Moses

As we continue our series called Faithful, we are looking at some people in the Bible who showed great faith. The Bible tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6).

Faith is the act of completely trusting in God with everything that we are. It is something that we not only talk about, but we live it out in our words and actions each day that the Lord gives to us. Each one of us has placed our faith in something or someone. If someone would to take inventory of your speech and actions, what or who would they say that your faith rests?

The answer to that question comes from the choice that we willfully make with our lives. We all make choices every day. Some of them are bigger than others. We choose what we are going to eat or wear on a certain day. Those are not necessarily things that you would post to your social media feed though. Other decisions carry more weight though. Some of those choices might be what college you would go to, who you will spend the rest of your life with in marriage, or whether or not to retire.

The choices that we make in life have a way of making us who we are. This is also true of the people we read about in the Bible. Today, we are going to look at Moses from the Old Testament. Moses is also another person that is well-known from the Bible. There is even a depiction of him on the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C.

Moses was a man who had to make some key decisions in life. These decisions marked him in history as a person who was a man of faith. The author of Hebrews shares the section of the Hall of Faith concerning Moses in Hebrews 11.

4 Key Points of Faith in Moses’ Life

Hidden by his parents

By faith Moses, after he was born, was hidden by his parents for three months, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they didn’t fear the king’s edict.

​Hebrews 11:23 CSB

The first point of faith that we see in Moses’ life is actually faith shown by his parents. Exodus 2 tells about when Moses was born. There had been an edict put out by Pharaoh to kill all the Israelite boys by throwing them into the Nile River. Moses’ parents were not going to go along with this. They knew that there may be repercussions, but they could not go along with this.

This point in Moses’ life is very important. Though Moses did not show faith himself in this instance, it was through this act of faith by his parents that a foundation of faith would be laid in his life. Moses learned about faith by the example of his parents first.

This is a word to each of us. The generations that come after us will learn about following God from what they see in us. What the next generation sees in us pertaining to faith will guide them to make decisions as to whether or not it is worth following. This is why God told Moses to share with the Israelites later on the importance of demonstrating the faith for the next generation to see.​

These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

Deuteronomy 6:6–9 CSB

Refused to be known as Pharaoh’s son

​By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter and chose to suffer with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasure of sin. For he considered reproach for the sake of Christ to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, since he was looking ahead to the reward.

Hebrews 11:24–26 CSB

The author of Hebrews shares another point of faith in Moses’ life when he shared that Moses refused to be known as Pharaoh’s son. When Moses’ parents put him in the basket and laid him in the river, it was Pharaoh’s daughter who found him. She would take him in and raise him as her own. You could say that she adopted Moses. It was Pharaoh’s daughter who gave Moses his name because it means “drawing out” in Hebrew and “born” in Egyptian of that time.

Moses was raised in the most powerful family of the time. He had the best of everything: education, clothes, food. To many, it would have seemed as if he had hit the jackpot. There came a point though when he chose to not take the easy route. He knew that he was not an Egyptian even though he lived in the king’s palace. He knew that the Israelites were “his people.” He made the choice to be identified with the Israelites rather than stay in the comforts of Pharaoh’s house.

What determines what choice we will make in a situation? Do we look for the easy and safe route? Do we look for the path of least resistance? As attractive as those look many times, they are not always the best choices. While it may seem easy in the moment, the easy paths may keep us from what God wants to do in our lives.

The Bible says that Moses chose to suffer with God’s people rather than take the easy road to fame. He counted it more beneficial to be associated with God’s people and what God was doing, even though it would call for tough times, rather than go with what is popular and easier.

We are tempted often times to take the path of least resistance. We do not like conflict. We want things to be hunky dory. It is a lot easier to just go along with the crowd instead of taking a stand. But as the old saying goes, “if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” We demonstrate our faith when we choose to stand with God’s people and do things God’s way in the midst of a sea that goes completely against that current.

Left Egypt behind

By faith he left Egypt behind, not being afraid of the king’s anger, for Moses persevered as one who sees him who is invisible.

​Hebrews 11:27 CSB

A third point of faith that the author of Hebrews shares with us is that Moses stepped out and left Egypt behind. Not only did Moses associate himself with the people of God, but he left it all behind. He had caught the vision of what God had for him and determined that it was better than anything this world had to offer.

The author of Hebrews shows that Moses stepped out in faith in this way because he saw Him who is invisible (God). Some people call faith blind, but it is not. God has given us every reason to trust Him. ​

For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse.

