If You Want Real Security, There’s Only One Place to Look!

Ex 32:15-24,30-34 / Mt 13:31-35

We all like a little excitement at times, and we love it when something new comes along that catches our fancy and distracts us from the tedium of life’s routines. But the truth is that, even more than novelty and excitement, we crave security and stability, and we’ll go to astonishing lengths to assure that we have it. That’s what our insurance policies are about, and our saving for retirement. That’s the hot button that the politicians are pushing when they talk about law and order. And that’s why there are so may gated communities and security patrols and alarm systems in homes. We want to be safe and secure.

It’s a desire that brought out the worst in the Israelites in today’s Old Testament reading. They were scared and rudderless with Moses away on the mountain top for so long, and they began to panic. Their building of the golden calf was a futile attempt to re-establish a safe center for their lives, and of course, it was doomed to failure.

There’s a lesson here for us: Don’t put your hopes for safety and security in things that can’t possibly deliver. The house, the cars, the wardrobe, the trips, the bond portfolio, the 401K, the standing we have in the community, are all wonderful and ought to be enjoyed. But don’t ask them to give you purpose and meaning, ultimate safety and security, or peace. There is only One who can give you that. So stop looking elsewhere. Fix your eyes on him, and don’t ever turn away.

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