The Danger of Synergistic Prayer: Why ‘Moving the Arm’ is a Theological Error

• Idolatry and Impatience [00:38:10 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts Moses' obedience on the mountain with the people's impatience at the base, highlighting how they fashioned a 'manageable' god (the golden calf) because they could not wait for God's timing.
• Modern Idols [00:39:13 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor identifies modern equivalents of idolatry, including money, fame, sex, creature comforts, control, and the approval of people, defining them as anything that draws attention away from God.
• The Golden Calf [00:40:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains that the Israelites did not invent a new god but reverted to familiar Egyptian gods, sprinkling 'Yahweh language' on them to make them acceptable, showing a desire for a familiar, controllable deity.
• Idolatry as Repurposing [00:43:06 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains that idolatry works by taking what God has given (blessings, gifts) and repurposing it for self-control and fashion, rather than creating entirely new false gods.
• Failure of Nerve vs. Theology [00:48:09 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor distinguishes between a failure of knowledge (theology) and a failure of courage (nerve), noting that Aaron knew God but lacked the courage to stand against the people's pressure.
• The Efficacy of Prayer [00:52:12 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that prayer is effective and can change God's mind, citing Moses' intercession as a biblical example where prayer moved God to relent from judgment.
• Covenantal Judgment [00:56:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor describes the Levites' execution of idolaters as a necessary response to a deliberate violation of the covenant, emphasizing the seriousness of sin against God's law.
• The Inadequacy of Human Works [00:59:42 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that no amount of good works, sincerity, or suffering can appease a holy God or purchase salvation, as humans are inherently sinful and unqualified to atone for others.
• Christ's Unique Qualification [01:00:54 ▶️ 📄]
  > Jesus is identified as the only one qualified to make atonement because He is the only one who never sinned and never broke the law, unlike Moses or Paul who were willing but unable.
• The Danger of Idols and Delay [01:02:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor warns that seeing miracles does not guarantee lasting faith, and that waiting on God often leads people to create 'golden calves' (idols) such as hobbies, money, or status symbols to replace God.
• Practical Application: Trust and Self-Examination [01:05:18 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor provides three applications: stop viewing God's delay as absence, examine one's life for idols, and remember the weakness of the flesh, urging believers to wait patiently on God.

• Sermon Illustration [00:36:51 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the biblical narrative of the Israelites at Mount Sinai, where they grew impatient while Moses was on the mountain for 40 days, and fashioned a golden calf as a 'manageable' god to satisfy their immediate desires for comfort and control.
• Sermon Illustration [00:42:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the biblical narrative of the Golden Calf to illustrate how God's gifts (gold from Egypt) were repurposed for idolatry. He also uses the analogy of a parent claiming children are 'half your DNA' to explain Moses' defense of the people as God's own.
• Sermon Illustration [00:46:01 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts the story of Aaron's failure, noting that despite witnessing all the plagues and miracles, Aaron folded under pressure and created a golden calf. He also describes Moses throwing down the tablets as a 'sermon' and visual representation of the broken covenant.
• Sermon Illustration [00:55:16 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor recounts the biblical account of Moses commanding the Levites to kill those who served idols, resulting in 3,000 deaths, to illustrate the severity of covenant violation and the need for atonement.
• Sermon Illustration [00:57:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of Moses and Paul offering themselves as atonement for the people, highlighting their willingness but inability due to their own sin, to contrast with Jesus' ability to atone.
• Sermon Illustration [01:01:57 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor illustrates the weakness of human flesh by noting that the Israelites, who had seen numerous miracles, abandoned God within 40 days, demonstrating that even those who have seen God's power can quickly turn to idols.
• Sermon Illustration [01:03:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of 'golden calves' to describe modern idols such as hobbies, the almighty dollar, and status symbols that replace God in the hearts of believers.

• Pastoral Charge [00:34:34 ▶️ 📄]
  > Spread word about the upcoming farmer's market and attend it on Friday mornings.
• Pastoral Charge [00:55:33 ▶️ 📄]
  > Identify and separate those who remain faithful to God from those who have turned to idolatry.
