The kindergarten teacher kept saying: just don’t color outside the lines, but in adult life, crossing the line costs far more than a ruined picture. This sermon takes us to Mount Sinai, where Israel, fresh from making a covenant with God, casts a golden calf and starts worshiping its own image of God (Exodus 32). We will see how easily we create gods shaped by our own fantasies, and how much chasing an illusion really costs. Listen and find out why Christ crossed the line between life and death, so that anyone who has lost their way can find the road back.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- The Israelites had just seen the plagues in Egypt, the crossing of the Red Sea and the covenant ceremony at Sinai, yet they asked Aaron for a calf. According to Exodus 32:1-6, what pushed them to do this?
- Moses intercedes for the people, reminds God of His promises to Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and then asks to be blotted out of God's book. What does this prayer reveal about God and about Moses himself?
- The sermon pointed out how hard it is to worship a God you cannot see and who sometimes seems silent. In what situations are you tempted to create your own, more comfortable picture of God?
- The speaker described belief in a God who always answers "yes" and a young man whose picture of God fell apart. How can we tell the true picture of God, revealed in His Word, from our own ideas about Him?
- Using Steve Jobs as an example, the sermon showed that even good things like work, a passion or healthy eating can become idols that enslave us. What in your life most easily takes the place that belongs to God?
- Jesus did what Moses could not: He took our place and paid the price for sin. What concrete step of returning to God or remembering His covenant do you want to take this week?
