The Dangers of Walking By Sight

On February 1, I read the following passage:

Exod. 32:25 Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies. 26 So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, "Whoever is for the LORD, come to me." And all the Levites rallied to him.

Here is a clear cut case on how necessary it is for people to be brought under control of moral laws and for such laws to be enforced when necessary.

Moses had held Aaron fully responsible for the sinful behavior of the people. Aaron of course, tried to invent some excuse such as, “Hello, you know these people are prone to do evil” (v. 21). And then there is the most classic one of all: “I threw the gold the people handed me into the fire and poof – out came this cafe” (v. 24).

From Aaron’s excuses come reasons why he should have been a better leader. First, indeed the people are prone to do evil, that’s why you need to watch over them and enforce the things that are right! You see, we are all prone to do evil, that’s why it is not right merely for us to get our own way. We need boundaries. We need accountability. We need leaders to enforce the rules and wake us up to the consequences. As a result of letting the people do what they wanted (which Aaron thought was a nice and understanding thing to do), three thousand people died that day (v. 28).

Second, leaders make the mistake of letting the people do the leading. Just think with me: How long would it take for a golden cafe to be made in the Wilderness? We are not talking about an overnight phenomenon. The bible says that Moses was delayed (Exod. 32:1). Delayed how long? Forty days he was on top of Mt. Sinai (24:18). So, apparently it took the people a little over a month to make this golden cow.

Well, Aaron had plenty of time to get himself and the people out of this predicament. But instead of leading the people, he allowed the people to lead him, thus: “the people handed me their gold and I threw it in the fire.”

Check out this story: New Zealand teen auctions her virginity for tuition
By Ray Lilley
Associated Press
POSTED: Feb 03, 2010

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND: A New Zealand teenager who says she auctioned her virginity online for $32,000 to raise tuition money did not break any laws but it might be risky for her to follow through on the deal, police warned today.

The anonymous 19-year-old student offered her virginity to the highest bidder on the Web site www.ineed.co.nz under the name ''Unigirl,'' saying she would use the money to pay for her tuition. She said in a post that more than 30,000 people had viewed her ad and more than 1,200 had made bids before she accepted an offer of more than $32,000.

Isn’t this just mind-boggling? You know what struck me was how low people will go to get what they want. And what also struck me was what one would choose to give up in order to get what they want.

For the Israelites, they were willing to give up their worship of God who had led them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea and was providing for their needs in the Wilderness while on their way to the Land of Promise. They would be willing to give up all that and much more – their own lives – for a golden cow.

What was the golden cow? Well, of course, we know it was an idol. Yes, but what was it really? All it was for these people was something for them to SEE (vv. 32:1, 8). They missed Moses and so in order to replace him with something they could see, they built for themselves a golden cafe. No wonder the bible exhorts us not to walk by “sight” but by “faith” (2 Cor. 5:7). No wonder the bible says that “faith is the substance of things hope for and the evidence of things NOT SEEN (Heb. 11:1).

You see, the evil we are prone to do is to choose to walk by sight and not by faith. Why? Because we feel so much better by the things we can see over that which we cannot see. Think about it: How many times has your son or daughter come home late and you stayed up worrying about them? You would feel much better if you could see them, but if you cannot, then at least hear from them. But when you get neither, then trust and faith in God must kick in and that can be very unsettling especially for those who are so use to walking by sight.

Church leaders are a lot like this. They implement a program and in order to see if it is successful, what do they look for? Visible results. Nothing wrong with that, right? Except, now watch this – visible results in the area of church ministry usually entails “numbers.” You see, numbers are easier and quicker to come by. What is not quicker to see is HEALTH. Growth and health takes time and it is not easily seen until much later down the road.

So we church leaders try all kinds of gimmicks that produce numbers because we want to SEE results and the quicker the better. But what about walking by faith and waiting for the result of spiritual growth and maturity to kick in? I know this takes time, but are not such things worth it? I know preaching and teaching the Word and doing discipleship may not always produce quick results in numbers, but we are not to walk by sight, but by faith.

Sure, desperate women can sell their virginity and get $32,000 quickly. But when we choose to do things quickly, what are we willing to compromise in? Why not go the slow route and work and save money for college? Imagine the education that can be gained using that method?

Now listen: Popping babies out and getting numbers is quick. But maturing and growing in character takes time – a long time. Which is better for our society? Which is better for our churches?

For me, I choose to go the faith route that is often long and not so much filled with measurable and visible results. I may not see the kind of results I often hope and pray for, but the process that I am taking is having a tremendous positive affect on my own character.

I am not alone in thinking like this: “And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promise” (Heb. 11:39). Many of the Old Testament saints did not see the results they had hoped for; but their faith in the Lord made their lives successful.

Walking by faith is often tough to do, but so necessary especially if you want to please the Lord (cf. Heb. 11:6).