• Pastoral Charge [01:05:18 ▶️ 📄]
  > Stop viewing God's delay as God's absence and do not walk away from God due to unanswered prayer.
• Pastoral Charge [01:05:58 ▶️ 📄]
  > Examine life for idols and name them honestly to God.
• Pastoral Charge [01:06:30 ▶️ 📄]
  > Remember the weakness of the flesh and watch and pray to avoid falling into temptation.
• Pastoral Charge [01:07:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > Do not turn to idols for peace; instead, wait patiently on God and remember who He is.

[00:00:09] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:00:09] It's good to see you here today in the house of the Lord. I want to invite you to stand on your feet. We're going to rejoice in the Lord always as scripture encourages us. I want to welcome those watching us online as well. Thank you so much for being here with us today. So glad you joined us. Come on, put your hands together and sing this out!

[00:00:43] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:00:43] you may be seated is a god almighty merciful and mighty you know what the mercy of god is

[00:16:07] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:16:07] the mercy of god is the fact that we don't get what we deserve we deserve eternal separation from god we deserve eternal punishment because of the fact that we are sinners we've broken the law
[00:16:20] but God is merciful he's also gracious you know what the grace of God is grace is when God gives us things that we don't deserve he's so good to us and nowhere is the grace and mercy of God
[00:16:38] on display more than on the cross when Jesus Christ demonstrated his mercy by taking the punishment that we deserved taking our place taking the punishment that I should have received that you should have received on himself and then the grace of God is when he gives us things we
[00:17:05] don't deserve and he gives us his righteousness like all of the good that he had done is applied to my account and all the bad that I have done is applied to his account what a beautiful picture of
[00:17:17] the grace and the mercy of God and Jesus could do that because he was holy he never sinned never did a single thing wrong never broke the law lived the life that you and I were intended to live
[00:17:33] Jesus did it on our behalf each month we pause adventure and we take the Lord's Supper it's a it's a reminder of what Jesus did on Calvary's cross the bread is a reminder of the fact that
[00:17:51] His body was beaten. His body was broken. His body was placed upon a cross, a torturous Roman cross.
[00:18:04] There he hung, separated between the earth and heaven as the judgment of God fell and God himself died. Jesus died in my stead. His blood was shed because the Bible says clearly without the shedding
[00:18:18] of blood, there is no remission of sin. There is no cleansing. There is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood and so Jesus shed his blood so when we take the Lord's Supper it's a reminder
[00:18:27] of the broken body and the shed blood of Jesus Christ Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper as a reminder not as a means of grace we're not we're not forgiven because we take the Lord's Supper
[00:18:42] we're not made right with God because we take the Lord's Supper no these are symbols to remind us of what Jesus did it's what Jesus did on the cross that purchased our salvation that becomes
[00:18:54] effective for us when we pray to receive christ as our savior it's a gift not something we earn by drinking juice or getting baptized or anything else it's a gift of god so these symbols are
[00:19:05] reminders of what jesus done the scripture tells us that first corinthians 11 says for i received from the lord what i also passed on to you the lord jesus on the night he was betrayed took bread
[00:19:16] and when he'd given thanks he broke it and said this is my body which is for you now look at this do this in remembrance of me and in the same way after supper he took the cup saying this cup is
[00:19:29] the new covenant in my blood do this whenever you drink it in remembrance of me for whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes therefore whoever
[00:19:42] eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sin against the body and blood of the Lord a man ought to examine himself before eats the bread and drinks
[00:19:52] of the cup jesus himself instituted the lord's supper and said do this in remembrance of me he said but before you do it consider yourself examine yourself is there any sin that needs to be confessed anything that is between you and god that needs to be made right i'm going to give you
[00:20:14] a few moments of personal quiet prayer and then i'll close our time together in prayer and then we'll take the elements of lord's supper together so let's pray heavenly father we've just sung holy holy holy is the lord almighty god we recognize your holiness today god these symbols we hold
[00:21:09] on our hands remind us of your love towards us jesus on the cross reminds us that you are a merciful god what jesus did on the cross demonstrates that you are a gracious god you give us what we don't deserve thank you that jesus was willing to go to the cross and
[00:21:34] pay for my sins and the sins of the entire world.
