The Golden Calf: Idolatry and Forgiveness

the people saw that Moses was taking a long time to come down from the mountain. They gathered around Aaron and said to him. Come on make us Gods who can lead us. Ask for this man Moses brought us up out of the land of Egypt. We don't have a clue what has happened to him.

Aaron said to them. All right take out the gold rings from the ears of your wives your sons and your daughters and bring them to me. So all the people took out the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron.

He collected them and tied them up. Then he made a mental image of a bull calf in the people declared. These are your Gods is real who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.

When Aaron saw this he built an altar in front of the calf. Then Aaron announced tomorrow will be a festival to Lorde.

I got up early the next day and offered up entirely burnt offering and brought well-being sacrifices the people sat down to eat and drink and then got up to celebrate.

the Lord spoke to Moses hurry up and go down your people when you brought up out of the land of Egypt are ruining everything.

He already abandoned the path that I commanded to have made a metal bowl for themselves. They bow down to it and offered sacrifices to it and declared. These are your Gods Israel who brought you up out of the land of Egypt?

The Lord said to Moses. I've been watching these people and I've seen how stubborn they are. Now leave me alone. Let my Fury burn and devour them then I'll make a great nation out of you.

The Moses pleaded with the Lord his God. Lord, why does your Fury burn against your own people and you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and amazing Force? Why should the Egyptian say he had an evil plan to take the people out and kill them in the mountains and so wipe them off the Earth. Calm down your finger change your mind about doing terrible things to your own people.

Remember Abraham Isaac and Israel your servants whom you yourself promised. I will make your descendants as many as the stars in the sky and I promise to give you the spending this whole land to possess for all time.

Then the Lord changed his mind about the terrible thing. He said he would do to help people.

For those who may not know I currently live in Tokyo, Japan. I've been here almost three years now. I arrived. December 1st of 2017

and one of the things I find so interesting about Japan. Is that religion and maybe Superstition are everywhere here and yet people are generally not religious. They don't consider themselves to be religious. The two primary religions of Japan are Shinto and Buddhism. Buddhism was imported from China having come originally from India. But Shinto is the original.

animistic religion of Japan Probably a long time ago. The people had a very similar religion to what many cultures all over the world had a polytheistic animistic meaning that tree than animals and Stones and lights and everything everything in the world could possibly be a deity. They probably had a religion like this like most of the world especially in that Stone Age Iron Age.

But then at some point this religion begin to kind of crystallized and then come together throughout the country. And now that group of belief is called Shinto and I am by no means any any kind of scholar of Chateau are expert in Shinto and so everything I say, please take with a grain of salt because I am certainly not Shinto practitioner myself. Virginia speaking when I talked to Japanese people. They won't wreck in a fire at the religious in the same way that we think of in the west. I had a religious but but they do often go to the Buddhist to the Buddhist temple in to the Shinto shrines. And they're everywhere. There are Shinto shrines everywhere and It's very common. For example, you're walking to work to stop at a shrine along the way and offer a prayer for a good day and then continue on and it's very common the offer prayer that you provide some kind of offering at the same time. Usually monetary offering usually 5 Yen coin, which is about $0.05. You asked me to the lesson that

But sometimes other things so Shinto and Buddhism had become very closely intertwined in Japan over the years and one of the things that you often see along the side of the road. For example is a statue of Jesus. Jesus is a Buddhist bodhisattva. Who is the dictator of Travelers among your traveler until you see them on the roads all over Japan and a lot of times people will leave flowers or food or water for jizo as they as they go along our way. So what you see is on the side of the road to be a little Shrine not even not even 5 ft tall usually either of wood or stone a little Archway and underneath it will be a statue of Jesus and the statue may be dressed up and the statue may have some food or some water or some flowers or sometimes a money collection box and some money, but you know, that's not really there's nothing and usually the community in the area work together to maintain the Shrine in the clean adding that commitment. Really interesting phenomenon coming from the us or we don't really have anything like that. So even though the job people normally say that they're not very religious. They'll still take part in these Traditions all the time and forgetful on the on New Year's Eve that they go to the shrine Shinto Shrine usually for the first try and visit of the year. So when that when it when it rings midnight, the trying of the doors is people come into to give their first trying to that of the year. but one of the most interesting things I think is Being coming in the Shinto shrines are coming in Japanese word. That means god.

