"Who Is on the Lord's Side?"
(No. 2884)
A SERMON PUBLISHED ON THURSDAY, MAY 19, 1904.
DELIVERED BY CHSPURGEON,
AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON LORD'S-DAY EVENING, APRIL
9, 1876.
"Then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, Whoever is on
the LORD'S side–come to me! And all the sons of Levi gathered
themselves together to him." Exodus 32:26.
THOSE idolatrous people seem to have been awestruck by the appearance
of Moses in their midst. You can picture them gathered around Aaron,
worshipping the golden calf and performing their unclean rites–but, as
soon as ever Moses marches into the camp, they recognize his commanding
presence and his kingly authority. "Drag down that abomination," he
cries! "And break it in pieces." And though, just now, they were
adoring it, they implicitly obey him. The calf is hurled from its
pedestal, burnt in the fire, ground to powder and mingled with the
water that the idolaters drank. Then rings out the grand challenge of
our text. The brave man who seems to stand like a solid rock amid the
raging billows, feels it necessary to strike a decisive blow for
Jehovah–and once and for all put an end to that shameful idolatry. So,
taking his stand, as though to lift up the banner of Jehovah, he cries,
"'Whoever is on the Lord's side–come to me!' And all the sons of Levi
gathered themselves together to him"–the men who afterwards became the
priests of the Most High God. Then came that just but terrible command
to execute the idolaters–and three thousand of the people perished as
a warning to the rest–and that cursed image-worship was stamped out of
the camp, at least, for a time.
Now, dear Friends, very much as Moses did on that occasion, needs to be
done very frequently in every age. It is necessary that a banner should
be displayed because of the Truth of God and that men should be called
out to rally around it. And those who do so, those who are the most
fearless and the most faithful, shall receive a great reward, even as
we read in the Book of Deuteronomy that Moses bestowed a special
blessing upon the tribe of Levi because its sons were faithful in that
trying and testing time–"And of Levi he said, Let Your Thummim and
Your Urim be with Your holy one, whom You did prove at Massah, and with
whom You did strive at the waters of Meribah; who said unto his father
and to his mother, I have not seen him; neither did he acknowledge his
brethren, nor knew his own children: for they have observed Your word
and kept Your covenant." Blessed are they, also, who in these days bow
not down before the modern idols that so many worship! Blessed are the
brave men who never question whether a certain course will "pay" or
not, but who do the right thing, whatever the consequences of their
action may be! These are they who, amidst the bright ones in Heaven,
shall be doubly bright and who, here below, shall be the officers in
the army of the Lord who shall be called to lead the way in the day of
battle. I would that we had many among us who would come forward with
brave decision and yield themselves up, without doubt or fear, to
follow wherever the God of Truth and the Truth of God should lead them.
High shall their renown be and great shall their reward be, even as it
was with these courageous sons of Levi who so promptly responded to the
challenge of Moses, "Whoever is on the Lord's side–let him come unto
me!"
What I am going to try to do is, first, to describe the conflict and
show which is the Lord's side. Secondly, to point out to the Lord's
followers what they must do. Thirdly, to remind the Lord's hosts of
their encouragements and, fourthly, to repeat the question of the
text–and to put forward proposals for enlistment in the army of the
Lord.
I. First, then, I have TO DESCRIBE THE CONFLICT WHICH IS NOW GOING ON
AND TO SHOW YOU
WHICH IS THE LORD'S SIDE. That is not a very difficult task and the
conscience of each one of you ought to help me in its accomplishment.
This is where "the Lord's side" begins–Belief in God against Atheism
and other forms of unbelief. Infidelity assumes many forms–the doubt
as to whether there is any God at all–the daring defiance of God if
there is a God. Or the indifference which utterly neglects God, not
caring about Him either one way or another. Believers are on the
opposite side to all of these and you know that the side they are on is
"the Lord's side." To fear Him, to reverence Him, to trust Him, to love
Him, to serve Him, to worship Him–that is being on "the Lord's side."
