CORRUPT CHRISTIANS
EXODUS 32
One of the things that seem to plague most Christians is the idea of standing against the mainstream when it comes to the area of faith. I can't tell you how many times people have expressed their frustration with trying to convince unsaved men and women about trusting in a God they can't see...to do something they think is impossible anyway.
Even when these people realize that this far away God has probably helped them out a time or two...they just aren't able to make any kind of firm commitment to turn their lives over to Him in faith...actually believing that God wants to be actively involved in every area of their lives.
This is a fact that we have to come to grips with...most unsaved people just can't grasp the concept of a God who loves them enough...unconditionally loves them enough to be an intimate part of their lives...talking to them...leading and guiding...providing and just plain loving them.
But I don't want to talk about the unsaved this morning. I want to talk about "Corrupt Christians." Now, using the word corrupt sounds pretty strong...but I wonder just how many really understand what the term means. When we think of this word we may imagine wicked sinners who are guilty of many terrible things.
But God's definition goes much deeper than anything we may associate with it. The word corrupt means "to change from what is solid and good to something that is putrid and decaying." It speaks of something that was once whole and well...but isn't any longer because its begun to decay and rot. That's what we see here in Exodus 32:7 (READ).
The scenario is probably a familiar one to most here this morning. This passage is set during the time Moses was up on the mountain receiving the 10 Commandments and while he was up there with God the people were down below having an all out orgy around an idol they had just made out of gold. And their corruption was bad enough that God wanted to wipe them out on the spot. Read v. 9 10
Now it says that God relented...He decided against wiping out that nation...but this is quite a charge He makes against the people. What had they done to make God so mad? Was it the drunken, lustful orgy they were engaged in...or the golden idol? That certainly was bad...but it was just a symptom, not the root problem. No, it was more than that.
Just a few weeks before this incident took place, these same people had been delivered from Pharoah and his army at the Red Sea. And they were singing the praises of God who performed such miraculous displays of power. After all the miracles they saw in the form of the 10 plagues that fell upon Egypt...then the parting of the sea and deliverance there...
Now the Lord says they are totally corrupted...and on the verge of being wiped out by an angry, offended God! In Hebrews we are reminded of their hard heartedness and their falling away...and in Hebrews 4:11 we are told not to fall into their example of disobedience. There is a very clear warning for us about unbelief.
These people were corrupt because they lost their confidence in God when He didn't meet their timetable. Look at verse 1...(READ 32:1)
Talk about spiritual blindness! At the very moment they were losing their confidence in God...all heaven was in motion making tremendous plans for their future. God was giving Moses the blueprint for a tabernacle where God Himself would come and inhabit.
He was giving them a law that would set them apart from all the other nations in the entire world. It was the provision that would allow them to be victorious over all their enemies...and to ensure God's continuous presence with them.
God was bringing them into a place of peace, rest and fulfillment. It was a place where there would be houses already built for them...orchards and vineyards they didn't have to plant...I mean, everything they could ever have wanted!
At that very moment God was focused not only on their present needs...but their future needs and blessings as well. He was arranging for all they could ever dream of to take place...and what were these people doing?
They were crying and moaning..."Where is God? Where is His direction? He had been faithful but now where is He? We haven't heard from Him for a while. And what kind of God would leave us here...alone and without a word of instruction or direction?"
And they basically said, "Enough of this waiting...we've had enough silence and delays. It's time to get down to business....Let's do something! And they did do something.... they put out of their minds all the miraculous things God had done for them.
They forgot the supernatural plagues He poured out on Egypt. They forgot the Red Sea miracles. They forgot the manna and the quail. They forgot the water from the rock. And they forgot God's mighty power they saw and heard on Mount Sinai. All that mattered to them was that they were in need and they weren't hearing from God!
After all God had done for them, they were convinced that He was no longer with them. So they make a golden calf to sacrifice to. And what they did was look at what they had done with their own hands and said, "These are the gods that brought us up out of Egypt."
How blind could they be?
And yet...this is the same curse that falls on people today who turn away from God and seek help and direction from other sources. Think about this...How often do we turn to human resources for our strength and guidance and for our provision?
Instead of running into their prayer closet to pour their heart out to God...and then listen to what He has to say...people run to the phone to get their help from any number of human sources. They'll call a pastor, a counselor, a family member...even people who are practically strangers.
In this past year I doubt if there's been a week that's gone by that I didn't hear about someone being mad at me because I didn't meet their need. And I bet that in at least 95% of those cases they could have gotten the help they really needed by spending their time on their faces before God...praying and fasting...and trusting God to give help and direction.
