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We are a people who thrive on choices, and in our culture of consumerism and self-gratification, there is no shortage of choices. Though the breadth and variety of those choices has broadened throughout the years, it’s not a new concept. The ability to choose dates back to the Garden of Eden. It is an integral part of who we are as God’s creation. Our Creator gave us the ability and capacity to choose. But as our Creator, He knew our frame. He knew He needed to give us guardrails to help us make the right choices. But the downside of our ability to choose was – and is – our capacity to choose to function outside of those guardrails and make wrong choices. So it was in the Garden … so it is today … and so it was for the people of Israel as they made their way to the Promised Land.
Only forty days had passed since the people of Israel had made this commitment to their God: “We will certainly do everything the LORD asks of us.”(1) God had then clearly told them in His first commandment that they were to worship no other gods besides Him.(2) And in His second, He made it clear they were not to make idols of any kind, including in the form of animals, nor were they to worship or bow down before images made by man.(3)
But how quickly they forgot the commitment they had made!(4) God was about to finish giving His detailed instructions to Moses regarding the wilderness tabernacle – the dwelling place for His presence that would be situated in the center of their encampment. As God was unveiling His plan to Moses, He observed the Israelites coming to Aaron and demanding he make an idol for them to worship. God did not immediately tell Moses what the people were doing. Instead, He continued to observe their blatant disobedience to His commandment without making comment to Moses. He observed Aaron’s spineless response to their request as he knowingly compromised and disobeyed God’s Word. God silently watched as the people presented their offerings of gold for the making of the idol. He saw Aaron disobediently melt the gold and mold it into the shape of a calf. He heard the people excitedly proclaim that this was the god who had brought them out of Egypt.
It is important that we realize that as God was watching and hearing all of this, He never skipped a beat. He continued to unfold His plan to Moses. That fact gives us an important insight into His character and His ways. God will never permit anyone or anything to keep Him from accomplishing His appointed task – even the disobedience of His people!
God will never permit anyone or anything to keep Him from accomplishing His appointed task – even the disobedience of His people!
The second important insight we must see is: God will not prevent us from being knowingly disobedient to Him. He is God! He could have very easily stopped them in their tracks at any point along the way, but God gave them, as He gives us, the freedom to choose to disobey.
i must hasten to add that i do believe that God does sovereignly intervene to protect us from unknowingly disobeying Him. i thank God that He protects me from my own stupidity! If the desire of my heart is to obey Him, but i am proceeding in a way that is contrary to His Word due to my lack of knowledge or understanding, i believe God will make sure i am given that knowledge and understanding.
God will not prevent us from being knowingly disobedient to Him.
He will seize my attention. He will surround me with Christian brothers or sisters who will point me in His ways. He will do whatever it takes to align the action of my head and hands with the desire of my heart (assuming my heart is truly desiring to seek Him and obey Him). But God will never override our decision to be knowingly disobedient to Him. And remember, God knows our hearts. We may be able to deceptively plead ignorance to man, but we will never be able to deceive God. Let there be no mistake; the people knew they were disobeying God’s commands. Aaron knew he was disobeying God’s commands.
And still, God continued to watch as the people prepared to offer burnt sacrifices and peace offerings to that golden calf. He continued as they celebrated and indulged in their pagan revelry.
Then, when God had finished outlining His plan to Moses – in His time and not before – God set things in motion to respond to the disobedience of His people. Here is a third truth that we must grasp. God alone controls His timing – neither our disobedience nor our obedience will alter His timing or force Him into action before His time. Don’t ever confuse God’s silence as being His tacit approval of our disobedience, and never assume that He is ignoring our disobedience. God will never wink at our sin. He will always deal with His people regarding our disobedience – for the sake of His Name and His glory – but He will do so in His time and His way.
God alone controls His timing – neither our disobedience nor our obedience will alter His timing or force Him into action before His time.
God knew His people were going to disobey long before He called Moses up onto that mountain – just like He knew Adam and Eve were going to disobey long before He created them. In God’s perfect will, He desired that His people obey; but in His permissive will, He allowed them to choose to disobey; and in His sovereignty He knew which they would choose. That’s why the Father always knew He would need to send His Son. He knew our propensity to disobey. He knew that left to our own devices we would choose to disobey. So He sent His Son to show us how to make the right choices. He sent His Son to cleanse us of our sin from the disobedience of our wrong choices. He sent His Son to enable us to walk in His path of right choices. No, He didn’t stop them. He doesn’t stop us. Instead, He made the Way for them – and us – to be redeemed.
Joshua, who was waiting for Moses up on that mountain, would later say to the people: “Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve…. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”(5) And that choice is still ours!
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This post is adapted from The Journey Begins, chapter 48, entitled “Why Didn’t God Stop Them?” This first book in the Lessons Learned In The Wilderness series is available through Amazon in print or for your e-reader. Click HERE for more information on how you can obtain your copy of the book.
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(1) Exodus 19:8 (NLT)
(2) Exodus 20:2-3
(3) Exodus 20:4
(4) Exodus 32:1-7 (NLT)
When Moses failed to come back down the mountain right away, the people went to Aaron. "Look," they said, "make us some gods who can lead us. This man Moses, who brought us here from Egypt, has disappeared. We don't know what has happened to him." So Aaron said, "Tell your wives and sons and daughters to take off their gold earrings, and then bring them to me." All the people obeyed Aaron and brought him their gold earrings. Then Aaron took the gold, melted it down, and molded and tooled it into the shape of a calf. The people exclaimed, "O Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of Egypt!" When Aaron saw how excited the people were about it, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, "Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD!" So the people got up early the next morning to sacrifice burnt offerings and peace offerings. After this, they celebrated with feasting and drinking, and indulged themselves in pagan revelry. Then the LORD told Moses, "Quick! Go down the mountain! The people you brought from Egypt have defiled themselves.”
(5) Joshua 24:15 (NASB)
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