Introduction: When Israel apostatized, Moses was with the Lord on Mount Sinai. The people threatened his brother, Aaron, with death, so Aaron yielded to them and made an idol. The people then declared:
“ ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ ” (Exod. 32:4, NKJV), thus explicitly rejecting the Lord as their God and breaking their covenant with Him. It is significant to note that the Lord stated to Moses before his descent to the camp from Mount Sinai that the Israelites had turned away from Him and worshiped an idol. Thus, Israel was now Moses’ people, and it was Moses who had delivered the Israelites from Egypt. The Lord said: “ ‘Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt’ ” (Exod. 32:7, NIV). Previously, the Lord, as well as Moses and Jethro, had stressed that it was the Lord who brought Israel out of Egypt (Exod. 3:8, 17; Exod. 12:17, 51; Exod. 13:3, 9, 14, 16, 18; Exod. 16:6, 32; Exod. 18:1, 10; Exod. 19:4; Exod. 20:2). God now doesn’t identify with Israel because the Israelites did not recognize Him as their Lord. What a tragic situation!
Afterward, the Lord offers to make Moses “ ‘into a great nation’ ” (Exod. 32:10, NIV). It was a powerful temptation for Moses to accept the offer and become great. But he demonstrates the nobility of his character by not even considering such an offer. His unselfish interest in the people’s prosperity stood firm; no personal ambitions could alter it. Moses intercedes for Israel and appeals to the Lord by pointing out that it was God who delivered Israel. This people are “ ‘your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand’ ” (Exod. 32:11, NIV). Because of Moses’ intervention, the Lord “relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened” (Exod. 32:14, NIV). What power there is in intercessory prayer!
After Moses returned to the camp and saw the rebellion, he broke into pieces the two tablets containing the Ten Promises God had given him, an act that was the external sign of what the Israelites had done when they rejected the Lord as their Leader. Then Moses destroyed the golden calf. Even in Moses’ presence, people were running “wild” and “out of control” (Exod. 32:25, NIV), so he had to intervene. Those who stubbornly continued in rebellion had to be purged, so God, through Moses, commanded them to be killed. This elimination was necessary; otherwise, God’s people would have gone into irreversible ruin (regarding this execution, read Ellen G. White’s Patriarchs and Prophets, pages 324–327). The next day, Moses again climbed Mount Sinai and interceded for Israel, requesting their merciful God to forgive His people for their wicked behavior.
Part II: Commentary
Part II: Commentary
The Golden Calf Apostasy and Aaron
The Golden Calf Apostasy and Aaron
Aaron could have prevented the golden calf apostasy if he had stood firm for God and His truth. He should not have yielded to the people’s demands for a visible god or gods. When disrespect was shown for God and His servant Moses, Aaron should immediately have stopped the uprising. Instead, he listened to the rebels and made a false proposition. In the time of Moses’ absence, Aaron should have functioned as a strong leader, not fearing even his own death. God always intervenes to defend His cause, and Aaron should have trusted Him.
Moses’ concern for the prosperity of God’s people is reflected in his question to his brother Aaron: “And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?” (Exod. 32:21). Aaron’s yielding to wrong requests led to tragic consequences. To excuse his behavior, Aaron invented a miracle: “And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me: then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf” (Exod. 32:24). Aaron referred to magic to calm Moses’ anger. Sin blinds, and stories are often created to cover disobedience.
“And the Lord was very angry with Aaron” (Deut. 9:20), but his life was spared because Moses interceded for him. Aaron sincerely repented of this grievous sin, was restored to his leadership position, and later was anointed as the high priest (Exod. 40:12–15). God’s grace and mercy are amazing!
Intercessory Prayer
Intercessory Prayer
There are four basic kinds, or types, of prayer. First, there is the “prayer of praise” or “prayer of thanksgiving,” wherein we thank God for the marvelous things He has done. In the prayer of thanksgiving, we express our gratitude for who God is and for what He does in our lives and the lives of His people, thus praising Him with joy for His numerous blessings. Second, there is the “prayer of repentance,” wherein we humbly ask God for forgiveness for our sins. Third, there is the “prayer of supplication,” wherein we pray for specific things for ourselves, such as wisdom, the Holy Spirit, joy, love, health, peace, patience, spiritual gifts, financial resources, food, safety, protection, and so on. Finally, there is the “prayer of intercession,” wherein we pray not for ourselves but for others, requesting for God to mercifully intervene and give them special “blessings” or “needed things,” such as guidance, conversion, children, parents, marriage, family, communities, institutions, prosperity, success, and so on. We also may pray for the sick, persecuted, hurt, poor, students, colleagues, baptisms, supervisors, government, and so forth. Moses’ prayer was an intercessory prayer for sinners, given that he prayed for those who erred, petitioning God to forgive their sin and not to abandon His people (Exod. 32:31, 32).