The coming the Shinto priests believe the economy reside within the shrine and they have events throughout the year or they have these small Shrine smaller than a Shinto Shrine actual traffic big big buildings. I'm very traditional looking at buildings. Usually they have these they have these smaller shrines called me koshy. Mikoshi are they vary in size? But you can imagine there? They are anywhere from the size of like the small table to maybe the size of a small car and they're trying to me that made of wood and metal. And they have poles that run through them and the people carry them and they were many hundreds of pounds that usually any take a group of people sometimes 20-30 people to carry these the shrine and it's a big profession. So they'll take the shrine then koshy and they take it up to the main Shrine and the priests will perform a ritual to move the colony from the main Shrine into the mikoshi and then they will parade the commie around the area in the in the mini koshy. And that's the point to call me around and the reason for Tavares and times are there blessing all of the houses in the area or sometimes it's for some kind of Festival. It really depends in the end up at the end in the back of the main Shrine in the transfer it back in the big thing. but all of this all of this focus on on statues on shrines are very different from the kind of Christian communal understanding that I have in the u.s. Growing up. And it's I was very different spirits to be here. Am I one of these I love to do is to to go to these or not. I love to go to the dance. I always do a the first trying to the end of the year and I always I always go to the to the parades. I can't watch Nico. She and I always stop and say a little prayer when I passed the jizo statues and it's not because I think the jizo is the Jesus statue in the God and then I am praying to that God like when I give my prayers I can my prayers to God. But it's part of the culture here and somebody by participating in the culture and learn a lot more about what it means to live here.

We'll talk about today's reading. the reading today was from Exodus note The Last Story we had was about Passover and after the Passover Moses and Aaron take the the Israelite people out of Egypt and he Parts the Red Sea and the ID in real life Army are these white people go through go through the on dry land and then the Egyptian contractor in the end the people around them and destroy the Egyptians and the Israelites are able to escape and they travel through the desert for about a month until they arrive at Mount Sinai. And the whole time they complain. They complain that there's no food. They complain if there's no water that Moses. I just brought them out into the desert to die. They just complain all the time. So Moses guitar here and God Appears to the Sinai and the people here God give what we have come to call the Ten Commandments. Really? the name 10 commandments if not in the book anywhere and

the words in this section that they've the commitments do not exactly match the list of Commandments and in chapter 20 or in the parallel path of Donna me that are in theory all the same list and if there are there different they're really different though. You really have to ask them which place they're talking about. But I mean, they're Junior like they're at the main point for the same. Right? And so the God give these Commandments to to the people and then he tells Moses to go up onto the mountain and we'll just goes up onto the mountain. By himself, no one else is allowed to come with him. He goes up on a mouth and now he's gone for 40 days. And then this time he's given information by God about all kinds of things about how to build the Tabernacle which will be a temple mobile Temple basically for for worshiping God how to build all of the furniture that goes in the Tabernacle how to build all of the all of the things part 4 worship how to choose the priest and how to how to order ordained the priest for worship and what they should wear a long list of documents given and very my new detail. The Tabernacle should be this long and this tall and she'll be made of this material and very specific details. Today's learning all this information and he has he comes back with these two tablets of stone on which God has written directly on the coven. That assuming we we assume the same Commandments that God gave at the beginning. But anyway, you got there for 40 days. And in the meantime, the people are are just don't live there just date has given up nipika playing this whole time now. They're like what's going on? Where is the supposed to Aaron? Who's still in the camp? And they say they say to us. As for this man Moses mean the guy that's this man Moses brought us out of Egypt. We don't have a clue what happened to him. We don't worry is so it stays that you you need to give us some God to worship like you're in charge of Aaron. Give us give us some Gods to worship. Do Erin kind of begrudgingly like? Okay. Well, give me your your gold earrings and maybe Aaron was trying to kind of get out and then he thought they wouldn't actually give his golf there gold earrings. I don't know until they give him the gold earring that he creates this golden calf, which the golden calf is of course of a very famous. Image and kind of gullible history and and western civilization. I'm one of my one of my favorite movies when I was younger was dogma and there's actually which about you.

