Who Is On The Lord's Side?

Mr. Lindsay Stephens discusses the story of the Israelites worshiping a golden calf while Moses was away. Then Lindsay talks about the reasons behind this idolatry and the consequences it had on the people. He also analyze the behavior of Aaron and highlight the importance of not giving in to public pressure to do wrong. Mr. Stephens also emphasizes the dangers of idol worship and how it can lead to immoral behavior. Well, hello brethren. Welcome to another Sabbath day, which is the day that God has appointed as a day of rest and a day where his presence is. In his infinite wisdom, God has provided mankind with the freedom to choose what directions we make in life. We can make all kinds of physical choices in building, in creating, writing and how to earn a living. And God has also provided us with the freedom to make spiritual choices. We were not made to be automatic robots with choices made for us, having no influence on building character. So in this message I intend to reflect a bit on where we've come from, where we are today, where we are headed. Now I'm referring to the society around us rather than individually, but we have to make choices ourselves obviously. I could also ask the question, what does God expect from us if we are confronted with similar circumstances? But firstly I would like us to turn to the scripture from where I pick up the title of this message in Exodus 32. Incidentally this is the chapter straight after God made the special Sabbath covenant in Exodus 31, where God said to Moses that the Sabbath was a sign between God and his people to identify him so that they would know that it is God who sanctifies them. After the children of Israel had received the Ten Commandments, had heard the voice of God at Mount Sinai, with all that happened before that in Egypt, and all the miracles that God had done for them, this is what they did. Exodus 32 verse 1. And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, then the people gathered themselves to Aaron, and they said to him, Up, make us gods which shall go before us, for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. So they set up a committee. They were disrespectful to Aaron who was left in charge in Moses absence from the camp, but they were certainly disrespectful to God after all he had done for them. Unfortunately, Aaron did not resist the mob in a riot to do the wrong thing and make the idol he knew was against God. He even went this far in verse 4. And he took them from their hand and fashioned it with an engraving tool and made a molten calf. And they said, These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And when Aaron saw the calf, he built an altar before it and Aaron made a proclamation and said, Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord. So Aaron told an absolute lie. He was a high priest committing adultery. The Aaronic priesthood would have a history of weaknesses and failings until Jesus came in the flesh and qualified to be a high priest with no weakness whatsoever. And continuing verse 6. And they rose up on the next morning and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and to drink and to rose up and play. Well, they had a sex orgy. I believe this part in Cecil DeMille's The Ten Commandments was quite accurate in what was going on with the people. There were many lewd acts with violence which was becoming increasingly out of control. And just the result of all this going on that God told Moses to get down from the mountain. And in verse 7. And the Lord said to Moses, Go get you down for the people whom you brought up 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 to it and said, These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And we see God's reaction to this revolt against his laws in verse 9. And the Lord said to Moses, I have seen this people and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. And now leave me alone so that my wrath may burn hot against them and that I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation. So God wanted to see the reaction, what reaction Moses would have had to this statement that he made. Moses could have said, Okay, Lord, wipe them out. I won't let you down. I'm tired of them all anyway. But he didn't. In verse 13. We go to verse 13. Oh, verse 11. Sorry. And Moses prayed to the Lord, his God, and said, Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people whom you have brought forth out of the land of Egypt? With great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians speak and say, He brought them out with an evil intent to kill them in the mountains and consume them from the face of the earth. Turn from your fierce wrath and repent of this evil against your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self and said to them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens. And all of this land that I've spoken of will I give to your seed and they shall inherit it forever. So God remembered that he made a covenant, a maledictory oath to Abraham and to the promises made to the descendants of Israel. It was a test of Moses' character and the response that he would give. In any case, Moses was very angry with the idolatry of the people. Let's come to verse 19. And it came to pass, as soon as he came near to the camp and saw the calf and dancing, then Moses' anger burned hot and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the bottom of the mountain. And he took the calf which he had made and burnt it in the fire and pulverised it to powder and scattered it upon the water and made