Important as they are, intercessory prayers are surrounded by mystery. On the one hand, God will do the maximum for every person or people to save them because He loves them. On the other hand, intercessory prayer allows God to do more for people in their given situation. This is a tension, and we are not able to resolve it now. The good news is that we do not need to do so. Thus, we do not need to know precisely how intercessory prayer functions, but God’s Word testifies that it works, and our experience confirms it. What we need is to pray as an obedient response to His instructions. We do not need to understand every puzzle in life in order to pray! We need to accept God’s lead, trust Him, follow, and pray.
God respects people’s choices because God never forces anyone to follow Him. He guarantees their freedom; yet, we are encouraged to pray for people, even for our enemies. This is another apparent contradiction that we are unable to solve or explain because we do not see behind the veil, where a spiritual battle is taking place. One can but dimly understand it when reflecting upon it in the context of the great controversy, as we observe the spiritual warfare between the forces of good and evil, truth and lie, light and darkness, Christ and Satan. These glimpses of insight help us to trust that our Lord will do His best to save everyone.
Behind the curtain of the unseen world exist rules that regulate how the powers of good and evil interact. Theologians speak about God “permitting” Satan to act. John Peckham calls these regulations “rules of engagement.” (See Peckham, Theodicy of Love: Cosmic Conflict and the Problem of Evil [Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2018], p. 58.) The devil is permitted to act, and he has real power, although restricted, under these “rules of engagement” (see Job 1, Job 2:6). These rules have been decided upon, with input from the heavenly council (representatives of all heavenly beings), Satan, and God. These regulations mean that God has given Satan certain “privileges,” or better yet, “permissions,” to fully demonstrate what his “reign” would look like, allowing everyone to compare the two sides.
These regulations also mean that God does not always get what He desires (Isa. 30:15, 18; Isa. 66:4; Ezek. 18:23; Matt. 7:21; Matt. 18:14; Matt. 23:37; Luke 7:30). Moreover, God also is restricted in His actions. God cannot act against these “rules of engagement” because He keeps His promises. “A genuine love relationship requires the possibility that creatures might reject God’s ideal will.”—Peckham, Theodicy of Love, p. 139. God will not restrict our freedom to choose one side or the other because it would prevent the full blossoming of love between God and His created creatures. We are unable to solve this apparent contradiction because we do not see behind the veil of this spiritual battle. However, God is committed “to the flourishing of love and the covenantal rules of engagement.”—Theodicy of Love, p. 140.
We do know several things about God, but some things are ambiguous or puzzling to us. Paul states that “our knowledge is partial and incomplete,” and “we see things imperfectly” (1 Cor. 13:9, 12, NLT). We know that God loves us, saves us, and wants to save everyone. We know that we can trust Him and rely upon His promises, care, and help. We know that He wants our best. We know that He hears our prayers and that we cannot manipulate Him. We know that prayers are important, and Satan trembles when God’s people pray because things move forward when we pray. We do not understand why some prayers are quickly answered, others with delay, and some never, at least according to our expectations.
God invites us to pray, not because we understand what is going on behind the scenes or how our prayers are heard. We do not control prayer, but we are invited to pray, even commanded to do so. When God’s people pray, the evil kingdom is shattered, and God’s cause can mysteriously advance.
Part III: Life Application
Part III: Life Application
How is it that we humans have such a short memory of the great things God has done for us? How easily we forget! How can we refresh our walk with God and remember in critical moments of our life the goodness of God so that we may make right decisions and not sin against Him?
What can be a golden calf in our lives?
How can we be more vigilant toward, and helpful to, people who need our prayers? Prayer opens us up to God so that He can do for us, and in us, miracles of transformation.
Moses prayed for sinners and offered his life for them. This is a pattern of how we should pray for those who have sinned in our midst. Discuss with your class different situations and how we can pray for each other in such cases.
Christ’s intercessory prayer for His disciples and for us is a model of how to pray for others (read John 17). Moses did not need to die so that sinners could experience forgiveness. In the case of Jesus, our true Intercessor, His death was necessary for us. Why?
How can we pray for one another without being offensive or disrespectful?