[00:21:37] Thank you for that.
[00:21:39] Lord, this morning we remember, we proclaim the Lord's death until Jesus returns.
[00:21:45] We thank you.
[00:21:47] We thank you that Jesus was willing to go to the cross and take our punishment.
[00:21:52] So God, may we humbly live for Christ today and this week.
[00:21:57] May we bring glory and honor to him in all that we do.
[00:22:02] God, may we be a light to the darkness around us.
[00:22:07] may we bring hope to those who don't know Christ may we fulfill the purpose for which you've created us God Almighty we thank you thank you for the shed blood for the broken body of our Lord and
[00:22:27] Savior Jesus Christ it's in his name we pray amen let's take the bread together and let's eat let's take the juice together and let's drink and all God's people said amen you can put the
[00:23:09] little cups and the receptacles on your way out. Drop them in the receptacles. Let's stand as we continue in worship today.

[00:24:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:24:04] because of your blood we can stand here today because of your precious blood we can worship

[00:28:55] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:28:55] you because what you've done on the cross of calvary as you carry the weight of the sin of the world on your shoulders we stand here today because you rose again on the third day we stand
[00:29:08] here today to worship you because of your blood jesus so we praise you our response today is worship to the one who sits on the throne holy holy is the lord so god we thank you for all that
[00:29:23] you have done for us we love you jesus help us to see your love help us to have a deeper understanding of what you have done for us and what you do every single day even when we don't
[00:29:33] notice be with us always near god we thank you for your presence in this place what a wonderful thing god is the people of god gathering together to worship you to praise your name to speak to us
[00:29:47] change us and transform us we need you your presence your word today god thank you we worship you your holy and precious name that we pray in jesus name amen thank you for joining

[00:30:00] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:30:00] us church you may be seated welcome to venture church i'm jason we're glad you're here today before we get going you see that circle on the seat in front of you go ahead and tap it with
[00:30:17] the back of your phone and open that link that pops up that's where you'll find today's sermon notes everything coming up at venture and a place to send out of her request if you're new here fill out a connect card this tells us about you and what
[00:30:29] you're interested in someone from our team will reach out later this week we also invite you to stop by the walking desk in the lobby after the service we got a gift for you and our team would love to say hello and answer any
[00:30:41] questions you have if you're here with little ones we've got a couple spaces made just for you our family room is right between the double doors before you walk into the auditorium it's a comfortable place to stay together as a
[00:30:51] a family with the service playing live so you don't miss anything and for our nursing moms there's a private room for you by the adventureland check-in with the service on in there too both are
[00:31:01] open every sunday just ask anyone on our team and they'll guide you there last sunday we got to celebrate baptisms 11 people publicly declared their faith in jesus and every one of them started somewhere a conversation a first sunday a decision to get connected if you're wondering what your
[00:31:24] next step is here we invite you to come to starting point on october 11th it's one night dinner is included and you'll get a tour of our campus you'll hear what we believe and how you
[00:31:33] can find your place here no pressure no commitment just a good place to know what your next step is all details are on our website somewhere in this church someone is closer to a decision just like
[00:31:45] the one you just watched and your generosity is part of what gets them there your giving fuels everything from investing in our kids at adventureland to the ways that we serve our neighbors through Venture Cares. You can give through the Venture app, online, and through the
[00:31:58] offering boxes around our campus. Thank you for giving today. We're continuing our series, Into the Wilderness, today. We're picking up the story right after Moses descends from Mount Sinai. Let's

[00:32:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:32:10] learn from God's Word. Good morning, Venture Church. Good to see you here today. Welcome to those who are joining us online today. It's good to have you with us as well. You know, at Venture, we're about
[00:33:12] three things. Kids, community, and the Great Commission. You hear me say that quite a bit, but That's what we're about.
[00:33:18] We're in the middle of our Awana season.
[00:33:21] On Wednesday nights, this place is just packed.
[00:33:23] Kids over there, youth up there.
[00:33:25] Tuesday nights, we have our young adults meeting here.
[00:33:28] So many incredible, exciting things happening.
[00:33:30] Every other Thursday night, we have our mobile market here, feeding about 1,000 families a month.
