Our Reaction to Sin
Exodus 32:20
The way we react to certain situations tell a lot about us. There are some things that we are able to control, but the one area we normally let our guard down is in our reactions.
Tonight I want to look at how Moses reacted to seeing the people worshiping a golden calf , and compare that to how we should react to sin in our life and sin in our society. We are living in a world that for the most part has grown numb to sin. There is very little anymore that even shocks us let alone outrage us. We are bombarded daily with sin on television and the Internet.
-Remember last week we looked at how God had already informed Moses on what the people were up to at the base of the mountain and Moses reacted at that moment by interceding to God on their behalf. Moses had asked God to show mercy to his people because of the promise that he had made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
-In this passage today Moses has started the journey down off the mountain and he is holding in his hands the two tablets of stone that God has written in the ten commandments on. I have verse 16 highlighted in my Bible because it is very important it says, “The tablets were the work of God.” During the 40 days that Moses has been up on the mountain God engraved this stone with the commandments and made it so that it could be folded and put into the ark of the covenant. A very special work of God. The handwriting of the very God who created the world was right there on these stones.
Joshua had went up as close as he could on the mountain with Moses and waited for Moses to come back down. Which is why we see in this passage that Moses and Joshua are coming down off the mountain together. Joshua being a man of war hears the people shouting in the camp and he says to Moses in verse 17, “There is a noise of war in the camp.”
Moses already knew what was going on because God had told him- For some reason Moses had not told Joshua,. Possibly he had hoped that the people had repented and gotten rid of the idol before he got to the bottom. We always hope for the best out of people.
The people were singing and dancing and worshiping around the golden calf they had made
and in verse 19 we are told that when Moses saw the calf and the dancing his anger burned hot and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the food of the mountain. He took the calf and burned it with fire and ground the remains into powder and made the people drink it.
-It was one thing to hear about what the people were doing, but when Moses saw the people worshiping this idol and having a good time his reaction was a righteous anger that the people had forgotten God and were instead bowing down at a creation of their own hands.
-some people think that Moses sinned here in throwing down the commandments and becoming angry, but the Bible does not say that. When Moses retells the account of what happened in Deuteronomy chapter 9 he does not say that he sinned in what he done, but rather the people were sinning.
Lets turn there and look at this tonight Deuteronomy 9:13-21
Some bible commentaries believe that what Moses did was an act of Justice instead of passion. The greatest sign of Gods displeasure with the people was to take the law of God away from them. To leave them as we might say today “un-churched”. Remember this was a method that Paul used in the church at Corinth to discipline a member within that church that was living in sin.
By melting the calf and grounding it into powder Moses was showing the people that their false god had no way to help himself or them, that he was nothing but a pile of dust. By putting it into the water it was a proclamation that the idol was nothing. Remember when people in the New Testament were worried about eating meat that had been offered to idols and the Apostle Paul told them.
1Cr 8:4 As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol [is] nothing in the world, and that [there is] none other God but one.
What I really want to focus on tonight is Moses' reaction to their sin. We are living during a day and age where tolerance is taught and preached, but how far does that tolerance go? How far should it go?
We are told that we should be tolerant of other religions, tolerant of other people's lifestyles, tolerant of other peoples bad habits. Then we are also told there is a difference between tolerance and acceptance.
Does tolerance mean that we remain silent? Are we to be tolerant of unmarried couples in the church? Are we to be tolerant of people gossiping? Are we to be tolerant of the homosexual lifestyle?
In other words where do we draw the line? How to we respond when we are confronted with sinful practices that are taking place all around us.
When Daniel was confronted with the sin of the nation of Israel it drove him to his knees in prayer and he made confession for the sins of Israel in Daniel chapter 9
When Jesus was confronted with the money changers in the temple he drove them out in righteous anger
Biblically our reaction depends on the situation.
We should never endorse sin
Moses did the right thing when he got upset over their sin, Jesus did the right thing when he turned over the tables of the moneychangers.
Turn in your bibles to Romans 1, This is a chapter that we have looked at a few times in our study of Exodus already but there is one verse I want to point out
Rom 1:32 Though they know God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
While you are there in Romans turn over to 1 Corinthians 5
Notice that Paul says they are arrogant and then in verse 6, “your boasting is not good.”
Here is this man in the church who is living a immoral lifestyle with his fathers wife and the church is not confronting the sin, instead they are arrogant and boasting. We would say that they are accepting and even endorsing the mans sin by saying nothing.
Paul tells the church that this man should be removed from the among them in verse 2 and then he clarifies in verse 9 -11
now we have to be careful here because some people read this passage and they go on a witch hunt against anyone in the church that is committing sin. Paul makes a distinction that this man is called a brother, which means he has made a profession of faith.
