Hello My Friend/Guest,

Today is Wednesday January 28, 2009 and we are continuing our studies on the book of Exodus.

Today's Message: Idol Worship
We all would like to believe that we have a perfect relationship with God, but the truth is, any person or thing that takes place over God becomes an idol that we worship. Until we make God the one and only thing that we worship we will not have a relationship with Him at all.

Today's Bible Reading: Exodus Chapters 32-34
You can read the chapters by clicking on the link above, if the link does not work you can copy and paste this one into your browser: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%2032-34&version=9

Moses was on Mount Sinai when God gave him the two tables of stone written byHis finger, he was delayed in coming down to the people of Isreal and was unknown to theevil that was taking place. "And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, 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 wot not what is become of him.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 brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD. 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." (Exodus 32:1-4). Instead of waiting on God they decided to make their own god and even gave offerings to it. A true burnt offering was a delight to the Lord since it symbolized full surrender to Him; but these idolatrous sacrifices were hypocrisy.

Returning to the camp, Moses saw how quickly the Israelites had fallen into corruption, "And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves:They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt..................And Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two tables of the testimony were in his hand: the tables were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other were they written.................And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount.And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and strawed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it.And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?" (32:7-8,15,19-21). Only six weeks before, the whole congregation had sworn to do all that God had commanded, yet they quickly turned on Him the second they became impatient with Moses. The golden calf stands as a symbol of the humanmind which devises its own system of worship apart from, or added to, the Word of God. This false worship leads to irresponsible immoral conduct.

Christians can be compared to the Isrealites, although most of us would reject man made statues as idols we fail to realize that money, possessions, hobbies, careers, and peoplecan beidols as well. Any thing or person that becomes more important than Godbecomes an idol. The world admires the independent person who is determined to be in control, yet the only one who truly is in control is God. The second we think otherwiseHe will make sure He proves one way or another that all things are under His control. "I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else.I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things." (Isaiah 45:5-7). God in no way wants to harm us, He truly is a loving God, however He will not be mocked, He isreacting defensively just as anyone else would when being mocked.

Thankfully, because God loves us He forgives all who come to Him when they realize their mistakes. Therefore, it is of great importance that we get right with God by placing Him first above all things. Do not get impatient with Him because things are not going the way you imagined, He is preparing great things for you. Get in the Word of God, follow it and never make up your own rules of how to worship Him. Too many people are facing dire consequences because they chose to mix God's rules with peoples. LetGod lead you and you will have the perfect relationship with Him.

Jesus Christ is Revealed: As the One who is ever-present.
"And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest." (Exodus 33:14). Jesus is always with us where ever we go. "I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen." (Matthew 28:20b)

Today's Psalm: 81:8-10
"Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto me;There shall no strange god be in thee; neither shalt thou worship any strange god.0I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it."

Today's Prayer:
Dear God,
We desire to have You lead us in the paths of righteousness in the way everlasting. Sometimes the next step we take is clearly visible and other times it is a step of faith as darkness seems to take over. As we earnestly pray we can trust You who stilled the tempest and turned darkness into light. We pray for discernment and a willing spirit to follow Your leading in all matters. Let us not become impatient with You, but keep going in full faith that You will lead us to great things. In Jesus' name..............Amen.

Have a wonderful day/night and many blessings to you.

God Bless,
Christina

Visit A Spiritual Guide
www.aspiritualguide.net