[00:33:35] And this place is just abuzz with activity.
[00:33:40] And I'm excited to announce today a new community outreach event that we're doing.
[00:33:46] we will be launching October 2nd a farmer's market here on campus every Friday from 8 a.m until one o'clock in the afternoon and so there'll be fresh vegetables fresh fruit you have to buy it
[00:34:00] we're not giving it away you know but there'll be food vendors all of the different kind of vendors that you would typically have in a farmer's market will be here starting October 2nd from 8 a.m to 1 o'clock and listen they brought us a couple cases of the of the fruits
[00:34:19] and vegetables they were absolutely fantastic all of them at a significant discount so it's a way to be a blessing to our community so tell your friends spread word that that's going to be happening and then come on out on a you know friday morning or friday before lunch and they're
[00:34:34] going to have food vendors and it's going to be just an incredible time so that'll start october second right here at the church all right so we've been walking with Moses through this series we're
[00:34:45] one week away from our conclusion next week and we've watched God take a reluctant shepherd and turn him into a deliverer we've seen the plagues fall on the Egyptians we've seen the deliverance through the Red Sea. We've seen hungry people be fed by manna with God's incredible provision.
[00:35:12] We've seen water flow from a rock. We've seen the victory over the Amalekites that they experienced as Aaron and Hur held up Moses' arms as Joshua led the team in the battle. Last week we saw
[00:35:29] them arrive at Mount Sinai and we saw as the presence of God arrived and the lightning and the thunder rolled and the mountain shook and the smoke filled, just filled the whole area.
[00:35:47] And the Israelites response was, all that the Lord has spoken, we will do. And God had delivered to them through Moses the Ten Commandments now after that you know in a period of time they
[00:36:02] sprinkled the blood in the covenant then Moses and Aaron Nadab and Abihu and the 70 elders went up partway up the mountain and they sat there and encountered God and and and then were able to eat
[00:36:16] in his presence but then the scripture tells us but then Moses went further the others came down the mountain but Moses went further up the mountain and he spent 40 days and 40 nights up on the mountain with God no food no drink and it was there that he was receiving the tablets
[00:36:35] from God that were written by the very finger of God but at the base of the mountain the people grew impatient and we see in Exodus 32 beginning in verse 1 when the people saw that Moses delayed
[00:36:51] to come down from the mountain. The people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the
[00:37:02] land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, I pray that today as we continue to study your word, Lord, that you would perhaps show us things we've not
[00:37:16] seen before. Help us to have a spirit of understanding. So God, I pray that you would speak through me and god that i would fade into the background and that your holy spirit would take your word and speak to your people and god so just uh i pray you'd have a message for each
[00:37:30] person here this morning we dedicate this time to you in jesus name amen so you may remember that just 40 days prior the entire mountain was convulsing right and and the people were they were so scared because the presence of god was so powerful and lightning and thunder and and all of
[00:37:49] this stuff that was 40 days ago and now they say we do not know what has become of him and we don't know what happens to Moses so up make us some new gods how quickly they forgot so while Moses was on
[00:38:10] the top of Mount Sinai receiving the receiving the commandments receiving the law the people were down at the base of the mountains, breaking them. It was a terrible picture. Moses was gone for just 40 days and already the people felt abandoned by God and their patience ran out. And so they
[00:38:31] decided that they needed to take matters into their own hands. It's as if they're thinking, well, listen, if God's not going to come down to us, then we're going to make gods that'll do what
[00:38:40] we want them to do we'll fashion a God the way we want a God I wonder how often do we do that when God doesn't answer our prayers as quickly as we want we begin to question him we begin to
[00:38:56] think that perhaps God has failed us and sometimes we even turn to our own idols things that make us feel better now here's the reality and if we can just be gut level honest this morning we all are
[00:39:13] prone to love our idols right anything that draws our attention away from God anything that stands between us and God anything that we turn to other than God looking for comfort direction peace what are some of our idols in America today well obviously the the biggest one is money
[00:39:35] we fall in love with our money we look to money as the thing that will provide for us we think that if we've accumulated enough money we'll have peace if we have accumulated enough money