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Part I: Overview
Key Text: Exodus 32:31, 32
Study Focus: Exod. 32:1–35
Introduction: When Israel apostatized, Moses was with the Lord on Mount Sinai. The people threatened his brother, Aaron, with death, so Aaron yielded to them and made an idol. The people then declared:
“ ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ ” (Exod. 32:4, NKJV), thus explicitly rejecting the Lord as their God and breaking their covenant with Him. It is significant to note that the Lord stated to Moses before his descent to the camp from Mount Sinai that the Israelites had turned away from Him and worshiped an idol. Thus, Israel was now Moses’ people, and it was Moses who had delivered the Israelites from Egypt. The Lord said: “ ‘Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt’ ” (Exod. 32:7, NIV). Previously, the Lord, as well as Moses and Jethro, had stressed that it was the Lord who brought Israel out of Egypt (Exod. 3:8, 17; Exod. 12:17, 51; Exod. 13:3, 9, 14, 16, 18; Exod. 16:6, 32; Exod. 18:1, 10; Exod. 19:4; Exod. 20:2). God now doesn’t identify with Israel because the Israelites did not recognize Him as their Lord. What a tragic situation!
Afterward, the Lord offers to make Moses “ ‘into a great nation’ ” (Exod. 32:10, NIV). It was a powerful temptation for Moses to accept the offer and become great. But he demonstrates the nobility of his character by not even considering such an offer. His unselfish interest in the people’s prosperity stood firm; no personal ambitions could alter it. Moses intercedes for Israel and appeals to the Lord by pointing out that it was God who delivered Israel. This people are “ ‘your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand’ ” (Exod. 32:11, NIV). Because of Moses’ intervention, the Lord “relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened” (Exod. 32:14, NIV). What power there is in intercessory prayer!
After Moses returned to the camp and saw the rebellion, he broke into pieces the two tablets containing the Ten Promises God had given him, an act that was the external sign of what the Israelites had done when they rejected the Lord as their Leader. Then Moses destroyed the golden calf. Even in Moses’ presence, people were running “wild” and “out of control” (Exod. 32:25, NIV), so he had to intervene. Those who stubbornly continued in rebellion had to be purged, so God, through Moses, commanded them to be killed. This elimination was necessary; otherwise, God’s people would have gone into irreversible ruin (regarding this execution, read Ellen G. White’s Patriarchs and Prophets, pages 324–327). The next day, Moses again climbed Mount Sinai and interceded for Israel, requesting their merciful God to forgive His people for their wicked behavior.
Part II: Commentary
Part II: Commentary
The Golden Calf Apostasy and Aaron
The Golden Calf Apostasy and Aaron
Aaron could have prevented the golden calf apostasy if he had stood firm for God and His truth. He should not have yielded to the people’s demands for a visible god or gods. When disrespect was shown for God and His servant Moses, Aaron should immediately have stopped the uprising. Instead, he listened to the rebels and made a false proposition. In the time of Moses’ absence, Aaron should have functioned as a strong leader, not fearing even his own death. God always intervenes to defend His cause, and Aaron should have trusted Him.
Moses’ concern for the prosperity of God’s people is reflected in his question to his brother Aaron: “And Moses said unto Aaron, What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?” (Exod. 32:21). Aaron’s yielding to wrong requests led to tragic consequences. To excuse his behavior, Aaron invented a miracle: “And I said unto them, Whosoever hath any gold, let them break it off. So they gave it me: then I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf” (Exod. 32:24). Aaron referred to magic to calm Moses’ anger. Sin blinds, and stories are often created to cover disobedience.
“And the Lord was very angry with Aaron” (Deut. 9:20), but his life was spared because Moses interceded for him. Aaron sincerely repented of this grievous sin, was restored to his leadership position, and later was anointed as the high priest (Exod. 40:12–15). God’s grace and mercy are amazing!
Intercessory Prayer
Intercessory Prayer
There are four basic kinds, or types, of prayer. First, there is the “prayer of praise” or “prayer of thanksgiving,” wherein we thank God for the marvelous things He has done. In the prayer of thanksgiving, we express our gratitude for who God is and for what He does in our lives and the lives of His people, thus praising Him with joy for His numerous blessings. Second, there is the “prayer of repentance,” wherein we humbly ask God for forgiveness for our sins. Third, there is the “prayer of supplication,” wherein we pray for specific things for ourselves, such as wisdom, the Holy Spirit, joy, love, health, peace, patience, spiritual gifts, financial resources, food, safety, protection, and so on. Finally, there is the “prayer of intercession,” wherein we pray not for ourselves but for others, requesting for God to mercifully intervene and give them special “blessings” or “needed things,” such as guidance, conversion, children, parents, marriage, family, communities, institutions, prosperity, success, and so on. We also may pray for the sick, persecuted, hurt, poor, students, colleagues, baptisms, supervisors, government, and so forth. Moses’ prayer was an intercessory prayer for sinners, given that he prayed for those who erred, petitioning God to forgive their sin and not to abandon His people (Exod. 32:31, 32).