On which side are you, dear Friend? Are you a believer, a fearer, a
truster, a lover, a worshipper of God, or are you a neglecter, a
rejecter, a hater of Him?
Here again are two sides–obedience to the commands of God, or a
determination to please ourselves. Are we endeavoring to obey the moral
law or are we pouring contempt upon that law and seeking to be happy by
having our own way? How is it with you, my dear Friend? Are you making
yourself into your only god? Are you allowing your own lusts and
passions to be the supreme governing influence over you? Are you saying
to yourself, "I will have my own way. I will do as I please. As long as
I can make myself merry, I care nothing whatever about the commands of
God"? If that is the way you talk, it is quite clear on which side you
are. Between the will of the flesh and the will of God, there is no
possible question as to which is "the Lord's side."
Here is another battleground–Christ and His righteousness, or your
self-righteousness–cleansing in Christ's blood and covering with His
perfect righteousness, on the one hand and–on the other, salvation by
your own works, salvation by your own prayers, salvation by your
almsgiving, or by anything of your own. You know, at once, which is
"the Lord's side" out of those two, for the Lord is always on Christ's
side. Indeed, Christ, Himself, is God! Justification by faith is the
side on which God is, but justification by the works of the Law is a
lie–in fact, it is an impossibility! Now, dear Friends, on which side
are you with regard to this matter of salvation by Christ or salvation
by self? Are you "on the Lord's side" of that question?
Here is yet another point from which to view this great conflict–the
Gospel of the Grace of God, or the superstitions and lies of men. The
Bible teaches us that sinners are saved by believing in Jesus Christ,
but superstition says, "No, they are saved by being sprinkled with
water through the subtle influences that trickle from priestly fingers.
They are saved by baptism, saved by sacraments. Here, then, is a sharp
conflict between salvation by Christ and salvation by priests. We know
which is "the Lord's side" of that controversy, but, dear Friend, on
which side are you? Do you go directly to the Lord Jesus Christ as your
Great High Priest and do you trust alone to the merit of His atoning
Sacrifice, or will you go crouching to your fellow creature and pour
the infamous story of your sin into his ear and so defile him even more
than he already is? And then will you come back deluded with the false
notion that you have obtained "absolution" at his hands? We know that
none can forgive sins save God, alone–this is the Lord's way of making
reconciliation through the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son. So, Friends,
are you for Zion or for Rome? Are you on the side of Christ or on the
side of antichrist?
There is a fierce battle still raging in the world between Scripture
and tradition–between this Grand Old Book and certain things which
have been handed down by tradition from the fathers. They are said to
be customs of the early church, or to have been ordained by various
councils, or decreed by "infallible" popes. Well, dear Friends, are you
on the side of God's Word or of man's word? Is your rule of life, "Thus
says the Lord," or, "Thus say the fathers," or, "Thus say the
councils," or, "Thus say the popes"? Who is on the Lord's side in this
matter? There is a stern fight still to be fought over this
question–the battle has long been raging and it will continue to rage
until the victory is won by the Truth of God. I am looking forward to
the time when there will be only two parties left to fight–the men who
will have this text emblazoned on their standards, "One Lord, one
Faith, one Baptism," and who will have nothing but the Bible for their
rule of conduct–and those bearing the other banner in praise of the
inventions of men and the traditions of the fathers. They will cling to
their errors, I have no doubt, as long as they can, but the Lamb will
overcome them–and they who are on "the Lord's side" will also come off
more than conquerors through Him that has loved them!
There are two sides to all the moral questions in the world. There is
holiness, for instance. You all know on whose side that is. And there
is unholiness–and you have no difficulty in deciding on whose side
that is! Then, as to order, peace, quietness, love, generosity and so
on, you all know on whose side they are. And you equally know on whose
side disorder, strife, disaffection, tumult, selfishness and
covetousness are. You are well aware, Brothers and Sisters, that
wherever there is anything that is right, true, pure, holy and of good
report, that is "the Lord's side." Therefore, always
be on that side. But if there is anything that is impure, unchaste,
unlovely, unjust–that is not "the Lord's side" and it should not be
His people's side. At the present time this dear land of ours seems as
if it were going to be swallowed up by the demon of drunkenness.