[00:39:46] we'll have security we turn to we turn to money instead of God for our future sometimes it's fame sometimes it's sex sometimes it's creature comforts maybe it's control maybe it's the approval of people we just want people to like us or think highly of us anything that we turn to
[00:40:12] when God is silent is an idol in our lives. And so they asked Aaron and they said, hey, you know, make us a God who shall go before us. You see, what they were looking for was something
[00:40:25] visible and manageable and familiar. Make us a God that we're accustomed to. Make us a God that we want, that's in the fashion that we like, right? Now, what they had known for the majority
[00:40:39] of their life were the gods of Egypt right so they didn't have to invent a new god altogether they just reached back to one of their familiar gods brought it back sprinkled a little uh Yahweh
[00:40:54] on it there a little Yahweh language on it and said there verse 32 chapter 32 verse 4 these are your gods of Israel who brought you out of the land of Egypt says they even planned a feast to
[00:41:06] the Lord they were they they created this calf and they referred to it as the Lord I want to I want to point out a few details you know probably many of you if you've been in church for any
[00:41:18] period of time you're familiar with Aaron creating the golden calf and all that goes on that's that is the story we're talking about today but I want to I want to show you some things here in the in
[00:41:28] this passage uh some details that perhaps you've overlooked in the past Aaron doesn't ask the people to to bring money or things it's interesting what they come to Aaron and say you know make us a
[00:41:41] new God and what does he ask for Exodus 32 2 he says take the rings of gold that are in your ears of your wives your sons and your daughters and bring them to me he said bring me bring me all
[00:41:57] the gold that you have all those earrings and everything else like that right let me ask you this where did those golden earrings come from where'd they get them it's the gold that the Egyptians put in the Israel's hands on the night of their deliverance from Egypt and that was
[00:42:21] arranged by God himself Exodus 12 35 let's go back the Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold for and for clothing look at this the Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people and they gave them what they asked for
[00:42:41] so they plundered the Egyptians. The very gift that God gave them to mark their deliverance is the very material that they used to replace him. Isn't it ironic that the blessings that God gives us in life is the very material we use to create an altar to replace him?
[00:43:06] powerful thought but that's how idolatry works doesn't need new material it just takes what God has already given us and then repurposes it towards something that we can control something that we like something that we fashion in the way that we
[00:43:27] want so Aaron fashions the gold forms it into the shape of a calf builds an altar and then I want you to look at this Exodus 32 6 and they rose up early the next day and offered
[00:43:48] burnt offerings and brought peace offerings and the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play that was their version of a worship service that was what they did now that little
[00:44:08] phrase rose up to play doesn't mean they were playing euchre okay yeah this was not a card game this was talking about sexually immoral behavior they ate they drank and they partied that was their worship service now the apostle Paul quotes this verse centuries later in his warning to the
[00:44:38] church first Corinthians 10 verse 7 do not be idolaters as some of them were as it is written the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play now these things happened to them as an
[00:44:51] example but they were written down for our instruction on whom the end of the ages has come Paul's writing and he's saying listen this is here for us to learn so we as the church
[00:45:08] don't make the same mistakes that they did with Moses because we are prone to be idolaters just as much as they were and they were in paul's day so what was you know happening here at the foot
[00:45:33] of mount sinai is not merely israel's history it's a warning to us because this is how idolatry works we don't necessarily throw out god we just we take what god has given us we add something new
[00:45:50] and we make something into our own form.
[00:45:56] Aaron should have known better, right?
[00:45:59] Aaron should have known better.
[00:46:01] Aaron was there when Moses confronted Pharaoh.
[00:46:07] Aaron was there when Moses threw down the rod and it turned to a snake and he picked it up and it turned back into a rod, right?
[00:46:15] Aaron was there.
[00:46:15] Aaron was there when the Nile turned to blood.
[00:46:18] Aaron was there to see all of the plagues.
[00:46:21] Aaron walked through the Red Sea on dry ground.
[00:46:25] He was there.
[00:46:25] Aaron drank the water that came from the rock.
[00:46:27] Aaron ate the manna that fell on the ground.
[00:46:30] Aaron saw the victory when he held up Moses' arms and they defeated the Amalekites.
[00:46:35] Aaron was there.