The church has an obligation to preach against sin, and should never endorse sin regardless of what the views of society are, yet our message against sin is to be seasoned with grace and to include Gods call of repentance at the cross of Christ.
In other words it is not to be a holier than though condemnation sermon that preaches sinners into hell without the message of the gospel attached. This is the type of message we see coming from some so called Christians who are protesting at military funerals across the nation as they condemn everyone but them to hell.
That's why Paul said in verse 12, “not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world because then you would need to out of the world.” on other words it would be impossible to separate ourselves from everyone who commits sin
But the issue at hand was a man in the church who claimed the name of Christ living in open sin and the church endorsed it. When someone is serving in the church and has placed themselves under the authority of the church by becoming a member of a local congregation they are saying that they want to held accountable by the leadership of the local Church, and the leadership has a God given responsibility to deal with the open sin of the membership.
Hbr 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
1Pe 4:17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?
Everyone is welcome to attend the worship services. Those who are known as gossips, those who are known homosexuals, those who are living together without being married. Everyone is welcomed to attend. But the gospel is never tweaked to endorse their sin. But when you sit under the preaching of the gospel the Holy Spirit is going to work on your heart and life to get you to come to repentance.
Moses when he came down off the mountain didn't just say to each his own, or its okay if you serve other gods as long as it doesn't affect me. Moses was called by God to be their leader and they were the people that God gave him to lead. They were God's chosen people.
Sometimes the job of leadership means confronting sin but never endorsing it or making excuses for it. That's why when Paul wrote to Timothy he said
2Ti 4:2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.
The calling of being a leader in the church means there will be times when we reprove and rebuke along with exhorting.
Confront in meekness
Our second reaction to sin should be meekness.
Jesus said
Mat 5:5 Blessed [are] the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Meekness does not mean weakness. Sometimes we use those two words interchangeably but they are not the same. Meekness is “strength under control” its defined as being patient not being violent or resentful
When Moses came down from the Mountain listen to the account again
Deu 9:16 And I looked, and, behold, ye had sinned against the LORD your God, [and] had made you a molten calf: ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which the LORD had commanded you.
Deu 9:17 And I took the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and brake them before your eyes.
Deu 9:18 And I fell down before the LORD, as at the first, forty days and forty nights: I did neither eat bread, nor drink water, because of all your sins which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
Deu 9:19 For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure, wherewith the LORD was wroth against you to destroy you. But the LORD hearkened unto me at that time also.
Deu 9:20 And the LORD was very angry with Aaron to have destroyed him: and I prayed for Aaron also the same time.
This is not a man who is resentful or being violent. It was a righteous anger against their sin, but at the same time Moses was heart broken because of their sin and he is crying out to God on their behalf.
When Jesus went to the temple he was still the meek savior but one who was not afraid to take a righteous stand against the sin they were committing in the house of God. He told them the truth about his fathers house, but we still see a savior who is concerned about the souls of the lost.
Turn in your Bibles tonight to the book of Galatians
Gal 6:1 ΒΆ Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
Gal 6:2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
Paul is giving instruction to the church in this passage on dealing with someone who has fallen into a sinful lifestyle in this passage. The word “fault” is translated transgression in some newer versions. Its the same greek word that Jesus used in
Mat 6:14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you,
but notice the attitude that Paul says we are to approach this person in- a spirit of meekness, not arrogance and pride. Not a holier than though attitude, having all the answers but a broken heart over someone that has fallen into sin.
Seek restoration
Back to this passage again in Galatians 6:1 the purpose in going to a brother or sister in Christ over the issue of sin is to restore them. It is not to judge them, it is not to drive them away but as a community as a family of believers our goal is that everyone of us here the father say well well done. We want to spend eternity together in Heaven and we also want to see our brothers and sisters walking in that abundant life I talked about this morning and the joy that the Bible says is possible in Christ.
When Moses came off that Mt. And saw what the people were doing he prayed that God might forgive them of their sin. He prayed for the people, he prayed for Aaron, because God was ready to destroy them
Why did Moses pray for them? God was ready to destroy them for their sin He prayed for them because his heart was in the right place, he wanted them to be restored to God.
In closing, our reaction to sin is never to endorse it, this doesn't mean that we have nothing to do with people who sin. We can love people with endorsing their sin.
Those within the church who are living in open sin that is harming the community of Christ we should confront in meekness with the goal being that they are restored to a right fellowship with God and others
A good example of this is Nathan confronting David after King David sinned with Bathsheba, more shocking is the prayer that David prayed after he committed the sin to God
Psa 51:9 Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
Psa 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
Psa 51:11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.
Psa 51:12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me [with thy] free spirit