the children of Israel drink of it. So drastic action was needed. And Moses said to Aaron, what did this people do to you that you had brought so great a sin upon them? So Aaron was left in charge. He should have known what to do if the people rebelled. And Aaron said, let not the anger of my Lord burn hot. You know the people that they have set on mischief. He described human nature or the human heart right there. Jeremiah 17 verse 9, which is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Continuing verse 23, for they said to me, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. And I said to them, whoever has any gold, let them break it off. And they gave it to me and I threw it into the fire and there came out this calf. This was one of the most ludicrous excuses in the Bible to say virtually that the calf just sprang out of the fire. Aaron knew how to make a golden calf from his experience in Egypt. So some questions do arise from this whole event. Why did they do this when Moses was God, but not when he was there? Why did Aaron get into them so easily? And what does it tell us about Aaron? What does this show about their relationship to God? The problem was that the people did not have a relationship with God at all themselves. They were playing lip service to God because of Moses' strong leadership. God had performed many great miracles through Moses, both in Egypt and since leaving Egypt. The result was that people greatly respected Moses and followed instructions while he was there. But while he was away, it was a different story. So at this stage I intend to make a few points about this. Point one, already mentioned, that this great sin was done when Moses wasn't there. When the cat's away, the mice will play, as the saying goes. Point two, people are basically spiritual. The people still felt the need to express themselves spiritually. So, like in Romans 1, they decided to exchange worship of the true God for an idol made with human hands. People tend to have short-term memories. They only tend to think in terms of the here and now, forgetting about the miracles God had done for them. As mentioned before, human nature is desperately wicked. Satan will use any opportunity to build up on doubts that arise over a period of time and allow it to spread like a cancer. Point three, the people gave undue respect to Moses at God's expense. They said that Moses is the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt when it was clearly God who achieved this. Whenever there was a trial with water or food, they were quick to blame Moses. Point four, what can we say about Aaron here? As a leader, the people, a leader of the people, God held him to a high standard. He should have stood up to the people and quickly dealt with this foolish idea. However, he quickly gave in to them. So his motivation was, the lesson for all of us is this, never give in to public pressure of a mob to do wrong. It may be the most expedient thing to do at the time, but not the right action in the eyes of God. As a whole, politicians make decisions based solely on public opinion surveys, whether or not they are right. Point five, people throughout history have liked worshipping something visible. They like the thought of seeing is believing. But this golden calf, visible as it was, certainly wasn't going to save Israel from any trial. Point six, the people did not abandon God altogether. Verse five showed us that they made a feast to the Lord, as they were sacrificing to this idol they had made. But by this secretism, they were blending false and pagan religions with the worship of the true God. This has occurred often in scripture, with examples in Kings such as Solomon and Jeroboam. In verse six, there is a direct connection between idol worship and sin. Because idols can't see, hear or judge, the people who make them have no fear of being punished for sin. By worshipping these idols, they could assign any standards to these idols that they created. It means they could have complete freedom to do whatever they want, whatever they like, and not worry or feel guilty about doing wrong or being disciplined. And as soon as they started worshipping this false god, they lost all self-control and started committing gross acts of immorality as a whole. Now let's read verse 25. And when Moses saw that the people were naked, for Aaron had made them naked to their shame among their enemies, then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, We come to the title here. Who is on the Lord's side? Come to me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves to him. The rest of the chapter describes about how Israel suffered because of their great sin. About 3,000 died that day at the hands of the sons of Levi. And in verse 35 it says, I come to the question, what has this event got to do with us during our time of being called into the body of Christ? After all, in this day and age of a more sophisticated society, we should be above making a physical idol, bowing down to it and worshipping it as God. But as Satan is the god of this world, being totally on God's side is not as simple as that. Satan employs subtle tactics to try to deceive God's elect. He's not worried about the rest of the world because he knows that they are not on the Lord's side. Satan knows what strongholds we have to overcome in the mind. We have to overcome. If Satan has his way totally with us, he could use AI to send us somewhere out in the metaphors and entrap us with virtual reality to put our minds totally off balance with where our thoughts need to be. If that