[00:46:36] Aaron even went halfway up the mountain with God and saw the presence of God.
[00:46:41] Aaron was there.
[00:46:43] Aaron knew better.
[00:46:43] but when he was pressured when just a little bit of a pressure from the people was placed upon him he made a golden calf and led the people to worship it when moses confronted aaron about this
[00:47:05] i want you to listen to what aaron said exodus 32 24 this is aaron justifying his behavior to moses so i told them whoever has any gold take it off then they gave me the gold i threw it into
[00:47:22] the fire and out came this calf if I was Moses I'd be like seriously you want me to believe that you know are you kidding me right now maybe you've never made a calf out of gold earrings
[00:47:43] but maybe there's been an area of compromise where you turn to something other than God where you made a decision that you know was wrong at the moment but the pressure that was upon you
[00:47:57] was just more than you could bear and you just did what you knew you shouldn't do. See Aaron's failure was not a failure of theology. He knew exactly who God was. His failure was a failure
[00:48:09] of nerve. He didn't have the courage to stand for God. He didn't have the courage to do what was right and so he folded under pressure. Then God spoke to Moses on the mountain and there's a part
[00:48:27] of the story that so often we overlook and maybe a part of the story that you've never even seen before but God makes an offer to Moses we find it in Exodus 32 10 now therefore let me alone that
[00:48:44] the wrath that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them in order that I may make a great nation of you God is offering Moses a way out God makes an offer to Moses listen here's
[00:49:05] what I'm going to do I'm going to kill them all and I'm going to start over with you Moses you're going to be the new Abraham you're going to be the one I'm going to start over with I'm going to go
[00:49:18] these people done with them I'm going to go down I'm going to kill them all and I will start over with you all of Abraham's blessings are not going to be directed to Moses now for Moses it was a
[00:49:33] good deal right I mean he was going to be the new Abraham this is a big deal for Moses God says I'm to wipe those rebellious people out and I'm going to set you up and you are going to be the man but
[00:49:51] Moses declines God's offer I want you to listen to how this conversation goes Exodus 32 11 oh lord why does your wrath burn hot against your people whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt
[00:50:06] with great power and with a mighty hand why should the Egyptians say with evil intent did he bring them out to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth so Moses
[00:50:19] prays turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people remember Abraham Isaac and Israel your servants whom you swore by your own self now if you read the whole passage it starts by God speaking to Moses and saying listen I'm going to destroy your people
[00:50:45] and then you hear you hear what moses says back to god he says um why does your back why does your wrath burn against your people right have you ever been a parent you come home and maybe your wife
[00:50:58] says your kids they are yours and then what do you say they ain't mine you know i mean they're half your dna right i mean what they're doing right now that's coming from your side of the
[00:51:10] family right you know and so that's exactly what god and moses are doing here you know moses is telling God no these are your people guys now they're yours right God is creating a unique
[00:51:27] opportunity here for Moses and I want you to see something here Exodus 32 14 and the Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people now however you understand the mystery of God's sovereignty and Moses's prayer this is an important verse God told Moses
[00:52:00] what he was planning to do, Moses prayed and God changed his mind. Think prayers aren't effective?
