November 5, 2010 – Exodus 34

Moses goes back up the mountain for another 40 days. This time when he comes back the people are waiting for him and not in revolt. So, we have an improvement there. There appears to have been a different connection between Moses and God this time around because when Moses came down the first time he did not radiate from his face like this time. None of the rules really changed this time around, just reiterating the commandments. I guess what it makes me think about is the people below. They saw miracles and wonders of God, were fed and led by God, God had even won them military victories, yet the first time Moses went up the Mountain, they abandoned God. Then the Levites and others that sided with Moses put those that did not to the sword and now when Moses comes down the mountain, they are waiting for him. I just makes you think about some of the stories we will read about in the Old Testament and the fact that we may see God as a butcher sometimes with some of the actions taken by the Israelites. I guess we have to look at it in the context of the time it took place and it appears that violence is the only thing that really got the people’s attention. If they didn’t fear for their safety, they felt comfortable just abandoning God.

We can see that a lot in our world too. Sometimes it takes something violent and drastic in order to really get people’s attention about an issue. That is why we have some of the disasters and tragedies we do, because people didn’t pay attention to the smaller signs pointing in the right direction. I wish we didn’t need the big wake up calls, but sometimes we really ignore or run over smaller signs. And even big signs, if they do not threaten some kind of violence, may be ignored. And then, even if there is violence, but it doesn’t pertain to us in particular, it can be ignored. God really does try to send us signs to set us on the right path if we are open to them, but there are a lot of times when we don’t pay attention.

I don’t talk a lot about politics here, but this relates, I think, to what some democrats (unemployed democrats) were feeling Wed. There were signs that things they were doing were unpopular, but they pushed through. There were other elections that showed voters were going to get rid of people doing unpopular things, they pushed through. Now they are sitting at home wondering what happened. The question is, have they learned anything or are they still under the impression that it was just a fluke. We are blessed in this country that power can shift in our government without violence. Most countries cannot have a political party take control without some bloodshed, America is different. But that also can lead to people not learning anything. Sometimes people do not learn anything unless they feel like they are going to lose something. I am not promoting Revolution or Civil War, but it did take war to gain our freedom and end slavery. The point is that many people won’t really change their attitudes until something really jolts them from their position. What that is, is different for everybody, but I think it is true for everybody. Time will tell whether what happened Tuesday was jolting enough to change anyone’s thinking. My guess is no and if you listen to any news about the President’s speech, it doesn’t seem to have changed his mind.