happens, God would not be able to use us for his purpose. So all Satan needs to do to deceive the so-called out ones enough to be offside with God and stray off the narrow path that leads to eternal life. And it doesn't take much to do this. Compare this with an ocean voyage on a ship across the Pacific from San Francisco to Sydney. Just as an example. If the bearings were out by one degree, you would be out by 112 miles off course at the end of the destination. And since God is perfect, this would not measure up. This world has the idea that near enough is good enough. There are so many grey areas with no exact right or long ways where everyone can have their own opinion just like in Judges 21 verse 25 where every man did what was right in their own eyes. These days it is more popular to be work on all sorts of moral issues as they are contrary to the word of God. And as these trends continue, those people in the churches of God will become increasingly more unpopular with the world as it becomes more blatantly entrenched under Satan's system. What will it take to be on the Lord's side as times become so much worse than now? Professing Christians, Jews and Muslims all believe that they have God on their side. But the question is avoided. Do we do God's will? What does he say to do? American songwriter and singer Bob Dylan had a song out in the 1960s called With God on Our Side. And as catchy as the song was, it misses the point. God does not conform to the conditions or the whims of human beings. We need to seek God on his terms so that we can be on his side. So God doesn't take sides. He is on his own side of righteousness, affection and the way of love for his creation. He won't be on anyone's side who lives in sin, rejects his truth and prefers darkness to light. And Jesus said, the one who is not with me is against me. We are to look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Hebrews 12 verse 2. He starts it, he finishes it and he is the author and the maker. The righteousness of God is revealed from faith unto faith. Romans 1 17. It is his faith that matters. That faith and his sacrifice are being redeemed by his perfect sinless shed blood for us. And having done this, he is at the right hand of the Father as our high priest, advocate, intercessor and wants us to be on his side. And we do need to be on the right side because there is a major war going on that the world at large does not realise. And this war, which is between God and his angels against Satan and the demons, has been going on for a very long time. Very simply put, any individual in the world is either on God's side or on Satan's side. It's as simple as that. And with this in mind we come to 2 Corinthians chapter 6. 2 Corinthians chapter 6 and the apostle Paul, he had his battles against the world. Against the Jewish, the Sanhedrin. So 2 Corinthians 6 verse 14. Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and lawlessness have in common? And what fellowship does light have with darkness? So this applies with doctrine. The world today is abounding and multiplying in lawlessness. And what union does Christ have with Belial? What part does a believer have with an unbeliever? And Belial here refers to the sons of foolishness. For example, we have the corrupt and converted leaders of the world and they are serving Satan. And they are serving Satan. In verse 16. And what agreement is there between a temple of God and the idols? For you are a temple of the living God. And this is those who have been called. Exactly as God said, I will dwell in them and walk in them and I will be their God and they shall be my people. Therefore, come out from the midst of them and be separate, says the Lord. And touch not the unclean and I will receive you. So John, the apostle John in Revelation says, come out of her my people. That's Babylon. So this is the opposite of the ecumenical movement. And it's the amalgamation of all the world's religions. We are to come out of them. And have nothing that is contrary to the word of God. And there are conditions for God's promises. In verse 18. And I will be a father to you and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty. Do we think this is going to be an easy affair to live God's way? Satan the devil certainly doesn't want to make it easy for any of those whom God has called. In fact, he doesn't want any of us to make it in God's kingdom. And let's look at what Jesus said in Matthew 10. In Matthew 10 and Jesus, as you know, he had his own confrontation with Satan in the wilderness. He had to overcome. Overcome Satan. Okay, now verse 34. Of Matthew 10. Do not think that I have come to bring peace on the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. And this is in this current age. The sword, of course, is the word of God. Mentioned in Hebrews 4 verse 12 and Ephesians 6 verse 17. And continuing in verse 35. For I have come to set a man at variance against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a man's enemies shall be those of his own household. If those in the household are not on God's side, then they are the spiritual enemies of anyone who is converted. And the one who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. And the one who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And the one who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. So we need to prioritize. God the Father and Jesus Christ must always come first. And continuing verse 38. And the one who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. So it's that serious, brethren. We must all be in on this with no half