Stiff Necks

The LORD said to Moses, "Go down at once to your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, for they have become depraved. They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them, making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it, sacrificing to it and crying out, 'This is your God, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt!' The LORD said to Moses, "I see how stiff-necked this people is. Let me alone, then, that my wrath may blaze up against them to consume them. Then I will make of you a great nation."

But Moses implored the LORD, his God, saying, "Why, O LORD, should your wrath blaze up against your own people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with such great power and with so strong a hand? Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent he brought them out,

that he might kill them in the mountains and exterminate them from the face of the earth'? Let your blazing wrath die down; relent in punishing your people. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying, 'I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.'" So the LORD relented in the punishment he had threatened to inflict on his people. (Exodus 32:7-14)

If only we had a Moses-like figure to speak for and defend us! Perhaps Jesus?  We need a spokesman or spokeswoman and defender because we are stiff-necked people who tend to worship molten calves of wealth, privilege, and power. Many of us have become depraved by refusing the truth and believing in self-serving lies. Evil has the upper-hand for many of us causing us to turn against each other and to treat the commandments as that which are written on tissue paper or on eraser sketches with our hands on the knobs. 

Should we fear that God’s wrath will blaze up against us to consume us? No, of course not.  However, we should fear we stiff-necks will blaze up against each other to consume all of us though our anger, jealousy, hatred, political alliances, and just plain, abject stupidity.  For many of us are stupid and capable of great injustices.  

We don’t relent in the punishment we threaten to inflict on our brothers and sisters.  We are unforgiving and, incredibly enough, we would exterminate them from the face of the earth.  Do I exaggerate? Am I too cynical? You tell me.  

Perhaps I should stop watching the news and stay off social media where the poison flows unabated. I think I will so as to stop punishing myself by absorbing noxious commentary and evil doers' propaganda.  Lord, please give me strength!

Deacon David Pierce