Temperance, righteousness, sobriety–these are all on "the Lord's side"
of that question, so let every Christian see that he takes the same
side as the Lord does. I need not go into all the questions that are
prominent at the present time because they keep on changing their
positions–and sometimes it is one question that is most prominent and
sometimes another–but to almost every question which comes up, there
is "the Lord's side" and there is another side. And the question must
always be asked, "Which is the Lord's side?" And I trust as soon as
that question is answered, you will say, "That is the side for me to
take–the side upon which the Lord is."
II. Now, secondly, I am TO POINT OUT TO THE LORD'S FOLLOWERS WHAT THEY
MUST DO TO SHOW THAT THEY ARE ON HIS SIDE.
And the first thing is, they must acknowledge it. The Truth of God
deserves to have bold adherents and brave proc-laimers. Righteousness
ought not to be claimed as the portion of men who are ashamed to
acknowledge it. Suppose that those sons of Levi had slunk away to their
tents and had said, "Oh, yes, we are on the Lord's side, but we do not
mean to expose ourselves to any risk in dealing with these idolaters."
That would have been like the coward spirit of a soldier who shirks his
proper place on the field of battle. He is too modest, too retiring to
fight–that is only another way of saying that he is a coward and
unworthy of the uniform he wears! In like manner, it is a mean,
beggarly spirit that will not lay down life and limb, substance and
honor–and everything else that one has–for the cause of God and His
Truth. Oh, for more of the true spirit of chivalry among those who call
Jesus their Lord and Master! It is a shame that they should ever blush
to acknowledge His name! They might rather blush with shame to think
that they have ever been ashamed of Him! I count it nothing, Brothers
and Sisters, to speak for the cause that everybody thinks to be good,
or to float with the stream by agreeing with what the multitude reckons
to be right. Every timeserver can do that! But, to swim against the
stream, to speak unpopular Truths of God, to declare that which God has
taught you, even though nobody else believes it, to beard the lion in
his den, to stand–like Athanasius–against the whole world for God and
for His Christ– this is being a man, indeed! No, more–this is being a
Christian! And the time shall come when this shall be reckoned the
noblest kind of man whom even God, Himself, has made. So, if you are on
God's side, admit it!
Then, next, rally to the standard. Moses cried, "Whoever is on the
Lord's side–come to me!" If you are a Christian, you should unite with
other Christians. I believe, Brothers and Sisters, that it is the duty
of all converts to test the various sections of the professing church
by the Word of God and then to cast in their lot with that part which
holds the Truth of God most fully and clearly. And, having
conscientiously done that, to rally with the hosts of God in the great
battle against wrong. Oh, you converts who have never joined the
church, what are you doing? I beseech you, think over this matter, pray
over it and remember that in the olden times, they first gave
themselves to the Lord and afterwards they gave themselves to His
people–according to the will of God. And so ought you to do. Believers
ought not to be solitary stones, lying by themselves–they should be
built up into "a holy temple in the Lord, built together for a
habitation of God through the Spirit." So, dear Friends, if you are on
"the Lords side," admit it and join with those who also are on that
side.
Then, next, if you are on "the Lord's side," be willing to be in the
minority. It is true that minorities have generally come in for kicks
and blows rather than kisses and caresses, but, at the great Day of
Judgment, all such wrongs will be righted. And, after all, it has often
been a minority–yes, and even a minority of one—-that has done great
things for God, after all! Just now I mentioned Athanasius. You
remember that when the whole of Christendom seemed to swing round to
Arianism, it was Athanasius, standing alone, "Athanasius contra mundum"
as he truly said, who brought the Church back to belief in the Deity of
Christ! And in the days of Luther, who can ever tell what a pivot and
hinge that one lone man was for Germany and Europe? And in Scotland,
what force there was in the one brave man, John Knox, whose preaching
and prayers Queen Mary feared more than an army of soldiers! Few
followed these brave leaders at the first, for following meant the
stake, the scaffold, prison, suffering, shame, reproach and death–yet
these were the men and women who did the true work of God, after all,
and who fought the good fight of faith!