Kind of a parody about about Christian dogma and n one of the things that have is a burger chain with a symbol of the burger chain to the goal is a literal golden cap, which is really funny. But anyway, he makes a path and they hatin they go hear this young this calf of is our God With Us to worship it and they worship it in and they they have a party and the the the wording in the original text kind of suggested maybe more.

And so they are there partying partying in God tells Moses you better get down there because they have they already on the 40 days and then already created the gods of their own they've already given up on one of you know what I'm just going to destroy them and I'm going to make I'm going to make a new people from you and then the union of your your descendants could be my people.

I know this ghost dos jugadas says no, you know, please don't do this. If you do this, you know, the Egyptians are going to stay that you just brought them out of Egypt so you could kill them in the wilderness and I wouldn't be a very good thing for you to do. You know, what were the people stay in and you please don't forget you you told Abraham and Isaac and Jacob that their children would would be your your people. The god kind of girl infant is okay. I won't do it and then acting active that fit is an AR reading. Moses goes down and when he and when he sees the orgy going on and everything, he throws the tablets to the ground and shattered them into pieces. And then he gets really angry at the people and he asked Aaron what happened in Aaron's response is something on the lines of all, I don't know like the people wanted golden calves and and everyone came out of the fire all by itself quite a funny story. if the den Moses orders try to get the the Levites to come out the tribe of Levi because they're they're very zealous and he tells them to go and murder much people when they kill a bunch of people for having done this horrible thing and the kill some number of people that don't I don't think the tech that she tells us how many so that the raft made of an offering for the rest of my lip

Would you win the story turns quite I'd Ark.

what's interesting is that in the in the Ten Commandments just before the scene unit 40 days before the very first thing that God says is I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt out of the house of slavery. You must have no other gods before me do not make an idol for yourself. No form whatsoever of anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the waters under.

so this is what they've with a broken and beautifully God forbids If people from worshipping an object that they have created this was a really common thing in the time that the story takes place in the in that part of the world in all parts of the world, but not part of the world is Egypt where that come from in in Kyle with Michael Mesopotamia in that area. Where the where they were was very common Idol. You are some kind that you worshipped as if it were the god that you were worshiping not simply an image of the God but at you treated it as if it was the god itself, in fact in the story of Joseph and his brothers when they when he spins away his brother with with Benjamin. No, no. No, I'm sorry. I'm getting confused. Weed in them lays the golden cup in their things another case where when they when they leave I think you can you put Sarah Sarah Abraham. Is there anyway when they steal somebody's somebody's home God which which were people would have these small statue title in their homes that they worship. So if I was just really wrong with a steel in the archaeological digs on the area and some of the oldest towns that long predate the time of The Exodus, Stone Age donate settlement

Idols in them of cows and calves them and bull this is really dead. This was a really common thing to use as a representation of DD. And so it's not it's not surprising that Erin decides to create a half a Bubba Cowboy. All right. So what is interesting is that this happens again later on and Israel's history. So if we look on I'm going to show you now a reading from the first king 4 to take please a lot La watch later. So at some point there becomes the United Kingdom of Israel and the United Kingdom of Israel is ruled first by David and then later by David's son Solomon and then after Solomon dies their Civil War in the kingdom is split into two parts Israel in the north and Judah in the South and in Judah and Judas where Jerusalem and Bethlehem are

Solomon's son rehoboam continues to rule but in the northern part another ruler crowned King.

So let's look at this this meeting right after that. Jeroboam fortified shechem at Mount Ephraim and live there today shechem is a city in Israel. the northern kingdom From there. He also fortified penwell.

Jeroboam thought to himself the kingdom is in danger of reverting to the House of David Solomon and David Solomon son of David.

