Ordinary Time Week 18

Psalm: Psalm 106:1-6, 19-23 or Psalm 23 

Old Testament: Exodus 32:1-14 or Isaiah 25:1-9 

Gospel: Mathew 22:1-14 

Epistle: Philippians 4:1-9

This week we are presented with a very interesting story from the life of Moses. At this point in the story in Exodus 32, Moses has been on Mount Sinai for 40 days, and the people of Israel left at the bottom are so fickle, they have already turned to idolatry. They are building a golden calf to worship as their liberator from Egypt. God is so angry that he decides to destroy them all and start over with Moses’ descendants as the new People of God. It actually kind of seems like a good idea considering Israel is barely out of slavery and has already forgotten all the miracles God did for them. It does not bode well for their future faithfulness. But, Moses argues with God and says that if he would destroy Israel, his name would essentially be besmirched in Egypt and elsewhere since he led his people out of bondage only to destroy them. Moses also reminds God that he made a promise with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and he can’t break that promise. That is the story, but it brings up so many interesting ideas.

The main idea I think of is whether or not God changes his mind. Do our entreaties, prayers, and supplications matter to God? Is everything ore-ordained to happen? In this story, it seems the biblical writer thinks God doesn’t know what will happen and then changes his mind. In a nutshell: God is surprised that Israel has so quickly turned to idolatry that he wants to destroy them.  Moses convinces God to change his mind and not destroy them.

For some people, passages like this suggest an “open” view of God. I would say the best way to describe “open theism” is to say that God has freely limited himself in his interactions with creation. He has chosen to interact with creation in such a way that he doesn’t know how it will act. Others think this view is heretical, and totally opposite of what Christianity has believed for 2,000 years. I think whichever route we go, it has implications for what we believe about prayer, divine intervention, miracles, Christ’s return, and other things. I do appreciate open theism for that fact that it takes seriously what the text says. It also takes seriously the power of prayer. But, I also think it takes some unnecessary leaps when it comes to its critique of the classical view of God.

My point in even bringing open theism up and discussing this is to open our eyes up the whole picture that the Bible has of God. Just when we think we understand who God is, (for example- unchanging), here he in Exodus 32 changing his mind. I wonder what would have happened had Moses not prayed. The point of this blog is to cause us to think and maybe this has caused you to think. Perhaps you have never heard of open theism and have no idea what I am talking about. In that case, I have done a great job dancing around the topic without really defining it. So maybe this blog has caused you to research it. The Wikipedia article is probably not half-bad and will at least tell you the main proponents and opponents.

I have kept this week intentionally short and focused more on questions than answers. I think Exodus 32 is one of those great stories from the Bible that when we think about it, presents a lot of questions. So, my exhortation this week is to read the Bible carefully, especially when it comes to passages it seems like we have read 100 times before. Be open to new ways of thinking and don't be afraid to ask questions and research new ideas.

Grace and Peace.