Be you followers of them. Run not with the multitude to do evil–rather
choose the narrow way that leads unto life, though few there are that
find it. From the days of Noah the followers of the Lord have usually
been in the minority. If the rightness of any course could be decided
by the counting of heads, the devil would mostly be in the right–but
we do
not count in that way. We test every question by the Word of God, not
by the votes of men! If the Lord has said anything, believe it, even if
no one else does. If the Lord has revealed any Truth to your
conscience, hold to it, even though, to all others, it should seem to
be a lie and, verily, I say unto you, you shall have your reward! The
sons of Levi were in a minority in comparison with the great host of
idolaters in the camp of Israel, yet they came out boldly for the Lord,
and are, therefore, held in honor even to this day!
Further, you must be aggressive if you are on "the Lord's side." These
sons of Levi, as soon as they declared that they were on the side of
Jehovah, had to come forth to smite and slay His enemies. So must you,
if you are a follower of the Lord. There is nothing that the devil
likes better than to be left alone. I am often asked, "Why do you not
preach what you believe and leave other people's doctrine alone?" Ah,
just so! Why don't I? And why did not the Lord Jesus Christ let the
devil alone and let false teachers alone? And why does not the Gospel
let error and falsehood alone? When the Lord Jesus Christ came into the
world, one part of His work was to destroy the works of the devil. The
demons said to Him, "Let us alone: what have we to do with You, You
Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us?" His answer was, "Hold
your peace and come out of him." And when the demons say to us, "Leave
us alone," we reply, "That is the very thing that we cannot do and that
we dare not do!" We must not let falsehood, and sin, and error alone!
Christ Himself said, "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth:
I came not to send peace, but a sword." His faithful servants are to
follow His example–to quarrel with error, to fight against sin–to be
aggressive against everything that is opposed to our Lord and His
Truth!
The devil is quite ready to make a league of peace with us, or to agree
to a truce and say, "Now, do not go on fighting any longer. Let us
shake hands and be friends. There can be no reason why I should not
continue to be the prince of the power of the air, and Christ should
also have His disciples–only let them be very decorous and quiet–and
mind their own business." But we will make no such wicked league or
truce as that, for we are to resist the devil! As Peter writes, "whom
resist steadfast in the faith." The sons of Levi had to kill the
adversaries of God and so must you, spiritually, who are on "the Lord's
side."
You must also let love to God rule all nature's ties if you are on "the
Lord's side." Moses expressly commended Levi for this–"Who said unto
his father and to his mother, I have not seen him; neither did he
acknowledge his brethren, nor knew his own children." They were so
jealous for the Lord of Hosts, that they would not tolerate idolatry in
their nearest kith and kin! Happily, Brothers and Sisters, we have not
to fight anybody with a sword of steel. God forbid that any of us
should ever take the life of a fellow creature! Our one weapon is the
two-edged sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God! The force we
use is the force of the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. But, I
charge you, never do a wrong thing, or even a questionablething in
order to please father, or mother, or wife, or child. And never allow
any wrong to go unrebuked in the dearest friend you have, for,
"faithful are the wounds of a friend." Some have condoned sin to please
a wife or a husband, but they who are faithful to God must also be
faithful to the members of their own household. This may involve
persecution for themselves, but they must be willing to bear it for
Christ's sake–and they must not yield an inch, or an iota, in any
matter of principle, or any question of truth and right, even to the
beloved of their heart. Can you do this? If so, you are worthy to be
counted among those who are on "the Lord's side."
Once more, they who are on "the Lord's side" must do as they are told.
