Christians are philanthropici
In the 19th century men like John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, and J.P. Morgan rose from obscurity to become
titans of industry. In many ways they created capitalism and shaped the American dream as we know it. Their names hang
on street signs, are etched into buildings and are a part of the fabric of our history. These men amassed great fortunes in
the oil, steel, and finance industries. In the current market their combined net worth would be approximately 675 billion
dollars.
Some of their wealth was used to provide them with mansions and luxuries. Some was used to elect presidents,
set policies, and influence events. But a great amount of their wealth was also given away. In many ways these men also
defined what it means to be a philanthropist. Rockefeller used some of his fortune to build both the University of Chicago
and Rockefeller University in New York — the first major institution devoted purely to medical research. Carnegie used
some of his fortune to build the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh and the Carnegie Institution in Washington and seeded the
nation with more than 2,800 libraries. Morgan used some of his wealth to fill museums with works of art and build churches
but his most notable act of philanthropy was the stabilizing influence he had on America‟s fragile financial institution.
Never having met these men myself I cannot speak to the reasons why they were so philanthropic. But today we
are going to see that philanthropy is a Christian characteristic that every believer strives have.
Now maybe you are thinking, “But I am not a titan of industry. I would build schools and hospitals and museums if I had
a billion dollars, but preacher, how do you expect me to be philanthropic while putting braces on my kid, gas in my car, and
food on my table. Maybe as soon as I get my kids through college and my mortgage paid off then maybe I can start being
philanthropic.” But philanthropy isn‟t just rich people building music halls and city parks. It might help if we give a definition
of Philanthropy. The word comes from two Greek words philio and anthropos. philio means love, anthropus means man. A
philanthropist then is simply a lover of mankind.
As we turn our attention to Exodus 32:7-14 we encounter a philanthropist by the name of Moses. Moses was a titan of
sorts. Raised as a prince of Egypt God had made him leader of over half a million people. Moses led those people from
slavery in Egypt, through the waters of the Red Sea, and to the foot of Mount Sinai. There God claimed the Israelites as
his treasured possession and shared with them His Ten Commandments. After God had given the people the Ten
Commandments, Moses met with the LORD atop Mount Sinai for 40days. During that time the LORD gave to Moses the
ceremonial laws that were to guide the Israelites until the Savior came. The conversation of our text happens at the end of
that forty day meeting.
In verses 7-9 we read, “Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of
Egypt, have become corrupt. They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves
an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, „These are your gods, O
Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.‟ “I have seen these people,” the LORD said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked
people.” Apparently forty days was too long for the people of God to wait. They convinced Aaron to use the gold they had
taken from the Egyptians to build them an idol that resembled the false Egyptian god Apis. They then gave credit for their
deliverance from Egypt to their newly crafted calf of gold. It is a striking idolatry considering forty three days before the
people proclaimed, “We will do everything the LORD has said!”1 Forty days before “When the people saw the
thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear.”2 Striking
when you remember the very first Commandment God gave to them was, “You shall have no other gods before me.”3
In view of this idolatry the LORD no longer claims such people as his treasured possession. He says to Moses, these
people are “your people” not mine. They are corrupt, quick to turn away, and stiff-necked. He says in verse 10, “Now leave
me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” At
this point you would expect Moses to get as far away from those people as fast as he can. The wrath of God is not to be
taken lightly. The wrath of God “did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into
gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment.”4 The wrath of God flooded the earth when the thoughts of mankind became
“only evil all the time.”5 The wrath of the God “rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah”6 because their
sin was so great. Still today the wrath of God threatens, “Whoever does not believe will be condemned.”7 Here the
wrath of God is threatening to burn against the corrupt people worshiping a golden calf.
