November 26, 2023

An Unholy Rebellion

1 hour 4 minutes

Sermon 78 in Series

Exodus 32:1-6

[1] When the people saw that Moses delayed 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 land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” [2] So Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” [3] So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. [4] And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” [5] When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.” [6] And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

DEEP SHEET: Sermon Study Questions

1. How is the golden calf incident connected back to prior frustrations? What set of vices do we see at work in v. 1?

2. How does God use waiting in the life of a Christian? In what ways have you struggled with waiting and trusting?

3. What does this passage suggest about the soil from which idolatry grows? How does it refine our understanding of human depravity?

4. What are we to make of Aaron’s sin? How are Christians today tempted to conform to the majority?

5. How has God convicted you of using gifts to replace the Giver? How can those gifts be redirected for his holy purposes?

6. How does v. 6 highlight the extent of Israel’s sin? What does it say about the conscience?

7. Why does the golden calf serve as a fitting backdrop for the building of the tabernacle? How does it point to the fulfillment of the tabernacle in Christ? References: Ephesians 5:20; Exodus 24:18; 15:24; 16:3; 17:3; 20:1-6; 24:7; 12:36; 1 Kings 12:28-29; Psalm 106:19-22; Exodus 24:4-5.

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