associate with such idols. They are put forth as  presentations of spiritual and earthy powers, and do not have such power nor can they match up to the Lord.

***Only when one truly honors  the God of  creation by faith, He reveals Himself in history; His works and  words  are centered on His choosing of His people, Israel.

Israel’s inability to fully commit their lives to the invisible God of creation  is fully substantiated throughout their history; the Israelite people repeatedly entertained the idolatrous practices of the neighboring peoples and worshipped other gods along with their God, YHWH, the Lord.

In this chaotic scene, Moses called out in a loud voice:

"Whoever is for the LORD, come to me" (Exodus 32:26).

All the Levites rallied to him. Moses told them to go back and forth and kill their brothers, friends, and neighbors, whoever was involved in the worshipping of the golden idol. On that day, three thousand died. Most likely, these were the people actively involved in creating and worshipping the golden idol. Though those who were killed were open and fully committed followers of the idol, there were also a large number of people who stood by, behind this feast and  idol worship. God would not let such ungodliness committed in their hearts go unpunished. Actually, until Moses came down and showed his anger against such idolatry, no one challenged such an egregious violation of the covenant;  even those uninvolved had condoned the idol worship by their inaction, becoming  silent partners of this sin. According to the covenant, all should die! What was the solution?

“The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin” (Exodus 32:30).

Moses knew that the only possible way to avert God’s judgment was to ask Him for mercy and forgiveness. He knew  that ‘atonement’ was needed  in order to buy God’s mercy! So he went up to the mountaintop, where God’s glory was fully seen in fiery billows,  lightening, and rumbling thunders. He said this to God:

“So Moses went back to the LORD and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made themselves gods of gold.  But now, please forgive their sin—but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written”” (Exodus 32:31-32).

First, Moses admitted that Israel had sinned against the Lord; second, he asked for God to forgive their sins. If God was not willing to forgive Israel’s sins, then Moses said, “Blot me out of the book you have written.” Most likely, this is referring to the book in which a census had been taken of the whole nation of Israel as God’s people, who were to enter into the Promised Land. God had counted them as His chosen and had kept His promise in the covenant. But now, if God would not forgive Israel and  they  suffered judgment, then Moses wanted to remove his name as well, i.e. he wanted to suffer and die with them.

Though Israel had sinned against God, Moses loved them, and there was an enormous bond between him and his fellow people. It was surely a great challenge and decision for Moses, but he felt that he was responsible as he led the people. He had compassion for them and  had seen all their pains and sorrows under the Egyptian slavery. If God would not be with them now, then they would be enslaved again to other pagan nations and would surely face a grim fate under God’s eternal judgment. Simply, Moses could not stand  the pain that his nation might face after God’s judgment.

Just before this, Moses had averted God’s judgment against and total destruction of the entire nation of Israel. Now, unless God forgave them, there would be no  restoration of His nation to Himself as their Lord. Forgiveness must happen in order to restore the full trust and confidence between God and His people and in order to uphold His covenant promises and blessings. How was this  possible? God spoke two principles in delivering His judgment on the sins Israel had committed against Him. First,

“The LORD replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book” (Exodus 32:33).

God was saying implicitly that Moses could not bear the sins of others on his own; He was not willing to take Moses’ life in order to bring judgment on the rest of the Israelite nation. Rather, God laid down a commanding principle over the covenantal violation and its judgment: anyone who sinned should bear the consequence of his own sin. At the actual event of the covenant agreement (Exodus 24:3), Israel had responded with one voice, "Everything the LORD has said we will do." As they uttered ‘yes’, each with their own mouth, each of them became responsible for their sins, and each of them had to bear the consequences. This was a subtle shift from God’s earlier threat to destroy the entire nation of Israel at once. Second, God put off His punishment for now.

“Now go, lead the people to the place I spoke of, and my angel will go before you. However, when the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin” (Exodus 32:34).

God wanted to move on with His plan: i.e. have Israel  go on to the land of His promise. But He will punish their sins when the time comes. The time for this reckoning is  between now and their entrance into His  kingdom. So, God was saying that, for now, He would defer His judgment on them, but, in the coming days, He would see if their hearts were right; if not, He would then judge them.

Soon after this, God struck the Israelite people with a plague; there is no mention of how extensive the plague was or how many died. Most likely, it was just a plague and people suffered sickness for a while. As we have studied, God’s judgment was delivered or was going to be delivered in three different ways:

First, a group of three thousand  people  were killed by the sword upon Moses’ arrival at the foot of the mountain. It seems as though they were the ‘major instigators of this plot’. The second group of people to die was those who were struck down by the plague (Exodus 32:25) and the third group of people was those on whom God would eventually pass future judgment.