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Exodus 19:8
Exodus 20:18
Exodus 20:3
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2 Peter 2:4
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Genesis 6:5
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Genesis 19:24
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Mark 16:16
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If you were Moses and the wrath of God was burning hot what would you do? I think many people would run far and
fast. But Moses was a philanthropist. In verses 11-12 we are told, “Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God. “O
LORD,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a
mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, „It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the
mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth‟? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your
people. 13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: „I will make your
descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will
be their inheritance forever.‟ ” Moses stepped between the wrath of God and the corrupt people and appealed to the
LORD‟s grace and mercy to forgive them. Later in verses 31-32 Moses went so far as to say, “Oh, what a great sin these
people have committed! They have made themselves gods of gold. 32 But now, please forgive their sin—but if not,
then blot me out of the book you have written.”
The LORD was pleased to see this lover of mankind standing before him pleading for grace and mercy. The LORD
heard the words of Israel‟s philanthropist. In verse 14 we read, “Then the LORD relented and did not bring on his people
the disaster he had threatened.”
Moses was a great philanthropist. But he was only a shadow of what was to come. The love that Moses had for the
Israelites is a vivid picture of the love that Jesus has for mankind.
Now it would be easy for us to read this account and be disturbed by the Israelites idolatry so soon after they pledge
their allegiance to God. But it is more important that we read it and be disturbed by our own idolatry. We sit in church with
the full revelation of the plan of salvation at our fingertips and we sing our songs say our prayers and walk out those doors
and bow down to our own idols as we allow someone or something to take first place in our hearts once, often, or always
over God, his Word, and his worship. Sins like idolatry separated us from our God. We who were to be the best of his
creation became as Paul confessed in our second lesson “the worst”. We deserved to be destroyed by God‟s anger.
But just as Moses stood between the wrath of God and a corrupt people Jesus stands between the wrath of God and
us. 1 Timothy 2:5 tells us, “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
On Calvary‟s mountain Jesus became the mediator and intercessor for corrupt, rebellious, stiff-necked people like us. He
appealed to the LORD‟s great love and rich mercy and essential said, “Father why should your anger burn against them? I
have lived a perfect life in their place. Why should the devil have reason to say you abandoned them to the flames of hell? I
have paid for every one of their sins. Dear Father in Heaven, remember the promise you made in the Garden of Eden and
fulfilled in the town of Bethlehem.” “Father, forgive them.”8
The LORD was pleased when this lover of mankind stood before him pleading for grace and mercy. The LORD heard
the words of the world‟s philanthropist. In Mark 16:16 we read, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.”
And now we see why philanthropy is a Christian characteristic that every believer strives to have. 1 John 4:19 sums up
the Christian characteristic of philanthropy in seven words, “We love because he first loved us.” So, just as Moses
foreshadowed the love that Jesus has for mankind, we reflect it. We are philanthropists. We are lovers of our fellow man.
We stand between the wrath of God and our sinning brothers and sisters and we appeal to God‟s grace and mercy. We
pray for them asking God to be patient with them. We pray for the courage to rebuke them that they may see their sin and
repeat. We pray for the wisdom to instruct them that they may see their Savior and be forgiven. We pray for the love to
encourage them on their way to heaven.
The LORD is pleased when he sees you standing before him as a lover of mankind pleading for grace and mercy. The
LORD hears the words of the Christian philanthropist. In James 5:16 we read, “Confess your sins to each other and
pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”
Philanthropy isn‟t just rich people building music halls and city parks. It is a Christian characteristic that causes the
believer to love their fellow man so much that they are willing to stand between the wrath of God and a corrupt sinner
pleading for grace and mercy. It is a characteristic that was displayed most clearly as our Savior hung on the cross
forgiving sins like idolatry. It is a characteristic that was foreshadowed by Moses. It is a characteristic that is reflected by
you.
May God bless you as you grow in the Christian character of philanthropy! Amen.
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Exodus 32:7-14 Pentecost 16 September 8 2013
Luke 23:34
Pastor Harmon Lewis @ Saving Grace Lutheran Church, Mobile, AL