They must be prepared to obey all Christ's commands to the letter–and
also in the spirit of them–right to the end of life. I am ashamed of
the way in which some professing Christians ignore so much of the
Bible, shutting their eyes to Christ's commands, or, like, Nelson,
turning their blind eye to those they don't wish to read. Finding
themselves in a certain community, they believe what the community
believes without ever testing it and trying it by the Word of God. They
do not want to know too much and if anybody tries to teach them a Truth
of God which they do not know, they are unwilling to learn it lest it
should unsettle them in their ecclesiastical position. I bless God that
when I was converted to Christ, I laid down this rule for myself–
"Whatever the Lord teaches me in His Word, I will follow. If it should
lead me into a path where I shall be quite alone because I can find
nobody to believe as I believe, yet will I believe and teach that which
the Holy Spirit reveals to me in the Word." At this moment I have not
an atom of respect for any authority in matters relating to Divine
Truth except the authority of God–and I would strongly urge all young
people to try all catechisms, creeds, customs, doctrines, practices and
everything else by that Infallible test–"To the Law and to the
Testimony: if they speak not according to this Word, it is because
there is no Light of God in them."
III. Thirdly, I am to remind THE LORD'S HOSTS OF THEIR ENCOURAGEMENTS.
First, we may be encouraged to be on "the Lord's side" because it is
the cause of right and truth. To me it seems to be a sufficient reward
to a man to know that he is defending a right cause even if he has to
die for it. Do you crave the applause of human hands and voices? Do you
covet the glance of approving eyes? If so, your self-respect has
already fallen below the point which it ought to mark. Are you right in
the course you are now pursuing? If you are, you need not ask for
anything more. To be right and yet to be poor–to be right and to be
abused, or even to be put to death–is, surely, sufficient for any
follower of the Lord!
Better still, if there can be any better, remember that you are on
God's side. He who is Almighty looks upon you as His friend! Or,
rather, say that He who is Almighty is your Friend! He is much more
than that, for He is your All-in-All. You may shelter yourself beneath
His wings. Behind the bosses of His buckler you may hide yourself in
perfect security!
Moreover, Jesus the Crucified is withyouif you are on "the Lord's
side." There He stands, whose head was crowned with the cruel thorns
and whose hands and feet were pierced by the terrible nails. Blessed is
every soldier of the Cross, for he has Christ for his Captain and where
His flag waves, victory must surely come!
Further, my Brothers and Sisters in Christ, all the saints of God are
with us–the countless hosts of the redeemed before the Throne of God,
above, are all on His side and ours–and so are all the holy angels
"that excel in strength, that do His commandments, hearkening unto the
voice of His Word." All the unfallen intelligences in the universe are
on "the Lord's side." Therefore let us not be afraid, who are enrolled
beneath the banner of the Cross, and let others cast in their lot with
us, for they will be siding with a noble host that has gone on before
us! The lineage of the saints of God is a very high one. Talk of the
blood royal or imperial–bah, a single drop of the blood of the martyrs
flowing through our veins is far more to be desired! To walk as they
walked, "of whom the world was not worthy"–those first confessors of
the destitute, afflicted, tormented"–this is to be a member of the
blood royal of Heaven, the highest nobility that can be gained in this
world! How many of you, young men and young women, or older men and
women, are ready to say, "We are on the Lord's side"? The air all
around us is crowded with the spirits of just men made perfect! They
are watching to see how we run the Christian race and wrestle for the
prize of our high calling in Christ Jesus! And they sing a new song of
praise unto the Lord as He leads one and another to contend earnestly
for the faith once and for all delivered to the saints–to stand out
boldly for Christ and Him crucified–and to speak, or serve, or suffer
as best shall glorify the Lord Most High!
IV. Time and strength both fail me, so I cannot say more upon that
point, though much more might be said. I am, in closing my discourse,
TO REPEAT THE QUESTION OF THE TEXT AND TO MAKE PROPOSALS FOR ENLISTMENT
IN THE ARMY OF THE LORD. I should like to act as a recruiting sergeant
and to enlist some new soldiers for King Jesus.
