Exodus 32:1-14
In Exodus 20 the people received the 10 Commandments. In the intervening chapters there is much instruction about worship in the wilderness, with the building of the tabernacles and all the articles of worship. In chapter 32 we learn the response of the people to Moses absence from them up on the mountain, when he is gone so long.
The people gather around Aaron and ask for idols to worship because they say they do not know what has happened to Moses in his long absence. He has been gone 40 days and nights. Aaron asks for their gold earrings, which they probably received as plunder from Egypt. (Exodus12:35-36) and shaped into a golden calf – one of the most frequently used idols in Egypt. This was a direct violation of the second of the 10 Commandments. When they are presented the idol, they affirm that it brought them out of Egypt, which contradicts God’s affirmation that God had brought them out of Egypt and out of slavery. After the idol was made, Aaron called for them to make a sacrifice. He obviously realizes how he and they have succumbed to idolatry and seeks to bring them back to a focus on the Lord.
Meanwhile God sees their actions and becomes very angry. He decides that he will kill them all and start over with Moses. Note how similar this sentiment or action is with the Noah story of starting over and the Abraham story of starting over.
Moses then seeks to intervene on behalf of the people and reminds God that will only play into the hands of the Egyptians and God relents.
Psalm 106:1-6, 9-23
This is a psalm that acknowledges that we, like the Hebrews in the wilderness, sin. The psalm recalls some of the things that happened in the Exodus and God’s rescue of the people. In vs. 14 the psalmist states that the people put God to the test. Compare that with what Moses said to the people in Exodus 20:20 when he told them that God was putting them to the test. The psalmist remembers that God would have destroyed the Hebrews for their infidelity had it not been for the counsel of Moses on their behalf.
Matthew 22:1-14
Jesus is still speaking to the chief priests and elders in a parable. This is the parable of the wedding feast when a king is celebrating the marriage of his son. The king invites many people, but they ignore the invitation and kill the servants. The king sends his army and kills them. The king then sends more servants to the street corners and invite people who were not previously invited and many of them come to fill the banquet hall. When the king arrives, he notices that one man is not wearing wedding clothes. It is conjectured that there was a custom for the wedding host to provide appropriate clothing, but this man would not put the clothes on, so he is tied up and cast out.
This is the closing vs: For many are invited, but few are chosen. If you were a chief priest or elder, how would you process that story and that answer? Reading it today, how you respond to the story and the answer?
Philippians 4:1-9
After Paul writes to the Philippians about joining in the cause of being united in striving for God’s kingdom, Paul gives them advice about how they can live into that relationship by being united and helping others in their project to provide for the gospel to be shared. This is called an exhortation whereby you seek to strongly encourage others by example and instruction. Paul seeks to do this not by threats, but by invitation. In vss 4-9 Paul challenges them to rejoice in the Lord and to accept the peace of Christ and to focus on the positive aspects of discipleship.
Prayer: Lord, we really wish we could look at that Golden calf story and chew those folks out, but it looks way too much like our journeys as well. Just when we want to throw the book at other, we find ourselves being held accountable. Encourage us, Lord, with your Holy Spirit and lead us onto better affirmations and witnesses because we live in you. Amen