Proper 23
Preaching
Preaching and Reading the Old Testament Lessons
With an Eye to the New
Our text, which is from the Yahwist, connects with Exodus 24:18, where we are told that Moses is on Mount Sinai with God for forty days and forty nights. The intervening material in chapters 25-31 is from the priestly writers and concerns God's command to make a tabernacle and ark of the covenant. The preacher may want to resume the story with 24:28, followed immediately by 32:1.
This story of the golden calf is so full of sermon material that the preacher has a wide choice of themes for the proclamation. Let us briefly detail them.
First there is the theme of our propensity to sin. As George Buttrick once remarked, "Before we leave the church door, we fall once again into sin." Certainly Israel in this story is an example of that. Here is a people who have been redeemed from slavery and who have just entered into covenant with God, promising, "All that the Lord has spoken, we shall do." But like us, they are an impatient people who want to take matters into their own hands and run their own affairs. Moses hasn't come down from the mountain for forty days and nights. All they are left with as a leader is the priest Aaron, who is quite willing to accede to the rebellious people's wishes. After all, the polls show what the people want! So they tell Aaron, "Make us gods, who shall go before us." Everyone needs some sort of god, and if the true God isn't satisfactory, we'll make our own. And Aaron agrees to that popular position. How quick we are to forget what God has done for us and the long path on which he has led us, and to turn to deities more suited to our preferences!
But second, we should note that the nature of God is defined by what he has done. From the time of the exodus onward, the God of the Old Testament is identified as "the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt," just as God in the New Testament is defined as "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Only the deity who has those identifying marks is true God. When Aaron makes the golden calf, therefore, he has to tell the Israelites that the little golden bull he has carved is the one who brought them up out of the land of Egypt. Any rational person knows that is a lie, of course, but the Israelites are easily deceived, because they want it that way. It should be a reminder to us, however, when we start manufacturing our own gods and goddesses that we should ask what deeds they have done. Is the God we worship the deity who freed Israel? Is he the one who sent his only Son to die on a cross and who raised him up on the third day? What has your God done? Has he actually conquered death? Or are his actions on your behalf a figment of your imagination? Has your god done anything at all? Or is he just some amorphous something in the great somewhere? We must be careful to know the characteristics that define who the one true God really is.
Third, we see from this text the intercessory function of the prophets in the Old Testament. Moses is the first and greatest prophet (cf. Numbers 12:6-8), and he begins the function of interceding for his sinful people, pleading with God to turn aside his judgment on Israel's sin (cf. Deuteronomy 9:13-20, 25-29; Amos 7:1-6). Moses makes two appeals to God. He points out that the Lord will be dishonored in the eyes of the Egyptians if he slays his people. But he also reminds God of his promise of land and many descendants to the patriarchs. If God destroys the people in the wilderness, he cannot keep his promise. And that is unthinkable to God. So, says our text, "the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do to his people" (v. 14). In other words, because of the intercessory prayer of his servant Moses, the Lord God Almighty changed his mind!
We sometimes have the mistaken notion that all of the future is preordained by God, and that therefore intercessory prayer is futile. Not so in the Bible! What we find there is a constant dialogue between God and human beings, in which the Lord takes very seriously the actions and faith and prayers of us mortals. What we do and what we believe and for what we pray make a difference. And so Jesus tells us in the New Testament, "Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7). And Ephesians tells us, "Pray at all times in the Spirit, with prayer and supplication" (Ephesians 6:18). God hears the prayers of his faithful, and we are to pray for one another, just as Moses and the prophets of old prayed for their sinful folk, trusting that God will answer the prayer in accordance with his love.
Lutheran Option: Isaiah 25:1-9
The lectionary is shaped more by tradition and the content of passages than by form criticism. As a result, it often joins separate forms or breaks apart passages that belong together. That is true of this stated text. What we find here is, first, a song of praise (vv. 1-5), that interrupts the connection between 24:23 and 25:6. Then the proclamation contained in 25:6-9 should be ended before the last sentence of verse 9 ("let us be glad and rejoice in our salvation"). That sentence belongs with verse 10 as the beginning word "For" in verse 10 shows. Nevertheless, we can follow the thought of the passage.
