Red, White, and Golden Moo

All across the country this morning, congregations followed the weekly tradition of gathering together to sing songs of worship and praise. This morning, however, was not the same. Groups of believers from shore to shore, including many evangelical congregations, lifted up a song or two to honor this great country in which we are blessed with incredible freedoms. While it is right and good for American Christians to thank God for these rights and freedoms, some congregations have gone to an extreme by making an idol for themselves and singing praises to another god. Instead of directing praise to our Father, many of us have exchanged Him for a banner of red, white, and blue and offered our gratitude and praise to an idol. Even if only for a few minutes, our praise has changed directions from Godward to flagward.

We are not unique in making this exchange. Over and over, man has fashioned new gods and idols in his own image to replace the Creator of all things. One of the clearest and most popular examples of this is found in the account of the Golden Calf in the book of Exodus.

As Moses was encountering the living God on a mountain not too far away, the Israelites were quickly growing impatient of waiting for him to come back. When they got sick of waiting for the prophet to return with a word from God, they demanded Moses' brother to build them a god. Aaron conceded and proceeded to build a statue of a cow that was made out of the people's gold jewelry.

When the idol was built, the people praised it instead of God. They gave it credit for delivering them and providing them freedom. Speaking of the collected gold, "they said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" (Ex 32: 4)

God was prepared to respond in holy wrath against the idolatrous worship of the Israelites by wiping out the entire group of people; however, Moses stood in the gap for Israel and asked God to have mercy on them. He spoke these words to God: "But now, if you will forgive their sin--but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written," (Ex 32:32). In response to Moses' prayer, God had mercy on the people. They did not completely escape judgment as God later sent a plague, but they did receive mercy from immediate, ultimate judgment.

Today, the people of God have once again fashioned an idol for themselves. While we wait for the return of Christ, many of us have grown tired of waiting and have put our ultimate hope in something we built. We have put our trust in something we can see and touch."Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things," (Rom 1:22-23).

There are two similarities that should give us great pause.

First, the Israelites praised the new idol for providing them freedom. Their freedom from Israel was indeed a great blessing; however, they did not give the honor and thanks to the One who provided the freedom. Likewise, our freedom in America is great, but this freedom should only point to the greater freedom we have found in Christ and motivate us to praise Him instead of a symbol.

Second, when Moses came down, he found the people of God singing and dancing to their man-made idol. Today, across our country, countless congregations have lifted their voices directly to a flag "that was still there" instead of a God who was, and is, and is to come.

God is jealous of any praise that His people give to anything or anyone else. "I, I am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior. I declared and saved and proclaimed, when there was no strange god among you," (Is 43:11-12). We must seriously consider the just judgment that is given to those who bow before any idol.

Indeed, we should take note of the judgment that God still placed on Israel for their idolatry, but we should ultimately focus on the role of Moses in this narrative. Moses stood before God as a mediator, a willing substitute. Similarly, we have a perfect mediator and substitute in Christ Jesus. "Therefore, he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant," (Heb 9:15). Whether by singing praises to another or by spending all of our time focusing on something or someone else, we have all worshipped and offered praises to various idols. We must seek forgiveness and place our faith in the One to whom Moses was pointing, Jesus Christ.