READING: Exodus 30-32
Some days I wonder how much I love people. Or how committed I am to interceding for others. Or how far I’m willing to go so others are forgiven. Today is one of those days — and the Word is the cause.
In today’s reading, the people of God had created the golden calf, an undeniable idol formed by human hands. The people wanted gods because Moses had been so long on the mountain. They brought their earrings to Aaron, who fashioned them into the idol that would be remembered centuries later.
The people sacrificed to the false god, and then they partied! It’s amazing how deeply even the people of God can fall into idolatry. Such is the power of the enemy’s lures.
It’s also amazing how deceived we can be when we follow gods who, like the golden calf, can be burned, ground into powder, and sprinkled on the water (Exo. 32:19-20). Under the enemy’s deception, the people had been following gods who could be destroyed.
Nevertheless, their leader Moses began to intercede dramatically for the people:
(Exo. 32:31-32) — So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, these people have committed a grave sin; they have made a god of gold for themselves. Now if You would only forgive their sin. But if not, please erase me from the book You have written.”
Did you catch his words? Moses was willing to suffer judgment himself if the sins of his people were not forgiven. In fact, he was willing to be erased from God’s book. That’s amazing to me.
So amazing that it makes me uncomfortable.
You see, the devil delights when we put ourselves above others, take our eyes off the lost and the wayward, and fight instead to protect our turf or defend our “rightness.” On the other hand, I suspect he’s alarmed by believers who are willing to give up their lives if the lost are not saved and the backslidden are not drawn back.
I don’t know if I love people that way. I pray that I do, or will someday.
ACTION STEPS: Consider these steps today:
- Contemplate the question: “Do I love people this much?”
- Get in mind your closest friends or loved ones who are not following Jesus. Ask God to break you — to bring you to the point of willingness to die, to be blotted out of God’s book — on behalf of those folks.
- When God breaks your heart over someone, reach out to that someone.
PRAYER: “Father, give me this kind of commitment to others.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Exodus 33-35
