Today in my devotions I read the passage from the Lenten Reading Plan (click on the link to download a copy) in Acts and I wanted to share my reflections with you all.
Lenten Reading Plan
He’s also the one whom our ancestors refused to obey. Instead, they pushed him aside and, in their thoughts and desires, returned to Egypt. They told Aaron, ‘Make us gods that will lead us. As for this Moses who led us out of Egypt, we don’t know what’s happened to him!’ Acts 7:39-40 CEB
This passage is about Moses and the people of Israel. The people of Israel were delivered from Egypt and they even walked through the parted waters of the Red Sea on DRY GROUND! Even though all of that had taken place they quickly forgot and began to grumble and complain. Their reaction was due to the fact that Moses went to be in God’s presence on the top of Mount Sinai and he had been gone for a very long time.
The people were getting restless and as a result they called upon Aaron to make a god for them to worship. Every time I hear this story I shake my head and say, “oh… people of Israel, what in the world were you thinking?!” I have heard it said before that it was easy to get the people out of Egypt, but it was very hard to get Egypt out of the people. In fact it took hundreds of years for the people of Israel to be completely committed to being monotheistic.
They spent many years going through a cycle of worshiping other gods, repenting, following God for a time, worshiping other gods, repenting, following God… you get the idea.
It was after the people of Israel were exiled in Babylon and returned to Jerusalem that they became fiercely monotheistic even to this day!
I find it easy to look down on the people of Israel for so quickly forgetting the goodness of God and the deliverance of God.
I find it easy to look down on the people of Israel for worshipping other gods and neglecting the one true God.
I find it easy to look down on the people of Israel, but then all of the sudden I realize just how similar I can be. How often do I forget that God sent Christ to save and restore this world? How often do I forget that God sticks to the promises that God made? How often am I tempted by or drawn to the things of this world?
Those thoughts are convicting. So, I do not look down on the people of Israel. Instead I want to learn from them and hope that we as the people of God in this world can passionately live for God.
Earlier this week one of the passages from the Lenten Reading said in speaking about leaders who heard Christ preach: “Thy believed, but they loved human praise more that God’s glory” (John 12:43). That was convicting as well. Do I find myself looking for the praise of humans rather than living for the glory of God?
I hope and pray that we will all be people who people living out and carrying the light of Christ, proclaiming God’s glory in our actions and words. May we learn from the stories in the Bible and take them to heart as we desire to grow deeply in our love for God and others.
May it be so!
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Cara
Contact:
Shawnee Church of the Nazarene
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