This reading is a part of what is known as the Isaiah Apocalypse that is made up of Isaiah 24-27. Consequently that which is pictured here is the end of history, when God has won his final victory over his enemies and brought in his kingdom, in which he will be worshiped by all nations.
The song of praise in verses 1-5 praises God for his triumph over a ruthless enemy of both Israel and God. God has planned such a triumph from of old, because his plan and goal have always been to establish his kingdom on earth -- a fact known most familiarly to us from the Lord's Prayer ("thy kingdom come"). The passage emphasizes that the defeat of the enemy is permanent. Never again will the fortified city be rebuilt; it will disappear. Further, when the nations of the world see God's triumph, they too will be brought to worship him as the Lord. From his actions, all peoples will know who is God, especially since he will be shown to be the one sure defense of all those in need or who have no strength of their own -- a thought most tellingly set forth in the Suffering Servant Song in Isaiah 52:13-15. God shows his lordship by exalting the defenseless and putting down the mighty, and of course the New Testament emphasizes that in everything from the Magnificat to the cross and resurrection. In contrast to the futile defenses of the strong and ruthless, God's might is the one sure protection.
After God has defeated his enemies, verses 6-9a go on to tell of God's banquet on Mount Sinai. And here a universal note is sounded. Not only will Israel be exalted, but God will make a luxurious feast for all peoples. His love in his kingdom will extend to all. (Another writer excludes Moab, vv. 10-12.) Best of all, God will do away with the veil of mourning and death that has laid for all centuries over humankind. Tenderly, the Lord will wipe away tears from faces and take away all reproach of his people. Then there will be the universal rejoicing and confession found in verse 9a. We have waited for the Lord, and he has saved us.
In its entirety, our text portrays for us the hope found in the Christian faith. God will bring an end to humankind's violent and sin-pocked history and will establish his good reign over all the earth. Every knee will bow to him and every tongue will confess his lordship. And in the words of the Bible's final book, "God himself will be with (us); he will wipe away every tear from (our) eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things (will) have passed away" (Revelation 21:3-4). For that festive and joyful end we wait in certain hope. Therefore, we need never despair and we need never be crushed, no matter what our situation. Nor need we ever wonder what the world is coming to. It is coming to God. Of that joyful reign of his over all his creation, we can be very sure.
This story of the golden calf is so full of sermon material that the preacher has a wide choice of themes for the proclamation. Let us briefly detail them.
First there is the theme of our propensity to sin. As George Buttrick once remarked, "Before we leave the church door, we fall once again into sin." Certainly Israel in this story is an example of that. Here is a people who have been redeemed from slavery and who have just entered into covenant with God, promising, "All that the Lord has spoken, we shall do." But like us, they are an impatient people who want to take matters into their own hands and run their own affairs. Moses hasn't come down from the mountain for forty days and nights. All they are left with as a leader is the priest Aaron, who is quite willing to accede to the rebellious people's wishes. After all, the polls show what the people want! So they tell Aaron, "Make us gods, who shall go before us." Everyone needs some sort of god, and if the true God isn't satisfactory, we'll make our own. And Aaron agrees to that popular position. How quick we are to forget what God has done for us and the long path on which he has led us, and to turn to deities more suited to our preferences!
But second, we should note that the nature of God is defined by what he has done. From the time of the exodus onward, the God of the Old Testament is identified as "the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt," just as God in the New Testament is defined as "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Only the deity who has those identifying marks is true God. When Aaron makes the golden calf, therefore, he has to tell the Israelites that the little golden bull he has carved is the one who brought them up out of the land of Egypt. Any rational person knows that is a lie, of course, but the Israelites are easily deceived, because they want it that way. It should be a reminder to us, however, when we start manufacturing our own gods and goddesses that we should ask what deeds they have done. Is the God we worship the deity who freed Israel? Is he the one who sent his only Son to die on a cross and who raised him up on the third day? What has your God done? Has he actually conquered death? Or are his actions on your behalf a figment of your imagination? Has your god done anything at all? Or is he just some amorphous something in the great somewhere? We must be careful to know the characteristics that define who the one true God really is.
