Tag Archives: faith moses

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Plan and Pray

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A man’s heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps.—Proverbs 16:9

Sometimes we walk through life randomly, expecting God to do everything. But there is God’s part, and there is our part. And often God works through the plans that we make.

In the life of Moses, we see the practical and the spiritual working hand in hand. Hebrews 11:23 tells us, “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command.”

Moses’ mother, Jochebed, apparently knew that Pharaoh’s daughter would come down to a certain area of the river, and she also knew that once she laid her eyes on the beautiful little Moses, she might have mercy on him and perhaps take him into her home. So when they couldn’t hide Moses any longer, Jochebed laid him in the basket she prepared for him and set him afloat on the Nile.

Almost on cue, Moses cried. Then Pharaoh’s daughter found the gorgeous child and decided to adopt him.

Jochebed had a plan, but she also prayed. And sometimes when we see something blessed by God, we forget there was a plan.

When God directed Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, Nehemiah first went around the city multiple times and came up with a plan. He essentially said, “Here is what we all need to do together. So let’s do it—and pray as we do it.”

Sometimes we can be too mystical. Maybe a Christian is out of work, and he says, “I’m just praying for a job. I am just trusting God.”

That is fine. But he also needs to submit résumés or fill out job applications and then pray that God will guide.

There is a place for the practical as well as the spiritual.

John MacArthur

John MacArthur – Accepting God’s Plan

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John MacArthur

“By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s edict” (Heb. 11:23).

It has been wisely said that trying to improve on God’s plan is more pretentious than trying to improve the Mona Lisa with an ink pen. All you’d do is ruin the masterpiece.

The story of Amram and Jochebed, the parents of Moses, is about two people who refused to ruin the masterpiece. They trusted God implicitly and did everything possible to see His plan for their son come to fruition.

Because of the number and might of the Hebrew people in Egypt, the pharaoh enslaved them and ordered that all male Hebrew babies be put to death. In direct defiance of that wicked edict, Moses’ parents hid their baby for three months, then placed him in a waterproofed basket along the banks of the Nile River near the place where Pharaoh’s daughter bathed. One can only imagine the faith it took for them to risk their own lives, as well as the life of their baby, by placing him into that basket and introducing him into the very household of the one who wanted all male Hebrew babies slain.

By God’s providence, Pharaoh’s daughter found the baby, took pity on him, and adopted him into her family. More than that, the Lord used Moses’ quick-thinking sister, Miriam, to arrange for Jochebed to nurse and care for her own son! That gave Moses’ family the opportunity to teach him of God’s promises for Israel to inherit the Promised Land, become a mighty nation, and be a blessing to all nations. They helped instill within Moses the faith in God that would later characterize his life.

You may never be called on to make the kind of sacrifice that Moses’ parents made, but no matter what the risks, remember God always honors your obedience.

Suggestions for Prayer:

Thank God for His plan for your life. Seek wisdom and grace to live accordingly.

For Further Study:

Read of Israel’s oppression and Moses’ birth in Exodus 1:1–2:10.

 

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Charles Stanley – Confidence to Face the Unknown

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Hebrews 11:23-29

The phrase “by faith” occurs five times in today’s short Scripture reading from Hebrews. In fact, it appears in every full sentence. Essentially, we are told that by faith Moses endured ill treatment, left Egypt, observed the Passover, and passed through the Red Sea.

Why are the words “by faith” so critical to this story? The reason is that Moses’ faith allowed him to join a long list of biblical heroes who were called to move forward into impossible situations, armed only with their trust in God.

Of course, at times these great men and women—Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, David, and many others—must have been filled with reservation and even fear. Yet by choosing to place their lives in God’s hands and to follow His call, each of them was able to accomplish great and mighty things in the name of the Lord.

The path through life can be dark and confusing; it can be difficult and at times unsettling to move forward with the lantern of God’s guidance shining only a step or two ahead of us. We want to know more, we want to see what lies ahead, and we want a guarantee of success.

Our worries and fears of the unknown, however, do not in any way diminish or deter our sovereign, omniscient Lord. Instead, He desires that each of us step forward in faith. He has promised that when we do so, He will provide us with the guidance we long for (Isa. 30:21).

If you’re currently being called to move forward by faith but are having trouble doing so, call upon the Lord of Abraham, Moses, and David. He strengthened each of them, and He’ll surely strengthen you.

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Accepting God’s Provisions

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“By faith [Moses] kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that he who destroyed the first-born might not touch them. By faith they passed through the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were drowned” (Heb. 11:28-29).

When the time came for Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, everything on the human level said it couldn’t be done. Pharaoh wasn’t about to let two to three million slaves just pack up and leave. His formidable army was ready to insure that no such exodus occurred.

But when God devises a plan, He always makes the necessary provisions for carrying it out. On this occasion, His provision came in the form of ten terrifying plagues designed to change Pharaoh’s mind.

The tenth and worst plague was the death of all the first- born (Ex. 11:5). To protect themselves from this plague, the Israelites sprinkled the blood of a lamb on the doorposts and lintels of their homes. When the angel of death saw the blood, he passed over that house. Thus the Passover was instituted.

The blood from those first Passover lambs had no intrinsic power to stave off the death angel, but its presence demonstrated faith and obedience, thus symbolizing the future sacrifice of Christ (cf. John 1:29).

Pharaoh got the message and allowed the Israelites to leave. But soon afterward he changed his mind and commanded his army to pursue them. Again God intervened by parting the Red Sea, allowing His people to walk across on dry land. He then drowned the entire Egyptian army when it followed the Israelites into the sea.

That was a graphic demonstration of a lesson every believer must learn: God’s provisions are always best. They may sometimes seem foolish to the human intellect–just as “the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness” (1 Cor. 1:18)– but the man or woman of faith trusts God and receives His provisions gratefully.

Suggestions for Prayer:  Thank God for the wise and gracious provisions He has made for your salvation and ongoing Christian walk.

For Further Study:  Read the account of the Passover and the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus 11-14.

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Rejecting the World’s Passing Pleasures

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“By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God, than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (Heb. 11:24-25).

For forty years Moses enjoyed the best of everything Egypt had to offer: formidable wealth, culture, education, and prestige (Acts 7:22). Yet he never forgot God’s promises toward his own people, Israel.

Then, “when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel. And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian. And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him; but they did not understand” (vv. 23-25).

Somehow Moses knew he was to deliver his people from Egyptian oppression. Although it would be another forty years before he was fully prepared for the task, by faith he forsook the pleasures and prestige of Egypt and endured ill-treatment with God’s chosen people.

Humanly speaking, Moses made a costly choice. He seemed to be sacrificing everything for nothing. But the opposite was much more the case since Moses considered “the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the [greater] reward” (Heb. 11:26).

Sometimes obedience to Christ seems very costly, especially when evil people prosper while many who faithfully serve God suffer poverty and affliction. Asaph the psalmist struggled with the same issue: “Behold, these are the wicked; and always at ease, they have increased in wealth. Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure” (Ps. 73:12-13).

But be assured that the eternal rewards of Christ far outweigh the passing pleasures of sin. The wicked have only judgment and hell to look forward to; you have glory and heaven. So always choose obedience, and trust God to guide your choices, just as He did with Moses.

Suggestions for Prayer:    Praise God that the righteous will one day be fully rewarded.

Seek God’s grace to be obedient when you’re faced with difficult choices.

For Further Study:  Read Stephen’s account of Moses in Acts 7:20-39.