Important as they are, intercessory prayers are surrounded by mystery. On the one hand, God will do the maximum for every person or people to save them because He loves them. On the other hand, intercessory prayer allows God to do more for people in their given situation. This is a tension, and we are not able to resolve it now. The good news is that we do not need to do so. Thus, we do not need to know precisely how intercessory prayer functions, but God’s Word testifies that it works, and our experience confirms it. What we need is to pray as an obedient response to His instructions. We do not need to understand every puzzle in life in order to pray! We need to accept God’s lead, trust Him, follow, and pray.
God respects people’s choices because God never forces anyone to follow Him. He guarantees their freedom; yet, we are encouraged to pray for people, even for our enemies. This is another apparent contradiction that we are unable to solve or explain because we do not see behind the veil, where a spiritual battle is taking place. One can but dimly understand it when reflecting upon it in the context of the great controversy, as we observe the spiritual warfare between the forces of good and evil, truth and lie, light and darkness, Christ and Satan. These glimpses of insight help us to trust that our Lord will do His best to save everyone.
Behind the curtain of the unseen world exist rules that regulate how the powers of good and evil interact. Theologians speak about God “permitting” Satan to act. John Peckham calls these regulations “rules of engagement.” (See Peckham, Theodicy of Love: Cosmic Conflict and the Problem of Evil [Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2018], p. 58.) The devil is permitted to act, and he has real power, although restricted, under these “rules of engagement” (see Job 1, Job 2:6). These rules have been decided upon, with input from the heavenly council (representatives of all heavenly beings), Satan, and God. These regulations mean that God has given Satan certain “privileges,” or better yet, “permissions,” to fully demonstrate what his “reign” would look like, allowing everyone to compare the two sides.
These regulations also mean that God does not always get what He desires (Isa. 30:15, 18; Isa. 66:4; Ezek. 18:23; Matt. 7:21; Matt. 18:14; Matt. 23:37; Luke 7:30). Moreover, God also is restricted in His actions. God cannot act against these “rules of engagement” because He keeps His promises. “A genuine love relationship requires the possibility that creatures might reject God’s ideal will.”—Peckham, Theodicy of Love, p. 139. God will not restrict our freedom to choose one side or the other because it would prevent the full blossoming of love between God and His created creatures. We are unable to solve this apparent contradiction because we do not see behind the veil of this spiritual battle. However, God is committed “to the flourishing of love and the covenantal rules of engagement.”—Theodicy of Love, p. 140.
We do know several things about God, but some things are ambiguous or puzzling to us. Paul states that “our knowledge is partial and incomplete,” and “we see things imperfectly” (1 Cor. 13:9, 12, NLT). We know that God loves us, saves us, and wants to save everyone. We know that we can trust Him and rely upon His promises, care, and help. We know that He wants our best. We know that He hears our prayers and that we cannot manipulate Him. We know that prayers are important, and Satan trembles when God’s people pray because things move forward when we pray. We do not understand why some prayers are quickly answered, others with delay, and some never, at least according to our expectations.
God invites us to pray, not because we understand what is going on behind the scenes or how our prayers are heard. We do not control prayer, but we are invited to pray, even commanded to do so. When God’s people pray, the evil kingdom is shattered, and God’s cause can mysteriously advance.
Part III: Life Application
Part III: Life Application
How is it that we humans have such a short memory of the great things God has done for us? How easily we forget! How can we refresh our walk with God and remember in critical moments of our life the goodness of God so that we may make right decisions and not sin against Him?
What can be a golden calf in our lives?
How can we be more vigilant toward, and helpful to, people who need our prayers? Prayer opens us up to God so that He can do for us, and in us, miracles of transformation.
Moses prayed for sinners and offered his life for them. This is a pattern of how we should pray for those who have sinned in our midst. Discuss with your class different situations and how we can pray for each other in such cases.
Christ’s intercessory prayer for His disciples and for us is a model of how to pray for others (read John 17). Moses did not need to die so that sinners could experience forgiveness. In the case of Jesus, our true Intercessor, His death was necessary for us. Why?
How can we pray for one another without being offensive or disrespectful?