ON THE VANGUARD

GOD’S TESTING
“Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.’”
Exodus 20:20

Yesterday I was driving home from my daughter’s childcare with her in the back seat and suddenly heard her rejoicing. I looked back at her through the rearview mirror and questioned with both laughter and wonder, “What is it?”
“My math facts, dad,” she said in excitement. “I only missed 2 questions and I got a 94%. I am so happy!” At that moment her happiness spilled over to me as well. Many nights we have been working on these equations, working to get her speed up and think of ways to make them common knowledge. Sure, they may be simple to you and I, but for a 7 year old, 15-8 can seem impossible. All her studying, however, was being seen as she had passed the test.
Did you know God tests us? Now it is true that He does not tempt us, let us not get confused, but He does test us. In Exodus 20:20 we see just one area where God in a way is passing out the test papers. On the heels of receiving the Ten Commandments, the people of Israel are gathered at the base of Mount Sinai and hearing the thunder, watching the lightening, and seeing the mountain covered by smoke. Moses then speaks, “Do not be afraid, this is only a test of God to keep you from sinning.” God was wanting to impose fear in the people to keep them from straying back to other gods by proving Himself to all of Israel. And in some ways it must have worked, for the people then asked Moses to speak to them himself as opposed to God speaking to them in just this fraction of His might.
But here is the question I have after reading this verse. When did the fear begin to wear off? I ask because twelve chapters later, while Moses is on Mount Sinai for a period of forty days, the people are out building a golden calf (Ex 32). So if I am reading the Book of Exodus correctly, in about forty days after the people hear and see pieces of God’s power they are already failing the big test? Is that right? If it is, then I must quickly look at my own life because forty days is not that long. And I am not saying you and I will be turning our backs on God within forty days, but more so wondering what I must do to not let this happen.
The answer, however, is back in Exodus 20:20. “’ so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.’” The answer is a fear of God. I thought it very interesting when while sitting in church Saturday night I heard God prompt me to begin personally studying on the fear of the LORD. Then on Monday night, while reading the Bible with the kids, I read Exodus 20. Fear seems to be a theme for this stage in my life. But we must define fear. The word in Hebrew is YIR’AH, meaning respect and reverence. The KJV reads the tail of this verse as, “and that His fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.” God wanted the people to respect and reverence Him in that moment so that they would not turn away from Him. His testing was if they would turn. Their answer should have been the constant reverence of God. Their answer, however, was soon after portrayed in a golden calf. Truth be told, they failed the test that day.
Honestly, I do not want to fail God’s test. Of all the tests I will ever take - bigger than a driving test, or blood test, or the SATs, or a pregnancy test (well, not me so much taking a pregnancy test) – this is the one that matters most. Will I fear God enough to not turn back on Him, or will I be dancing with all the others around the golden calf? The test has been given to us all, we are sitting at our desk and filling in the blanks now. What will our answers reflect? Will we pass God’s testing?