1\4 - Disobedient God

Exodus 32:1–8 NIV

1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and 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.” 2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” 5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the Lord.” 6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry. 7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. 8 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.’

Point 1: Replacing God with Impatience

1. In Exodus 32, the Israelites faced a moment of impatience when Moses delayed.

The people are waiting for God and Moses.

have you ever been in a situation of waiting?

the bill is do tomorrow ..... I ran out of money yesterday - you are waiting for God to show up

relationship | job |

We talk about the times when God showed up just in time.

BUT

We don't like to talk about when God just leave us waiting,

What do i do with a God who goes of scrip,

What do i do with a God who doesn't follow my instruction? or our prayer requests

What do i do with a God who operates in his own rithm - time?

2. Impatience can lead us to replace God with our own solutions.

Ilustration: The thrown - we tell Jesus to be on the thrown of my life - when life is going good you take the sit -

- My boss wants to talk to me.... (you put Jesus on the sit) until things are good them you take Jesus place…

Health - relationship

See how we are?

some of you are to religious to take Jesus off the thrown… you just ask him to scoot over , lets share the sit…

Jesus didn't die on the cross to partner with us, He died on the cross to salve us.

we want to write the scrip and have Jesus sign it. -

Pastor Charles Stanley reminds us, "God's delays are not God's denials."

3. Recognize the human tendency to seek quick fixes when God's timing doesn't align with ours.

Point 2: The Scarcity Mindset

1. Impatience often stems from a scarcity mindset - the fear of limited resources.

2. The Kingdom of God operates from abundance, not scarcity.

3. Shift your perspective from scarcity to abundance in your relationship with God.

1. Like the Israelites, we may replace God with idols of our own making.

What did the children of Israel do they replace Him.

Build us a God that we can push around, and tell what to do - so they reached for Gold. They where longing God but they reached for gold.

Where did this come from? the idols of gold?

From Egypt - they got out of Egypt but Egypt didn't get out of them.

they reach for what was familiar to them.

2. Understand the danger of seeking control instead of trusting God.

in times of distance from God and in times where it seems that God is silence do we find our self reaching for what was familiar at the expense of the one who was faithful.

God had been faithful to the people - open the see - deliver them from Egypt .... But at the first sign of distance from God they went back to what was familiar from our past, or old ways of living.

What are you reaching for?

Some of us are reaching for materialism - money - fame

you long for security and you are reaching fro money - material things

We reach for pornography - when we long for intimacy

What’s easy - whats familiar - what’s working....

We reach for control - but what we long for is peace.

What happens when you have more money - you think you have more security but it doesn't come.

You still lay your head on the pillow wondering what going to happen -

We are longing for something more but we are reaching for stuff that can never satisfy us.

Point 3: Reaching for God's Abundance

1. Instead of creating replacements for God, we should reach for Him.

2. Trust in the abundant resources available in God's Kingdom.

3. Relearn how to react to God in times of confusion, fear, or disappointment.

Psalm 27:4 NIV

4 One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

1. God can be found in the midst of life's disruptions.

2. Our faith deepens when we trust God even when things don't go as planned.

3. Look for God's presence and purpose in the midst of disruption.

Conclusion:

In our journey through the first chapter of "Disobedient God," we have delved into the complexity of our relationship with a God whose plans often diverge from our expectations.

We began by acknowledging the reality of waiting, a situation many of us can relate to.

Waiting for God can sometimes feel like a daunting challenge, especially when our bills are due tomorrow, and our resources have run dry.

We celebrate those times when God shows up just in the nick of time, fulfilling our expectations and desires.

Yet, we often hesitate to discuss the moments when God appears to leave us waiting, when His timing doesn't align with our own.

It's during these seasons that we grapple with questions like, "What do I do with a God who goes off-script? What do I do when He doesn't follow my instructions or grant my prayer requests?"

In our impatience, we may even attempt to replace God, asking Him to scoot over on the throne of our lives while we take His place.

But let us be reminded that Jesus didn't die on the cross to partner with us; He gave His life to save us.

We must resist the urge to write the script of our lives and merely ask Jesus to sign it, for His ways are higher than our ways.

As we move forward in this series, let's confront our tendencies to replace God with the familiar and the controllable. Just as the Israelites reached for gold—something from their past in Egypt—when they longed for God, we, too, may reach for what is comfortable when faced with distance or silence from God.

It's essential to recognize the danger of seeking control instead of trusting in the faithful God who has brought us through.

So, what are you reaching for in your life? Are you longing for something more while settling for the familiar and what seems to be working?

Let us heed the wisdom of Psalm 27:4, "One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple."

What we seek is what we reach for. May we reach for God Himself and find Him even in the midst of life's disruptions.

In the upcoming weeks of our series, we will explore more aspects of our relationship with our "Disobedient God." Let us remain open to His unpredictable plans, resist the temptation to replace Him, and seek His presence in all circumstances.