"Whoever is on the Lord's side? Well," says one, "I wish to be." Well,
I will gladly help you enlist. You know what the sergeant does when he
enlists a young man–the first thing he does is to give him
something–a shilling. And if you intend to be a follower of the Lord,
you must receive something or, rather, you must receive SOMEONE–even
the Lord Jesus Christ, for, "as many as received Him, to them gave He
power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His
name." You cannot be on "the Lord's side" unless you receive the Lord's
Christ as your Savior! But as soon as you accept Him as the free Gift
of Jehovah's Free Grace, you are enlisted into the army of the Lord!
Will you take Him on those terms? Will you have the Lord Jesus Christ
as your Captain? I pray His gracious Spirit to make you say, "Yes, that
I will, by His Grace."
Next, the sergeant puts the ribbons in the young man's hat and, if you
receive Christ, the next thing you have to do is to confess Christ
openly by being baptized. Our Captain's own words, as recorded in the
Gospel according to Mark, are these–"He that believes and is baptized
shall be saved"–and what He has joined together, no one has the right
to put asunder. So, get the colors in your hat, young recruit, if you
really are enlisted on "the Lord's side."
When you have done that, the next thing for us to do is to take you to
the barracks and drill you. You will not be fully fitted to fight the
Lord's battles until you have been drilled and trained by your new
officers. So, submit yourself to the discipline of the Church of
Christ. Be willing to take your place in the ranks with your Brothers
and Sisters, to follow the New Testament Church order, to be taught
what are the first principles of the Christian faith and to be
instructed yet further in the things of God, so that, afterwards, you
may be able, in your turn, to instruct others. Christ's commission
runs thus, "All power is given unto Me in Heaven and in earth. Go you
therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them
(those who are made disciples) in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit: teaching them to observe all things
whatever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto
the end of the world." So, you see, we are to teach beforewe baptize
and afterwards still further to teach those who have been made
disciples and who have been baptized into the triune name of Father,
Son and Holy Spirit.
Then, we shall want you to put on your full regimentals. What are the
regimentals of a Christian? The garments of holiness, the livery of
love and the whole armor of God. We pray the Lord to clothe you from
head to foot in the Divine Panoply wherein all the warriors of the
Cross should be arrayed–the girdle of truth, the breastplate of
righteousness, the shoes of the Gospel of Peace, the shield of faith,
"the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, which is the Word
of God." There is nothing like having your Bible always with you and
being able to turn to any passage that you need when you are
confronting the foe, for, "It is written," is a wondrous weapon against
the devil, as Christ Himself proved! Satan flees from this sharp sword.
And other adversaries of the Lord and His people feel the force of the
Word when they will not yield to anything else.
Then, when you are fully armed, drilled and trained, we shall expect
you to wage war for King Jesus. And the first war must be a civil
war–war within your own soul–war to the bitter end against every sin,
every evil habit, every false word! All iniquity must be driven out of
your spirit at the point of the bayonet, and no quarter must be given
to any enemy of the Most High God. Then even while the civil war is
raging, we shall want you to carry the war into the enemy's territory.
Attack the foe on all sides–speak to your friends about Christ. So
live that they will see Christ's life reproduced in you, at least in a
measure. Plead with those with whom you work or live–the servants in
the house, or your companions, all sorts and conditions of men–tell
them all about Jesus Christ! If we were once to have a church fully
awakened and zealous for Christ and His Truth, we would soon have the
persecuting times back again. The early Christian Church was very
enthusiastic–they went everywhere preaching the Word. Somebody says,
"Ah, they lived in the days of persecution." But it was not the
persecution which made them enthusiastic–it was their enthusiasm that
brought upon them persecution for Christ's sake! And probably if we
were as good Christians as we ought to be, we would not be half as well
liked by the world as we now are! And if there were more noise and
opposition made against the followers of Christ, it would not be at all
a bad sign! If those who hate righteousness, hated Christians more
heartily than they now do, it might be a token that God was more
manifestly at work in us, making us more "out-and-out" for Him than we
are at present.