[00:52:12] You think that the prayers of a righteous person don't move a sovereign God? Charles Spurgeon famously said this, prayer moves the arm that moves the world. An easier way to say it would be that prayer changes things. Don't get into this mindset that everything that's going to happen is
[00:52:37] predetermined and that prayer doesn't work because, you know, it's already been determined and whatever's going to happen is going to happen so prayer doesn't work. This verse right here should show you the fact that prayer changes things, that prayer does indeed move the arm
[00:52:50] that moves the world. And so the future of the entire nation hangs on whether God will answer Moses's prayer request to spare the people. And thankfully, God did answer Moses's prayer. So Moses comes down the mountain and he's carrying the two tablets that God had written with his
[00:53:18] own finger. And he comes down and he sees the golden calf and he sees the dancing and all the nonsense that was going on. And he takes these tablets that he spent the last 40 days on the
[00:53:31] mountain receiving and he takes them and he throws them down and they are smashed. I want you to know that this wasn't a temper tantrum it was a sermon Moses was sending a clear message the people were
[00:53:56] breaking the law they had just heard you shall have no other gods before me you shall not make any graven image they had heard that just 40 days earlier when they received the 10 commandments
[00:54:08] right and now here 40 days later their golden calf and having a big party and and wild dancing I mean days before they had agreed to it they'd sprinkled blood and now they're worshiping a
[00:54:31] statue that they had created by their own hands and so when Moses came and he threw down the tablets he was giving them a visual of what they had done they had broken the covenant the law that God had
[00:54:49] given them was shattered not simply by Moses's hands but by their rebellious hearts he was giving them a clear word picture this is what you have done now what happens next is kind of wild Moses grinds the calf into powder scatters it on the water and then makes the people
[00:55:16] drink it and then we see in verse 26 so he stood at the entrance of the camp and he said whoever is for the lord come to me in other words those of you who still trust in god almighty
[00:55:33] i want you to come to me and all the levites rallied to him then he said to them and that's to the levites this is what the lord the god of israel says each man strap a sword to his side
[00:55:48] go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other each killing his brother and friend and neighbor and the Levites did as Moses commanded and that day about 3,000 of the people
[00:55:59] died so what's that all about Moses following God's command called the people and said listen if you're going to be a God follower you come to me the Levites all came and he said all right go
[00:56:15] through the land and anybody who doesn't want to be a God follower anyone who's going to continue to serve and go after these these images these idols I want you to kill them and so basically
[00:56:28] they went through the camp are you are you going to serve God are you going to serve an idol you're going to serve an idol boom you're dead they went through and 3,000 people were killed
[00:56:39] because they'd done wrong their sin was not just a mere lapse in judgment it was a direct deliberate violation of the covenant that they had made with God that they had sworn by their own mouths just days before so it's kind of a big deal verse 30 the next day Moses says to the
[00:57:10] people you have sinned a great sin but now I will go up to the Lord look at this perhaps I can make atonement for your sin now what Moses does next is really incredible he offers himself as an
[00:57:29] atonement for the people sin for the people who had just made this golden calf and had just begun to worship false gods. Verse 31, so Moses went back to the Lord and said, oh what a great sin
[00:57:46] these people have committed. They have made themselves gods of gold, but now please forgive their sin. But if not, then blot me out of the book you have written. Do you see what Moses is
[00:58:07] doing here he's saying take me instead let your anger fall on me not on them let me stand in their stead yes they're the ones who did it but if you're going to blot somebody's name out of the
[00:58:25] book blot mine not theirs now centuries later another man did something similar the apostle paul romans 9 2 says i have great sorrow an unceasing anguish in my heart for i could wish that i myself were accursed and cut off for christ for the sake of my brothers my kinsmen
[00:58:45] according to the flesh we see moses and and paul with the same heart with the same offer but the same problem neither man was qualified moses was a sinner the apostle paul was a sinner
[00:59:08] you can't atone for other people's sin when you have your own sin to deal with you cannot blot yourself out of the book in someone else's place when your name is already written in the book
[00:59:21] because of your own guilt so if we think our good works or our sincerity or our leadership or our tears or our willingness to suffer is enough to appease a holy God we are mistaken
[00:59:42] like Moses like Paul our works are simply not good enough to atone for the sins that we have committed do you understand that there is no good work that you could ever do that would purchase
[01:00:05] your salvation that would make you right with God I don't care if you gave every dime you have to the kingdom I don't care if you you worked every day for the rest of your life
[01:00:19] helping poor and sick people nothing you can do can atone for your sin nothing can pay for the sins that you have committed nothing can pay for the sins that I have committed because we simply
[01:00:35] are not good enough. That is why we need Jesus. He is the only one who could make that offer to God and have it be accepted. Why? Because he's the only one who never sinned. He's the only one who
[01:00:54] never broke the law. Therefore, he is the only one who has ever qualified to make atonement for other sins. And Jesus did not merely wish to be a curse for his brothers.
[01:01:14] Bible tells us that he became a curse for us. All of the sins that you and I have ever committed and the sins of the whole world were placed on Jesus. Moses was willing, but he wasn't able.
