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The Golden Calf Mentality

Exodus 32:1-4

“And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.”

As they grew impatient with Moses' prolonged stay on Mount Sinai, the people of Israel demanded that Aaron make them gods to lead them. Aaron collected gold from the people, melted it down, and fashioned it into a golden calf. The people then declared this calf as the god who brought them out of Egypt.

The story of the golden calf is an accurate reflection of a mentality that is prevalent in today’s religious world. Many so-called believers have created a version of God that fits their personal preferences rather than allowing God to transform them.

Instead of allowing God to change us, we start changing our understanding of God to fit our personal desires. We selectively pick and choose what parts of the Bible we want to obey. We create a version of God that aligns with our beliefs and lifestyle. Instead of following Christ, we ask Christ to follow us. This version of God doesn’t require anything from us, doesn’t challenge us, and conveniently supports all our decisions.

No Accountability:

The golden calf won’t ever tell us no or ask us to change who we are. We can go wherever we want, do whatever we want, and look however we want.

No Commitment:

This God doesn’t care if we pray, read our Bible, share the truth with lost souls, or whether or not we are faithful to Him with our time, talent, and treasure.

Self-Centered Life:

Our life becomes all about us and what we want to do, with no regard for God’s will or His commandments.

This “golden calf” mentality is so dangerous because it leads us away from the true God and creates our own sense of what is right and wrong. We need to guard ourselves against creating a convenient, self-serving view of God in our lives and ensure that our understanding of God is based on the Bible, not on our personal preferences.

Matthew 7:21
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
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