Now, then, you who are on "the Lord's side" in this congregation–you
who really believe in Jesus–I invite all of you to confess your faith
in Him if you have not already done so. No, more than that–in the name
of Jesus in whom you believe, I exhort and command you to confess your
faith in Him! Be not ashamed to avow your convictions. Do not try to
conceal yourselves from your fellow Christians. Come out and come out
soon–and may the numbers of this church, or of some other church be
greatly swollen by the addition of those who are truly upon "the Lord's
side." I wish I could persuade some of you not to put off this
confession any longer, but to say, "I love my Savior, and I mean to
come out and confess that I am on 'the Lord's side.' I have been far
too long hesitating and halting between two opinions, but I will not
let another week go by without saying, as plainly as words can say it,
'I have given myself to Christ and now I wish to give myself to His
Church.'" May God bless you all for Jesus Christ's sake! Amen.
EXPOSITION BY C. H. SPURGEON: EXODUS32:1-29.
Verse 1. And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of
the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron and said
to him, Up, make us gods which shall go before us, for as for this
Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not
what is become of him. They needed something to look at– something
visible that they could adore. It was not that they meant to cease to
worship Jehovah, but they intended to worship Him under some tangible
symbol. That is the great fault of Ritualists and Romanists–they aim
at worshipping God, but they must do so through some sign, some symbol,
some cross, some crucifix, or something or other that they can see.
2, 3. And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings which are
in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and
bring them unto me. And all the people broke off the golden earrings
which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. People are often
very generous in their support of a false religion and, to make idol
gods, they will sacrifice their most precious treasures, as these
idolaters willingly gave their golden earrings!
4. And he received them at their hand and fashioned it with a engraving
tool, after he had made it a molten calf and they said, These are your
gods, O Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt No doubt
they copied the Egyptian god which was in the form of a bull, which the
Holy Spirit, by the pen of Moses, here calls a calf. The Psalmist
probably also alludes to it when he speaks of "an ox or a bullock that
has horns and hoofs." It seems strange that these people should have
thought of worshipping the living God under such a symbol as that!
5. And when Aaron sawit, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made
proclamation, andsaid, Tomorrow is a feast to the LORD. "To Jehovah."
They intended to worship Jehovah under the form of a bull–the image of
strength! Other idolaters go further and worship Baal and various false
gods, but, between the worship of a golden calf and the worship of
false gods, there is very little choice. And between the idolatry of
the heathen and Popery, there is about as much difference as there is
between six and half a dozen!
6. And they rose up early on the morrow and offered burnt offerings,
and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to
drink, and rose up to play. I t was usual to worship false gods with
music and dancing and with orgies of drunkenness and obscene rites–and
the Israelites fell into the same evils as they had seen among their
neighbors.
7. And the LORD said unto Moses. Just in the midst of his hallowed
communion, the Lord said to him.
7. Go, get you down; for your people, which you brought out of the land
of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. God would not acknowledge them as
Hispeople. He called them Moses' people–"your people, which you
brought out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves."
8-10. They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded
them: they have made them a molten calf, andhave worshipped it, andhave
sacrificed thereunto andsaid, these are your gods, OIsrael, which have
broughtyou up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said unto Moses, I
have seen this people and, behold, it is a stiff-necked people: now
therefore let Me alone, that My wrath may wax hot against them, and
that I may consume them: and I will make of you a great nation. For
Moses began at once to pray for the people–to interpose between God
and the execution of His righteous wrath and, therefore, the Lord said
to him, "Let Me alone…that I may consume them."
11. And Moses besought the LORD his God, andsaid, LORD, why does Your
wrath wax hot against Your people? See how he dares even to say to God,
"They are Yourpeople, though they have acted so wickedly. 'Why does
Your wrath wax hot against Your people?'"