What does this tell us about God’s punishment for sin?

a.       None of them were forgiven or had their sins waived.

b.      For those who survived, the covenantal punishment was still outstanding.

c.       In God’s timing, they must eventually pay for  their sins.

d.      The stress between God and His people Israel was not fully resolved (i.e. their sin or violation of the Ten Commandments severed their relationship with God).

God is still willing to embrace all those who are abiding by the Ten Commandments. This is the utmost principle in order to be considered as God’s people; it was for His firstborn son Israel, and it continues to be for all the nations on  earth.

5.       What do all of these events tell us about?

God’s firstborn son, Israel, was given a tremendous privilege; they had seen the ten plagues that were brought against Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, which enabled them to escape from the mighty Egyptian army, had eaten manna, and  drunk water from a rock. These were all demonstrations of God’s faithfulness to His covenant as Israel’s Lord and  guardian patron. God spoke to them directly through the Ten Commandments  while they saw His presence and heard His mighty voice in the form of billows of fire, thunders, lightening and cloud. Despite  such overwhelming demonstrations of God’s love,  power, and  glory, Israel failed to trust Him and His word for forty days. This unbelief was deeply rooted in Israel’s nature. It implies that their descendents would surely continue to distrust God. The whole human race has failed to trust God and created many idols, replacing their Creator.

Their  trust was grounded on God’s immediate and tangible presence, or that of His agent. When Moses was absent for forty days, the Israelites became gripped with uncertainty, doubt, and fear. This fear and uncertainty drove them to create an idol. When one relies only on what he can see (i.e. the tangible presence of God and His agent), God’s absence is detrimental to their trust. This is the nature of men, under which all men suffer. In his letter to the Romans, Paul describes it as ‘foolish heart’ that is unable to accept God’s invisible qualities. In such unbelief, men create  tangible objects as a representation of supernatural power, gods, idols, of their own making.

God characterized Israel’s sinful nature as characteristic of them being a ‘stiff-necked’ people. We all still share such a fallen character as men born under the power of sin. A stiff-necked nature relates to one’s unwillingness to change or  accept what God had said and promised. Such unwillingness derives its root from unbelief in God’s power and authority as the Creator of heaven and  earth.

Such a sinful and corrupted nature must be changed in order for someone to be able to conform to  God’s holiness and  righteousness. Otherwise, there is only one outcome: judgment and loss of blessing in God’s kingdom.

Did God make allowances for human nature, which inevitably leads men to fail to trust? I believe that the necessity for such considerations began with Israel’s failure and Moses’ plea before God for them. Eventually, that consideration was actualized as God sent His Son, Jesus, into human history as a man, like Moses. He lived in time and space among men,  spoke God’s truth and did many miracles on behalf of God’s people. Jesus was God’s living presence among men. His life speaks to us as the true and  everlasting witness of God being with us. So we must not subject ourselves to the void of materialist demanding of God’s immediate and tangible presence that springs from rebelling against Him.  It reflects unbelief and dishonor to  God Almighty. If in any form or style, we attempt to fill the void created by materialistic cravings, then we are not far from the idolatry  into which Israel fell. Such a desire to have the tangible and immediate presence of godly power drives people in various directions: money, human glory from scholarly achievements, political power, idolizing other human beings, not to mention all the pagan religions of the world.

Contrary to the void created by the world’s materialistic understanding, the Psalmist, in faith, felt  great joy as he meditated on God’s Word; the true, living  presence of God in His word gave him such a feeling of fullness and joy and drove away the emptiness by filling the void.

“The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.  The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes” (Psalm 19:7-8).

“The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:9-10).

As long as we rely on our own needs and  understanding, which are totally materialistic, and demand the immediate, tangible presence of godly power, we cannot know and understand God; we will suffer the void! We cannot be His children; we will instead remain children of this material world and fail to overcome the boundary formed by the finite nature of our fallen predicament.

Instead, God calls us to believe, trust, and rely on Him,  His word and  His promises, so that we know Him by faith and  trust, rather than  by trusting only in  things that we can see.

What Jesus said to a Samaritan woman is meaningful for us to consider.

“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.  God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth” (John 3:23-24).

We trust God’s Word and we trust Jesus and his sacrifice for us. In  faith, we are His children and  are assured of our place with Him in heaven. We children of God live by faith from the beginning to the end. This is the way  to avoid entertaining a desire for an idol of any form.

Idol worship is the worst kind of sin because it demeans and defames God’s glory and  honor. No one can escape from the consequences of such a sin, especially when God sent Jesus to live among men in the flesh as  proof of God’s abiding presence among men.