Introduction: How should the church deal with members who actively rebel against God? Why do you think they rebel? If you have fallen away from God in the past, you may be more sympathetic to those who fall. If you are one whose life has generally followed God’s rules, then you may have trouble sympathizing with those who make incomprehensible decisions to rebel. Our study this week is about what seems to be an outrageous rebellion against God and Moses. Let’s dive into our study and see what we can learn as church leaders and church members about why rebellion exists and how we should respond to those in serious rebellion against God!

I. A Failure of Leadership

A. Read Exodus 32:1. Who seems to be in charge here? (The people are commanding Aaron to act.)

1. Is this supposed to be a democracy where the people rule?
2. Who did the people think was responsible for the disappearance of Moses? (They knew that Moses and Joshua had gone up the mountain to receive from God the tablets of stone that contained the law. Exodus 24:12-15.)

B. Read Acts 7:39-41. This suggests that the people were not actually wondering where Moses had gone, but rather had a different motive. What is it?

1. Do you think manna was still arriving each morning?

C. Read Exodus 32:2-4 to see Aaron’s leadership style and then compare it with Exodus 32:25-27 for Moses’ leadership style. Which do you think is appropriate for the church today? Delete, of course, the reference to killing because Moses had that authority and church leaders do not.

1. Are we discussing leadership styles for ordinary church governance decisions? Or are we discussing leadership styles for dealing with sin? (This is not day-to-day leadership. This is leadership in the face of open rebellion against God.)
2. What would have happened if the rebellion continued?

D. Read Exodus 32:5-6. How do you understand Aaron’s actions? (Aaron had not decided to abandon God. He seems to believe that the golden calf is the physical representation of the God of Heaven.)

1. Do you see this in the church today? People who want to sanctify evil by attributing it to God?

E. Read Exodus 32:7. What does God call this? (Corruption!)

1. Why does God tell Moses to go down to the people? (Because God trusts Moses as a faithful leader.)
2. Who does God say brought the people out of Egypt? (Moses.)

a. Why would God say this? (God was thinking of disowning the people.)

b. Has Moses shown a failure of leadership?

F. Read Exodus 32:8. In the past, when I read this text, I thought, “How vile! How could they turn so quickly from God? Could we be so foolish?” But now that I understand that Aaron thought he was simply blending the images of Egypt’s gods with the power of the true God, it seems to be a more complex issue. Is that how you see it?

G. Read Exodus 32:9. Does God see this as a complex issue? (No. He sees it a pure rebellion.)

H. Let’s look at how Aaron reports these events. Read Exodus 32:21-24. Is that how it happened? (The golden calf did not magically make itself. This is blame-shifting and a failure of honesty.)

1. Who does Aaron blame? (Verse 22 tells us that he blamed the people.)
2. Who does Moses blame? (Verse 21 reveals that Moses blames Aaron. He was supposed to be in charge.)

I. Look again at Exodus 32:23. When the people said they did not know what had become of Moses, what should Aaron have said? (Read Exodus 24:1. This was another failure of leadership. Aaron should have said Moses was on the mountain with God because Aaron had been there!)

II. Rebellion

A. Look again at Exodus 32:1. What triggered this rebellion? (Delay. Impatience. Acts 7:39-41 adds that some of the people had the attitude that they should return to Egypt.)

B. Read Exodus 32:9.  We looked at this verse a few minutes ago. What does it mean when God calls them “stiff-necked?” (One commentator explains that this refers to an ox or a horse who resists when you throw a rope around its neck. These people wanted to do their own will, not God’s will.)

C. Read Exodus 32:26-28. Who is not in rebellion? (The Levites.)

1. Should we call people to make hard decisions on rebellion? To take sides?
2. Is it love to deal harshly with rebels?

D. Look again at Exodus 32:28. Should Aaron have been among those who died? (Read Deuteronomy 9:20.)

III. Winning Leadership

A. Read Exodus 32:10-12. What concerns Moses? (God’s reputation.)

1. Is God’s plan a bad one? (Remember that only two of this group of adults made it out of the desert alive.)

B. Read Exodus 32:13. Would God’s plan violate His promise to Abraham? (No. Moses is a descendant of Abraham.)

1. Let’s face a hard question here. Moses seeks to let the wrong-doers survive so that God will look good. Is that how a church should handle wrong-doing today? Should it be primarily concerned about God’s reputation and not punishment of the guilty?

C. Read Exodus 32:14 and Numbers 23:19. Are these two texts in conflict? (The context of Numbers 23 is important. The prophet Balaam is promised a reward by King Balak of Moab if he will curse Israel. God tells Balaam to tell King Balak that He is not that kind of God. He doesn’t lie or change His mind. Giving money to bribe His agents does not work. The great news for us is that God will engage with us and may take a different course of action based on our interaction with Him. This is not “changing His mind.”)

D. Read Exodus 32:15-19. Is Moses’ anger out of control? Did he have the right to destroy the work of God? Or is there another explanation? (Arguably, Moses broke the tablets to reflect the fact that the people broke God’s law.)

E. Read Exodus 32:30-32. Why would Moses do this? Why would he ask to forfeit his eternal life? (Notice the parallel to Jesus, who gave up His life for us.)

1. Read Matthew 17:1-4. Where do we find Moses?

F. Read Exodus 32:33-34. What is God saying about Moses’ continued leadership? (God reaffirms his leadership of the people.)

1. What does God say about Moses’ offer to sacrifice himself for the people? (God says that judgment is individual. He will “visit” the sin on the people who deserve judgment.)

G. Read Exodus 32:35. Does Aaron die in the plague? Does God think the calf is Aaron’s fault? (The text says that Aaron made the calf. We know Aaron did not die then because of the plague. God is the Judge and He decides as He sees fit.)

H. Friend, this is a remarkable story about rebellion against God. Rebellion that takes place after the most powerful evidence of God’s authority and love. This kind of rebellion requires a strong response, not an attempt to mix rebellion with worship of the true God. But the best leader to stand against such rebellion is a man like Moses, who was willing to give up his life for the people. Will you be careful not to rebel against God? If you are a leader faced with active rebellion in the church, will you ask God to fill your heart with love toward the rebellious?

IV. Next week: “Please, Show Me Your Glory.”

Copr. 2025, Bruce N. Cameron, J.D. Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Suggested answers are found within parentheses. If you normally receive this lesson by e-mail, but it is lost one week, you can find it by clicking on this link: http://www.GoBible.org. Pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as you study.

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