Third, we see from this text the intercessory function of the prophets in the Old Testament. Moses is the first and greatest prophet (cf. Numbers 12:6-8), and he begins the function of interceding for his sinful people, pleading with God to turn aside his judgment on Israel's sin (cf. Deuteronomy 9:13-20, 25-29; Amos 7:1-6). Moses makes two appeals to God. He points out that the Lord will be dishonored in the eyes of the Egyptians if he slays his people. But he also reminds God of his promise of land and many descendants to the patriarchs. If God destroys the people in the wilderness, he cannot keep his promise. And that is unthinkable to God. So, says our text, "the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do to his people" (v. 14). In other words, because of the intercessory prayer of his servant Moses, the Lord God Almighty changed his mind!
We sometimes have the mistaken notion that all of the future is preordained by God, and that therefore intercessory prayer is futile. Not so in the Bible! What we find there is a constant dialogue between God and human beings, in which the Lord takes very seriously the actions and faith and prayers of us mortals. What we do and what we believe and for what we pray make a difference. And so Jesus tells us in the New Testament, "Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7). And Ephesians tells us, "Pray at all times in the Spirit, with prayer and supplication" (Ephesians 6:18). God hears the prayers of his faithful, and we are to pray for one another, just as Moses and the prophets of old prayed for their sinful folk, trusting that God will answer the prayer in accordance with his love.
Lutheran Option: Isaiah 25:1-9
The lectionary is shaped more by tradition and the content of passages than by form criticism. As a result, it often joins separate forms or breaks apart passages that belong together. That is true of this stated text. What we find here is, first, a song of praise (vv. 1-5), that interrupts the connection between 24:23 and 25:6. Then the proclamation contained in 25:6-9 should be ended before the last sentence of verse 9 ("let us be glad and rejoice in our salvation"). That sentence belongs with verse 10 as the beginning word "For" in verse 10 shows. Nevertheless, we can follow the thought of the passage.
This reading is a part of what is known as the Isaiah Apocalypse that is made up of Isaiah 24-27. Consequently that which is pictured here is the end of history, when God has won his final victory over his enemies and brought in his kingdom, in which he will be worshiped by all nations.
The song of praise in verses 1-5 praises God for his triumph over a ruthless enemy of both Israel and God. God has planned such a triumph from of old, because his plan and goal have always been to establish his kingdom on earth -- a fact known most familiarly to us from the Lord's Prayer ("thy kingdom come"). The passage emphasizes that the defeat of the enemy is permanent. Never again will the fortified city be rebuilt; it will disappear. Further, when the nations of the world see God's triumph, they too will be brought to worship him as the Lord. From his actions, all peoples will know who is God, especially since he will be shown to be the one sure defense of all those in need or who have no strength of their own -- a thought most tellingly set forth in the Suffering Servant Song in Isaiah 52:13-15. God shows his lordship by exalting the defenseless and putting down the mighty, and of course the New Testament emphasizes that in everything from the Magnificat to the cross and resurrection. In contrast to the futile defenses of the strong and ruthless, God's might is the one sure protection.
After God has defeated his enemies, verses 6-9a go on to tell of God's banquet on Mount Sinai. And here a universal note is sounded. Not only will Israel be exalted, but God will make a luxurious feast for all peoples. His love in his kingdom will extend to all. (Another writer excludes Moab, vv. 10-12.) Best of all, God will do away with the veil of mourning and death that has laid for all centuries over humankind. Tenderly, the Lord will wipe away tears from faces and take away all reproach of his people. Then there will be the universal rejoicing and confession found in verse 9a. We have waited for the Lord, and he has saved us.
In its entirety, our text portrays for us the hope found in the Christian faith. God will bring an end to humankind's violent and sin-pocked history and will establish his good reign over all the earth. Every knee will bow to him and every tongue will confess his lordship. And in the words of the Bible's final book, "God himself will be with (us); he will wipe away every tear from (our) eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things (will) have passed away" (Revelation 21:3-4). For that festive and joyful end we wait in certain hope. Therefore, we need never despair and we need never be crushed, no matter what our situation. Nor need we ever wonder what the world is coming to. It is coming to God. Of that joyful reign of his over all his creation, we can be very sure.