[01:01:27] Paul was willing, but he wasn't able. Jesus was willing and he was able because he's the only one who never sinned so once again in the story of moses we see a foreshadow of jesus christ
[01:01:42] and when you look at this crowd of people never before has there been a group of people that have seen as many miracles of a greater scope in such a short period of time as the children of israel
[01:01:57] saw the 10 plagues the passover the red sea the manna the water the war with the malachites the mountain convulsing and shaking hearing the audible voice of God and yet in 40 days they walked away 40 days is all it took for them to abandon God 40 days of silence and they're like
[01:02:22] time to find a new God because they were looking for a God that they could control that they could command they'd seen miracles hey can I just tell you something if you're out there or maybe you're
[01:02:44] sitting here today and you think yeah if I just saw a miracle then I'd believe yeah you'd believe for a little bit then you'd go right back to not believing can I just tell you the truth
[01:02:51] even if you saw a miracle it would not take long until you'd stop believing because we are humans and the flesh is weak and our memory is short and the pull of sin is strong so this
[01:03:12] isn't just Israel's story this is our story how quickly we forget the amazing things that God has done, how quickly we look to our own efforts, how quickly we turn to a God that we make with our own
[01:03:31] hands. Now our golden calves today, they don't look like statues. They look like hobbies that keep us from spending time with God. They look an awful lot like the almighty dollar as it stands in place of God to provide us peace and security. They look like status symbols that make us look
[01:04:02] and feel important to others to to have value and like the children of Israel we take the blessings that God has given us and they we turn them into something that replaces him and we can look at
[01:04:21] them and go I can't believe they did that and yet aren't we just as guilty aren't we all just as guilty so today I ask you what idol have you created while you were waiting on God what have
[01:04:40] you melted down into your own image because you've prayed as long as you can pray and you're tired of waiting maybe it's a habit or a hobby something that you turn to maybe it's plan b in case god
[01:04:58] doesn't come through that at least you're prepared we read this as the apostle paul said so that we as a church learn so we don't make the same mistake the children of israel made so let me wrap it up
[01:05:18] really quickly. Three things. First, what do we do with this? Stop viewing God's delay as God's absence. He hasn't forgotten you. Just because he hasn't answered your prayer yet doesn't mean he isn't going to. Don't walk away from God because he hasn't answered your prayer the way you think
[01:05:41] he should. The period between when you pray and when God answers, that period in between is when trust is built when faith is built and when it's revealed second examine your life and ask yourself
[01:05:58] are there any any idols that I've allowed into my life things that take the place of God things that I'm relying on things that I'm looking to things that I turn to if so name it honestly
[01:06:12] be honest between you and God God already knows you're the one that needs to be honest with yourself if you've created an idol third remember how weak our flesh is 40 days people had seen the
[01:06:30] mountain convulsing and heard the voice of God they'd seen the miracles 40 days they walked away Jesus the night he was betrayed was in the garden of Gethsemane and it says Jesus said watch and
[01:06:46] pray so that you will not fall into temptation the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak is your flesh weak mine is right all of our flesh is weak all of us are prone to allow idols to get
[01:07:04] into our lives thank God Jesus is our mediator he loves us he cares for us so don't turn to idols in the world to find peace for your heart. Instead, wait patiently on God. Don't forget who he is
[01:07:25] and what he's done for you. Amen. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for who you are, Lord God Almighty. Holy, holy, holy. Thank you that Jesus was willing to go to the cross to
[01:07:47] pay for our sins to stand in our place to make atonement for us when we couldn't do it on our own thank you God for all that you do for your love your grace and your mercy God may we never
[01:08:00] forget your goodness to us father we love you and we praise you this morning in Jesus name

[01:08:07] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[01:08:07] and all God's people said amen let's stand as we sing our final song over every heart and every mind cause I know there is peace within your presence I speak Jesus I just want to speak
[01:09:09] the name of Jesus till every dark addiction starts to break declaring there is hope and There is freedom.
[01:09:25] I speak Jesus.
[01:09:33] It's power.
[01:09:35] Your name is healing.

[01:09:38] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[01:09:38] Your name is the justice from the Jesus in the darkness.

[01:11:25] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]
[01:11:25] Jesus for me.