Romans 1:20 CSB

What more does God have to do to prove Himself? There is nothing more that He could do. He keeps this world going… He continues to provide breath in our lungs… He has made the gospel available to us. When faith arises within us, it will call us to step out and put it to work. It isn’t a blind following. God lays out a vision of what could be and asks us to pursue it trusting Him. We cannot live a life of faith in Christ and continue to hold on to this world.

Led the Israelites to freedom

By faith he instituted the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn might not touch the Israelites. By faith they crossed the Red Sea as though they were on dry land. When the Egyptians attempted to do this, they were drowned.

​Hebrews 11:28–29 CSB

The final point of faith that the author of Hebrews shares about Moses is when he used the tools God gave him to lead others to the freedom God had for them. When the author of Hebrews talks about the instituting of the Passover, he is referring to the miracle signs that God gave to Moses to soften Pharaoh’s heart. These signs culminated in what we know as the Passover – when the Israelites would sacrifice a spotless lamb and apply the blood to the doorposts of their houses so that the Death Angel passed them over.

This was a foreshadowing of Jesus on the cross. Jesus was the Lamb of God who shed His blood for the sins of the world. Anyone who comes by faith to Jesus and has their sins washed by His blood finds forgiveness and freedom from sin and hell.

The author of Hebrews also talks about how, by faith, Moses led the Israelites through the Red Sea on dry ground. When the Egyptians tried to follow, they were destroyed. This shows us that we can only come to God on His terms and in the way that He has set forth – through faith in Jesus. We cannot fake it. We cannot imitate it. We either have it or we do not.

Moses had never done any of these signs before. He had nothing other than the word of the Lord to lean on in this. Moses knew that God’s word is trustworthy and able.

Have you experienced the wonder of the gospel? Have you had your life changed by the power of God through Jesus Christ? There is no imitation or other way to do this outside of coming to Him and following Him by faith.

Conclusion

Moses is one of many figures in the Bible who was just an ordinary person that God used to do extraordinary things. The reason for this is his faithfulness to God. We can experience the power of God in mighty ways as well if we will be faithful to what God calls us to do.

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Which Jesus?

I believe that it is no secret that we live in a time when people love the choices that are available to them. A person does not have to just take what is given to them in many situations, but rather they can make a choice that appeals to them personally.

While I like choices when it comes to lunch selections, clothes, and many other things, when it comes to the object of my worship, there cannot be a smorgasbord. I cannot give my attention and adoration to more than one being.

When it comes to the topic of Jesus, one might think that the issue is plain. I mean, how can a person be so drastically different? If a person were very different around various people or groups, then they would not be worth following. There is just something special about integrity.

The sad part is that people see Jesus in so many different ways. Some see Jesus as their “homeboy” – he is one that is fun to hang around and always has your back. Some see Jesus the Genie – he’s around to grant our wishes and get us out of trouble. Some see Jesus the Grandpa – he’s loving and has some old ways of thinking, but he’ll let you by with a lot more than your parents. These are just a couple of the many ways in which people see Jesus. None of these accurately describes the Son of God though.

I wonder how many people are following a ‘Jesus’, but it is not the Jesus of the Bible. This isn’t the first time it has happened. Exodus 32 shows a time when people were worshipping what they thought was the Lord, but they were actually worshipping their hand-made gods.

One can see that the people asked Aaron, Moses’ brother, to make “gods” for them (Exodus 32:1). Aaron asks for their gold and makes a calf idol for the people to worship (Exodus 32:2-4). It is interesting that the word ‘gods’ so far is the Hebrew word (elohim) for either plural gods or the name of the Lord God. One doesn’t quite know exactly who they are talking about.

Yet in verse 5 we see Aaron clearing it up… they see this golden calf as the one true God that has led them so far. He says, “There will be a festival to the LORD (yhwh – the covenant name of the Lord) tomorrow” (emphasis mine). They had clearly misunderstood the correct identity of who God was and were following that wrong perception towards destruction.

How many are following a ‘Jesus’ that is not from the Bible? Is the ‘Jesus’ that we are submitting our lives to the one that the Scriptures truly reveal, or is it one that we have created so that we can manage? That didn’t work out well for the Israelites in Exodus 32, and it won’t work well for us either. Pursue the Jesus that is shown to us in the entire Bible, not just in particular verses. Each chapter and verse of each of the 66 books/letters that make up the Bible work to reveal who Jesus truly is… the one that we should follow and submit our lives to.