measures. No sitting on the fence. Think of how the tribe of Levi responded to Moses' question in Exodus 32 verse 26. So what does God want from us? Well, let's have a look here at Isaiah 55. Isaiah 55. And God wants us to do the right thing. He wants us to look to Him. And not to the world. So Isaiah 55, and beginning with verse 6, which is well known to us. And this is so profound. We can't take it for granted. Because think of the time that is coming when there will be a famine of the hearing of the word. Amos 8 verse 11 and 12. And let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord. And he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. And God is very merciful when He is ready to forgive repentance at any time. So when repentance is done by returning to the Lord, God's mercy will be given. And in verse 8, for my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways my ways, said the Lord. So we all need to come to this point and understand that God knows the whole perspective of His great plan for eternity. On the other hand, human beings in the flesh, with a carnal mind, tend to focus on the here and now. And in verse 9, for as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, my thoughts than your thoughts. To get on God's side, we need to be aiming for the best we can be, and seek to have the mind of Christ. At this point I want to provide a few rough statistics. Of the current world's population of about 8 billion, about 31.6% are classified as Christian, just under a third. It is also the most rapidly declining religion, predominantly in the Israelite countries of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Western Europe. Now of the 2.5 billion people proclaiming Christianity, about half are Catholic, 37% are Protestant, 12% are Orthodox. And 1% classified as Other. And of this 1% of Other, it includes such groups as Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists, Seventh-day Baptists, Mennonites, Hutterites, and other minority groups. Within this 1% are also the churches of God. So of all the world's population, we are very blessed and privileged to be called out to have an understanding of God's great plan and purpose, very much a little flock. I present these brief statistics to emphasise the fact that all through the ages, those on God's side have always been in a very small minority, and this includes the time before the Flood, all throughout the post-Flood, which includes the nations of Israel and Judah, during the time of Christ, and all the time since then. And this same situation applies today of those who walk in the straight, narrow path that leads to eternal life. The Apostle Paul brings us out in some detail in his letter to the Ephesians in chapter 1. So we go to Ephesians 1. Ephesians chapter 1. He begins with a normal introduction to his epistles. In verse 2 he writes that God the Father and Jesus Christ wants us to have grace with a direct relationship with them. So we'll pick this up in verse 3 where he writes, So God has put his Spirit into us to help us with our conversion and spiritual growth. And in verse 4, And the Apostle Peter says, We are a chosen stock, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for the possession of God, 1 Peter 2 verse 9. And that is spiritual Israel. And in verse 5, And just think of this, those whom God calls, which includes us, are the heart, the core and the centre of the work of God. The rest of the universe will come later. To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he has made us objects of his grace in the beloved Son, in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the remission of sins according to the riches of his grace. We have redemption from sin, from Satan, from self. God's secret plan is made known to us, but not to the world because they won't repent and they are not currently on the Lord's side. In verse 8, Which he has made to abound towards us in all wisdom and intelligence or understanding. Having made known to us the mystery of his own will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in himself. He wants us to have this opportunity, brethren. The whole universe is out there waiting for us. That in the divine plan for the fulfilling of the times, he might bring all things together in Christ, both the things in the heavens and the things upon the earth. And the fulfilling of the times is revealed in the Sabbath and the Holy Days, mentioned in Genesis 1 verse 14. And Leviticus 23 has them all listed in order. There are laws out there in the universe that God has put in place that we look forward to having a full understanding of. In verse 11, Yes, in him, in whom, we have obtained an inheritance. Having been predestinated according to his purpose, who is working out all things according to the counsel of his own will. Just like those mentioned in the faith chapter of Hebrews 11, and many others not mentioned in that chapter. Our inheritance has not been given to us yet. But it is coming if we remain faithful. That we might be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in the Christ. In whom you also trusted after hearing the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation. In whom also after believing, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise after repentance, baptism and the laying on of hands. As Paul says in Romans 8 verse 9, But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit. If the Spirit of God is indeed dwelling within you, but if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. He does not belong to him. At this point he is not