11-13. Which You have brought forth out of the land ofEgypt with great
power, and with a mighty hand? Therefore should the Egyptians speak and
say, For mischief did He bring them out, to slay them in the mountains,
and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from Your fierce
wrath and repent of this evil against Yourpeople. Remember Abraham,
Isaac, andIsrael, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own Self,
andsaid unto them, I willmultip-ly your seed as the stars of Heaven,
and all this land that I have spoken of willI give unto your seed, and
they shall inherit it forever. Moses pleaded the Covenant which the
Lord had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Israel–and there is no plea
like that. Although it might have been to his own personal interest
that the people should be destroyed, Moses would not have it so. And he
pleaded with God for the sake of His own honor, His faithfulness and
His Truth, not to run back from the Word which He had spoken.
14, 15. And the LORD repented of the evil which He thought to do unto
His people. And Moses turned and went down from the mount. Does it not
seem sad for Moses to have to go down from the immediate Presence of
God and to stand among the idolatrous and rebellious people in the
camp? Yet that is often the lot of those whom God employs as His
servants–they have, as it were, to come down from Heaven to fight with
Hell upon earth.
15-17. And the two tablets of the testimony were in his hands: the
tablets were written on both sides, on the one side and on the other
were they written. And the tablets were the work of God, and the
writing was the writing of God, engraved upon the tablets. And when
Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said unto
Moses, There is a noise of war in the camp. For Joshua was a younger
man than Moses, and also a soldier, so his ears were quicker to hear
what he took to be "a noise of war in the camp."
18. And hie said, It is not thee voice of them that shout for mastery,
neither is it the voice of them that cry for being overcome: but the
noise of them that sing do I hear. Moses knew that it was not a
battle-cry either of the victors or the vanquished–but the song of
idolatrous worshippers.
19. And it came to pass, as soon as he came near unto the camp, that he
saw the calf and the dancing and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast
the tablets out of his hands, and broke them beneath the mount. In
righteous indignation, preserving those sacred tablets from the profane
touch of the polluted people by dashing them to fragments in his holy
anger
20. Andhe took the calf which they hadmade and burnt it in the fire,
andgroundit to powder, andstrew it upon the water, and made the
children of Israel drink it. Think of the courage of this one man to go
single-handed right into the middle of the idolaters' camp and deal
thus with their precious god!
21-24. And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto you, that
you have brought so great a sin upon them? And Aaron said, Let not the
anger of my lord wax hot: you know the people, who they are set on
mischief For they said unto me, Make us gods, which shall go before us:
for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of
Egypt, we know not what is become of him. And I said unto them, Whoever
has any gold, let them break it off So they gave it to me: then I cast
it into the fire, and there came out this calf. Which was a lie. Aaron
was a poor weak-minded creature, easily persuaded to do wrong. And when
his stronger-minded and more gracious brother was absent, he became the
willing tool of the idolatrous people–and yet Aaron is called, by the
Psalmist, "the saint of the Lord," and so he was, taking him as a
whole. One black spot on the face of a fair man does not prove him to
be a Negro. And so one sin in the life of a man who is usually holy,
does not put him among the ungodly.
25-28. And when Moses saw that the people were naked, (for Aaron had
made them naked unto their shame among their enemies) then Moses stood
in the entrance of the camp, and said, Whoever is on the LORD'S
side–come to me! And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together
to him. Andhe said unto them, Thus says the LORD God of Israel, Put
every man, his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate
throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his
companion, and every man his neighbor. And the children of Levi did
according to the word of Moses. The rebellious, the idolatrous, the men
who had defied the authority of God were to be summarily executed on
the spot.
28, 29. And there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.
For Moses had said, Consecrate yourselves today to the LORD, even every
man upon his son, and upon his brother; that He may bestow upon you a
blessing this day. Such a colossal crime as that must be expiated
before the Lord could again bless the chosen race.