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Lessons From Parenthood

The past couple of days have been really cool as God has reminded me just how much He is using my children to teach me about my relationship with Him.  Two instances from the past day or so really stand out.

1. I was helping Sam (our 10 month old) with his walking by holding his hands while he made his way across the room.  He would take a couple of steps and then stop and look up at me.  He would wait for me to acknowledge him and tell him that he was doing good.  He would just smile and continue on.  It was at that moment that God reminded me that's how I should be.  Take a couple of steps all the while holding onto to my Father's hand and taking the time to stop and make sure that I'm doing it right and going in the right direction (Exodus 33:14-16).


2. As I was sitting in my office this morning, I heard the sounds of children playing outside my window (my office overlooks our church's playground).  Through all of the noise, I heard one distinct voice: my oldest son, Drew.  It wasn't because he was being rowdy or overly loud, but rather I just knew that voice.  I could pick it out of a crowd and zone in to where he was.  I watched as my 3 year old was playing something (who knows what his imagination had come up with), and I found myself just smiling.  I could hear the whisper of God in my ears saying, "You know, I hear you out of the crowd, too.  I also take joy in seeing you use the gifts that I've given you to the fullest."  (Exodus 33:16-18)

It is amazing sometimes the avenues and different things that God will use to teach His children about Himself.  Keep your eyes and ears open and hear the words of God.

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The Mentality of Pharaoh

I have been reading through the book of Exodus in my daily readings for the past couple of days.  This has been a great journey through God's word for me.  As I came to the familiar passage about God using Moses and Aaron to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery, one thing stood out to me: the mentality of Pharaoh.

Exodus 5-12 accounts how God sent Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh with many "signs" or "plagues" so that Pharaoh might see that God was calling for a release of His people to worship Him and live in freedom.  Over and over again, we see that Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not allow the release.  Then God brought the ultimate "plague": the death of the firstborn.  This led to the release of the Israelites to finally live in freedom.

What stood out to me was the repeated instances of Pharaoh saying one thing then doing another (Exodus 8:8-15, 8:25-32, 9:27-35, 10:16-20).  Over and over again, God showed His great power and victory over the false gods of the Egyptians.  Over and over again, Pharaoh made a "deal" with God to obey.  When Pharaoh saw that everything was good again, he reneged on his promise and faced something worse.

How many times does this reflect our hearts?  God allows things in our life to crumble or get uncomfortable, and we make a "deal" with God only to renege on our part.  God is not interested in our "deals".  He is more interested in our hearts and obedience to Him as a loving Father.  Let us make a "deal" with ourselves today: stop making "deals" with God and just be obedient to Him.

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To Change or Not To Change...

As we gear up for a new year of student ministry, we are looking many changes square in the face. We are looking at "tweaking" a good bit of the things that we do on a regular basis. I have always been one that is open to changing things as needed. The other day, I began to wonder if this mindset could actually be backed up by the Bible.

As my mind wondered and my fingers browsed the pages of Scripture, I came across some interesting things...

• In creation, God created man in a different manner than He created everything else (Genesis 2:7).


• There was only one ark (Genesis 6).


• There was only one burning bush (Exodus 3).


• There was only one disciple who walked on water, and they did it only once (Matthew 14:22-33).

One can easily see from Scripture that God has chosen to use unique ways to bring glory to Himself and do great things.  Why do we see something work once and believe that is the only way that it should be done until Jesus comes back?  The truth is that the ways that people communicate changes with the times.  Though the message of the cross shall never change, the methods that we use to get that message out have to change with the times.

How are you clearly getting the message of Jesus Christ out to those around you?

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Reflecting The Glory Of God

As I sit here getting ready to go into my Old Testament class, I am reflecting on the assigned reading for today: Exodus. That's right, the whole book. It's good stuff though. I have been drawn to the passage in Exodus 34 where Moses descended from the mountain and his face was shining with "the glow." I have read this many times and heard many thoughts on it, too. The fact was that this "glow" was given to Moses as a sign of his spending time face-to-face with Yahweh and Yahweh's approval of Moses' leadership.

I guess my fascination with this event is my wondering, "Do I ever glow?" Is there a true sign that I have spent time face-to-face with the God of the universe and His approval of His call on my life? It may not be that I have to wear a veil for the sake of those around me, but I long for a sign that others can see that the God that I love and serve is real.

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