In Exodus, Moses went up Mount Sinai for a meeting with the Lord that lasted about six weeks, 40 days and nights (Exodus 24:18). By then, the people were beginning to feel abandoned, so a group of them went to see Moses' older brother, Aaron.

(Exodus 32:1 NKJV) Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, "Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."

(Exodus 32:2-4 NKJV) And Aaron said to them, "Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me." So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, "This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!"

(Exodus 32:5-6 NKJV) So when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, "Tomorrow is a feast to the LORD." Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.

A key point in this passage is that Aaron and the people were not replacing the LORD God with a golden calf. They were using it as a new way to connect to Him, a tangible interface, a new representative like Moses.

The Hebrew word they continued to use for the LORD here is Yahweh, which is the singular name they had always used for God. In contrast, they used the plural generic elohim when referring to the golden calf. So Aaron didn't say, "Let's do away with the LORD"; he simply added a golden calf to the existing godhead and made it equal.

When Aaron saw that his new calf was popular, he enhanced it by adding a new altar, offerings, and rituals. The term "rose up to play" means "sex-play," and, in this context, is a polite way to write drunken orgies. People will get up early to do things they like, and they did...

The point is that something, or someone, had come in between the people and their God. Words that should alarm all Christians are "In place of Christ." The term Anti-Christ in Scripture means, in place of Christ, or the usurping of Christ and his position.

Usurping: to seize and hold (office, place, functions, powers, etc.) in possession by force or without right. usurp a throne. ~ Merriam-Webster

Examples:

Israel's golden calf: The Israelites continued to call themselves the people of God, but now expected a lump of gold to deliver them from all their problems. That lump had effectively taken the place of Christ and had become an antichrist. This calf became the center point of their religion, and their worship of it was littered with perverted sex-play from the first day.

Legalism: For centuries, legalism has tried to invade Christianity like poison ivy slowly creeping into the edges of your yard and attaching itself to things. The Apostle Paul wrote this to the churches at Galatia:

(Galatians 1:6-8 NKJV) I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.

Paul had established the churches in Galatia, and they had gotten off to a good start, but soon, men came along and taught them that they were not even saved unless they had been circumcised as the law of Moses required:

(Acts 15:1-2 NKJV) And certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved."

Paul called this additional requirement to the Gospel a perversion:

Christ + Anything = Nothing.

Paul called it "bewitching," meaning to put a spell on someone, to deceive or delude.

(Galatians 3:1 NKJV) O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?

Paul doesn't use moros (the Greek word for a fool who can't think at all). He chooses the Greek anoētos instead—a word for someone who has the ability to understand, but simply isn't using it. In other words, the Galatians already had the basic truths; they'd been taught. They were intelligent. They knew the word. The facts and principles were right there, but they weren't putting them into practice.

Then Paul asks, "Who has bewitched you?" The picture isn't of a literal magic spell, of course, but of minds so fogged over—and so far off track biblically—that it feels like they're under an enchantment. Their thinking was twisted, as if some unseen force had blinded them to the freedom and clarity of Christ.

There will always be a new golden calf trying to bewitch us, but you can recognize a tree by the fruit it bears. Jesus said all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. (Matthew 12:33), (John 13:35).

(Ephesians 5:5-7 NKJV) For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them.

Be wary of anything or anyone that comes in as a new savior, for we don't need a second one. The original Lord Jesus Christ will deliver those whose eyes are steadfast on Him, but if you are worshiping a golden calf when He returns instead, good luck.

You can pray this with me if you like:

Prayer: Heavenly Father, please let me see the world through Your eyes. Protect me from deception and help me recognize the tricks of the enemy. I want to live a life pleasing to You. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!