on the Lord's side. He is not on the Lord's side. And in verse 14, Which is the onus of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession to the praise of his glory. So the onus is a small down payment of our inheritance. A deposit if you like. With the promise that full payment will be made later. The full payment will occur when as perfect spirit beings we will be shining as the stars. And perhaps a comparison of this is with the small number God has called currently with the rest of the world. And their opportunity will come later. And in verse 15, For this cause I also after hearing and the faith of the Lord Jesus that is among you and the faith and the love towards all the saints. So Paul states the reason behind this letter of encouragement. And this is something that must be worked at. Everything must be grounded in love. For God is love. 1 John 4 verse 16. To be on the Lord's side. To have the right attitude. Is absolutely necessary on our part in order to see this battle against Satan and the world through to the end. In the book of Proverbs. There are so many examples of living the right way as opposed to the wrong way. And of having the right attitudes or the wrong attitudes. And let's take an example of this. Let's have a look at Proverbs 15. Where there are so many areas of wisdom. Proverbs 15 and we pick it up in verse 28. The heart of the righteous studies to answer. But the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things. So I just want to concentrate on the first half of that. The heart of the righteous studies to answer. We have to put in the effort to procure the answers, to apply them and to grow in character. In verse 29. The Lord is far from the wicked but he hears the prayers of the righteous. The righteous pray for the right things. Like praising God the Father and Jesus Christ for all they have done. Giving thanks for our calling. For repentance and help in overcoming. For more understanding of God's worth and truth. God's word and truth. The elders and for the brethren. For more love towards God the Father, Christ and the brethren in all areas. For the sick and those having trials. And so much more. And in verse 30. The light of the eyes rejoices the heart. A good report makes the bones fat. So the way we think affects our bones and is beneficial for our overall health and well-being. And in verse 31. The ear that hearkens to the reproof of life shall remain among the wise. And this is fundamental. If anyone wants to be wise, they need to hearken to good advice. Where is the best possible advice available? In the word of God. And he who refuses instruction despises his own soul. So this is a result of rejecting the word of God. So this is a result of rejecting the word of God. But he who hearkens to reproof gains understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom. And before honour is humility. So we have to be in awe of him. And there is a major key here. God gives grace to the humble. James 4 verse 6. Also in Isaiah 66. It says that God looks to the poor and contrite spirit who trembles at my word. And while we are in Proverbs, we can turn to chapter 16. Just one chapter over. And verse 3. And verse 3. And this is the way of life. The way we are to live. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. So it should be in our thoughts all the time. And as I previously mentioned, and as we all know, there is a great spiritual battle going on. This war is going to escalate and will reach a crescendo before it's all over. And in this last set of scriptures in Revelation 19, I want to bring this out. And to emphasise why it is so important for us to be on the right side in this war. So Revelation 19. We come to Revelation 19. And verse 11. Revelation 19 verse 11. Describing this war. And I saw heaven open, and behold a white horse. Now, I don't want this white horse to be confused with the white horse of Revelation 6. Verse 2. Because that white horse is false prophets. And he who sat on it is called faithful and true. And in righteousness he does judge and make war. And his eyes were like a flame of fire and on his head were many crowns. And he had a name written that no one knows except him. And continuing verse 13. And he was clothed with a garment. With a garment. Tipped in blood and his name is the word of God. So we think of the vengeance of God upon this world for all the blood shed from the time of Abel. And the word Logos was there from the very beginning. John 1 verse 1 and 2. And the armies in heaven were following him on white horses. And they were clothed in fine linen, white and pure. So this is the righteousness of the saints. And we will be perfect spirit beings. Perfected spirit beings. Completely in line with God's plans and on God's plan and on the Lord's side. And in verse 15. And out of his mouth goes a sharp sword. And this sword is. The Starfall Scepter. It refers to complete continuity of government and rulership. That with it he might smite the nations. And he might shepherd them with an iron rod. And he treads the winepress of the fury and the wrath of the Almighty God. And this last scripture is verse 16 here. So brethren, no matter what the circumstances will be in the future. We will need to be steadfast. Resolute. We will need to be steadfast. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be resolute. We will need to be steadfast. Resolute and fixed in our own mind when the question will be put to us. Who is on the Lord's side? We need to be totally convinced with our answer to this question. Who is on the Lord's side? Thank you brethren.