There are certainly times when I can and should be there to give comfort and counsel...and support. But I am only a servant. I've been called to lead you to Him...to teach you about Him...and to equip you so you can do the same for others. God and God alone is the One we should put out trust in. He's the one we should be seeking with our whole hearts. He's the One who will never let you down!
Quite often we forget all the ways God has blessed and provided for us in the past. We forget all the times He delivered us from difficult situations. And we also quickly forget all about the promises we've made to Him when we were in those times of need.
It was only a matter of a few weeks from the time the Israelites saw probably the greatest array of miracles ever to take place...till they were convinced that since God wouldn't help them they should seek out their own human resources. They put their trust in what they could do by their own hands. And that is corruption!
And each one of us becomes corrupted when we carry around unnecessary burdens...burdens of guilt...fear...anxiety.....when we refuse to trust in the precious promises of God. Was God lying when He said, "All things work together for good to them that love God and are called according to His purpose?" Well, was He?
Look at verse 25..(READ 32:25)
Now, can you imagine their enemies...the Amalakites, looking down on this wild scene from the surrounding mountains. It says they had become a laughingstock. The Amalakites were laughing at them and mocking them.
They were saying..."Hey, look at them! They're no different than us. They don't even trust their own God. All they want to do is party and play like the rest of us. And they claimed to be so different. What a bunch of hypocrites!" And that's exactly what we do when we lose our faith and let go of our confidence in God!
Listen to me....God has a special plan for each of you....and He's working it out, right to the last detail...but you can jeopardize the whole works! We have people in here this morning who are tired of the struggle and the hardships. You've heard the promises of God but you've had enough of future hopes and far off blessings.
Now you begin to live by your emotions because you've lost your confidence in God. You content yourself to live for the moment and do the best you can with what you have. You rely on what your own resources can give. And that is corruption!
But this is a story with a happy ending...and I like happy endings. While some were falling right into the hands of the devil by losing sight of the promises of God and giving up when things seemed tough...others were just getting ready to fight the good fight of faith. READ 32:25 28
This is quite an interesting series of events. But let's look at what really happened here. These Levites were the great grandchildren of Levi, one of the sons of Jacob. But Levi was a spiritual woos. He caused his whole family shame and disgrace when he and his brother Simeon took revenge on the one who raped their sister.
But they didn't just kill the guy who did it (a man who wanted to marry her)...he also killed the man's father...took all their sheep and cattle...all their wealth...even their wives and children. Levi was anything but a godly example of a man.
And yet, it was his descendants who were rising up to do God's will. Here are men with no spiritual heritage to stand on. And yet something deep inside them cried out..."We will serve the Lord!"
Moses told them..."If your wife or brother or sister or anyone has taken part in all this revelry and danced in front of that golden calf...cut them off! This kind of idolatry will not be allowed! And it says here that they obeyed.
The message is very clear...It doesn't matter one bit what your heritage may be...or what may have taken place in your past. You can become the one who takes a stand for God...you can become the one who receives the blessing!
The Lord only wants to know one thing...Will you pick up your sword and take a stand for righteousness today? .......... Will you take a stand even among family and friends...even when it means you may be standing in direct opposition to their ideas and standards?
These Levites were starting their own tradition of godliness. Each one of them had children and grandchildren who looked up to them...and remembered them for their godly stand. What will your children, or grandchildren think of you?
Times right now are tough. And maybe you are struggling to hear the voice of God. So what are you going to do...quit? Or are you going to put on your sword? When it seems like so many around are giving up the fight...you can build up more and more fight within you. You can testify more and more to God's faithfulness...even though you may not see an answer.
READ 32:29
God rewarded these men. They were given the honor and privilege of service in God's house. They were blessed and honored because they stood for truth and righteousness no matter what their family...friends...or anyone else had to say. They stood for God...they trusted in God...even when it seemed like He had forsaken them.
But you know what...God's promise to us is even greater than it was for the Levites. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians 2:9 (READ)
Do you realize what this says? Can you believe that somehow this is really true? Because it is. And even if we can't see the evidence of it right now...God is working "behind the scenes" every moment of the day and night to carry out His promises.
Turn to Philippians chapter 4.... READ 4 9...now READ v. 19
What more could we want...what more could we ask for? The God of all creation is with us...He's working all things out for us...He's on our side! As long as we trust Him...and allow Him to work in our behalf. As long as we keep ourselves from corruption.
Will you take up your sword for Him today? Will you stand for holiness and righteousness in this crazy, mixed up, sinful world? Will you take a stand for God right here in this church?
Give Him your whole heart...weak as it may be...and he will give you a godly inheritance that will go beyond your wildest dreams. Hallelujah!