If these people continue to sacrifice at the Lord's temple in Jerusalem, they will again become loyal to their Master. We have boehm Solomon some Judas King and they will kill me so they can return to Judith King rehoboam.

The king asked for advice and then made to Gold Cavs. He said to the people it's too far for you to go all the way to it up to Jerusalem. Look Israel hear your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt notice is almost the exact same freezing. We saw in that reading makes it look at the real hear your God who brought you out who brought you out of the land of Egypt?

He put one calf in Bethel and the other placed in Dan and those two towns Bethel and Dan became places that people would would travel to to worship if they were from the northern kingdom. So we see this repeated repeated. symbolism of the golden calf

when the Christian the early Christians started to to worship they were doing it emits the Roman Empire and the Roman Empire off, of course had I don't work but they had statues of the Roman gods from the Roman Pantheon and they would worship the statue that if they were the actual god statue as if it was the actual God and they would leave food offerings for the statues and things and early on there was a question about whether it was okay for Christian to eat the food that had been offered to the idol knowing that the day that we're shipping Idol itself was not okay, but with it, okay to eat the food that have been there then laughed at him for the idle and Paul talk about this in several places. I'm basically says that it's fine as long as the person who is doing the eating understand that the idol is nothing the idle adjust a she would not do not an actual God. It's fine to eat. The food is just food the food's not going to hurt you like I make me better either but he says if I doing that you give the impression to other people that you might think the title the real God if they don't know better and there was other words then they might go astray. They might think oh, it's okay to have the torch of the idle because look, You know John eat the food were given to the idle. So he must also believe in the idle worship by Donald Danforth. Okay for me to do it. The Paul says if you do this, then this is bad. And so it's better to not eat the food if it's going to be a problem for others. But he actually eating the food is not a problem in the internet itself.

This is a problem that that continued in and even then in the 16th century. 15th century sorry during the the Protestant Reformation.

The early reformers had a problem with this too is very common in Roman Catholic Church is to have statues to Jesus but also to the Virgin Mary and two to the whole family and Saints kinds of things and the Protestant reformers believed that this was idolatry people were worshipping the statue of Mary as if Mary were a god or goddess. And so they the band statues from and images to from the early part of the church's because of because of this. Nvi in the Eastern Orthodox tradition you have icons which are very fancy paintings of of various figures that are involved in the worship service. but Anderson continue to today in the Roman Catholic church, and then I worked last church but really I need the problem isn't in the statues themselves. It's what Paul was talking about people think that you know that it's okay to wash them as if they were God. There's a problem. So right understanding the most Protestant churches today have have images of Jesus somewhere in the in their churches, you know, so we got on relax on this. I personally I think that statues and images and icons are good things because they they allow the worshipper to focus on the image while worshipping but it's important to not act worship the statue.

so How does a planet affect us today is is the important? How does it act us today, so

I think in modern times. We have lots of Idols. There are lots of Idols in our lives that we can fall into the Trap of worshipping instead of God.

I think of that. especially in the United States Christian church has grown too attached to things to certain things and they have to come Idols for them. And the same of them in the American? The American society in general but in off of the size of other countries in the world. for example for many people all over the world money is the most important thing in their lives. If you ask them what their you know, what they're what they were doing everyday why they were working why they were doing whatever they were doing it tell you that it's in the pursuit of money. I need money. I need to be able to pay their rent need to be able to buy food. and our society has need money so important by not providing basic

