Lame Excuses

-


Scripture:

Exodus 32:24 So I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, take it off’; so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

Observation:

Aaron’s ridiculous excuse for the creation of the golden calf is one of the worst of all time. First of all he blamed all the people for wanting something to worship, and then he claimed that the calf somehow magically appeared out of the fire. Certainly he did not have anything to do with the actual shaping or creation of the image! There were some later Rabbis who tried to explain that somehow Satan entered the gold and created the calf. The truth revealed by all of this was Aaron’s own spiritual decline, both to himself and his people. His lame excuses revealed his poor leadership and the ability of the people to push him into actions when he should have been sure of his own theology and morality. 

Application:

There are a number of lame excuses that we find throughout the Bible. We can start with Adam’s excuse for eating the fruit in the garden — it was HER fault! Then there’s Eve’s excuse — it was the SERPENT’s fault! Making lame excuses seems to be a sign of sin the life of God’s people. Aaron walked right into the trap that was laid by the enemy. The resultant lame excuse only revealed the depth of his sin. 

That ought to be a real reminder that when we are tempted to lean on a lame excuse, we are actually revealing the state of our spiritual lives. Sadly, it’s easy to become absorbed in situations where one can embrace the lame excuse. 

Did you know that you can look up lame excuses on the internet and you’ll get plenty of options? You can even find a site that will give you medical excuses to get out of work. 

I think we’ve turned lame excuses into an art form. No one wants to take responsibility anymore and poof — magically, this calf just came out of the fire!

There is no place for lame excuses in the life of a follower of Christ. Learning to take responsibility for your actions is part of what it means to grow spiritually.  When we’ve had a bad attitude, maybe we ought to admit it, and then move on! When we’ve helped to create a difficult situation, maybe we ought to confess, ask for forgiveness, and move on. When we’ve created strife in our marriage, maybe we ought to be willing to say, “I was wrong” and then work toward reconciliation. 

Lame excuses keep us from active solutions. Becoming grounded theologically and morally in God will help us to accept responsibility and move from lame leadership into discipled and visionary leaders in the kingdom. 

Prayer:


Lord, help me to avoid the temptation of lame excuses. Even when it’s painful, may I take responsibility for my actions. Amen. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a time when we try to carry
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have
Read more