DreamWorks to protect people who don't move on falling hard times, right? We have some of this in place in various countries, of course have different different things, but it's possible that we can make money more important to us than God and then in that case money becomes an idol to us the pursuit of money becomes thing that we speak for every day. Likewise, but in many countries of the world work maybe an idol here in Japan their work ethic that often require people to be at work. From 8 a.m. To 10 p.m. To 10 p.m. In a day You know brother places of where people go to over there if I could be at work at 8, and then I expected to leave until their boss after their boss leave until their boss doesn't leave until really late. After the death. Even if you're not doing anything just twiddling your thumbs are pretending to be busy. They haven't culture work like that. And of course I everywhere but in some places. Is the theme in the US and the way we have this culture of work we can put our working in front of our families in front of our communities in front of our church life from the heart are personal spiritual life, but work in front of our connection to God and then and then work becomes an idol to us the thing that we hold up as the the the reason for being. You have to remember that God has a reason for being building a relationship with God and doing God's work in the world and loving our neighbor is our reason for being not money or work. Another thing can be nationalism. We saw this in 1930s, especially in the ride on fascism. We saw that nationalism began to become more important to people than than God we see I think we see it now and in several places in the world where nationalism belief in the fact that one's nation better than all other nations. As has become something that can be for some people in idle. I think that they hold up. I think that they're willing to put God aside for the more thing. They're willing to put in between them and God.

Other thing is racism. The idea that that one group of people is superior to all others or that one group of people is inferior to all others these ideas become an idol. They can become the thing that were so attached to that we allow ourselves. To be led astray or what becomes a thing of a thing, you know, they can call themselves a Christian and yet they could burn a cross on someone's lawn those those two things are just just don't go together. And so they've lost sight of what it means to be a Christian when there's did come to that point likewise. They look homophobia things like What they often call pro-life in the US the idea of The Unborn. I born children to become an idol if you put it above your service to one another and to to God if you put it above the well-being of people the feeding of people that the caring of people if you're willing to make compromise.

with between Outlaw Vape outline gay marriage and you know allowing allowing people to be sick and die. For example, if you say it was okay for them to be sick and die because we were able to Outlaw gay marriage and you put you put gay marriage above God because God wants you to take care of those people. I think we said about many things in the US Special I think done that become an idol for many people. Did put that they put their desire to to have firearms. Above the well-being of the Philip there for the person and I'm not saying that that guns should be banned in the u.s. Or anything. So I'm saying I'm saying is that everything should be put in the perspective first of what an honor to God? And I guess finally I would like to say, you know, I think for many in the west individualism have also become a kind of an idol. When we think about ourselves first, we don't care about others when we we put the good of ourselves and those people who are like us. Ahead of the good of others ahead of the people who are hurting who are who are imprisoned who are poor your hungry. We become like those people who passed by the robbed man on the highway until the Samaritan came by and took care of him through the Good Samaritan. We become those people Describes the Pharisees their religious people people love from the oven. The religious order who passed by the person was hurting so that they could get on their way because they didn't want to bother with that person.

when we put individualism above the good of the community.

We have put our individualism our own desires above. God's desire for us that we do good in the world and we take care of our neighbor. We love one another. I see that's especially in these situations with coronavirus and then this mask-wearing thing in the US where people people have protests where they don't want to wear a mask and then they go they go into businesses that have labeled debate need to wear a mask in the business. They yell at their mascot for they don't have enough at all and they yell at the people in the building because they're their own interests have been infringed upon But they are thinking about the good of the community as a whole. This is how individuals and we can be an idol in our lives. I think. And yet the other half of this message of the golden calf is forgiveness. God is angry and God threatened to wipe out the people and start over again. but Moses intercedes Moses intercedes for the people Moses's interest intercession Maria says request spare the people convinces God not to go through with it.

And later to forgive the people. And this is important because God does forgive us. We all sin we all make mistakes. We all turn away from God. We all put something else between us and God from time to time. the important part is that We reflect and we come to realize that we've done it and we repent repent meaning literally to turn around. We face back to God and ask for forgiveness and God will forgive us. Do we make it better be correct? Whatever our mistake was in our relationships with one another so that it doesn't happen again, and if it does happen again. Recognize it and we repent in the app for forgiveness again, and we try to make it so we don't do it a third time and so on.

Just asking for forgiveness is not it. It must also. Until repentance the changing of your ways turning back toward God. When you do that God will forgive you. God loves you.

So if you go out into the world this week, I want you to pay close attention to those things that you have made into Idols in your life. What is the thing that you have put above? God what are the thing that you put above God's desire for you? God's desire that you help your fellow person God's desire that you make the world a better place God's desire that you continue to grow and build a relationship with God and Jesus Christ.

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