Thursday: Moses in Egypt
The character of Moses dominated the early years of sacred history. He was kept alive in the providence of God, who worked through an enterprising mother and a caring sister. When Pharaoh’s daughter found baby Moses in the ark of bulrushes, she asked his Hebrew mother to care for him and paid her to do so. What a blessed challenge for a young mother who was an exile and slave! Jochebed had only 12 years to teach her child to pray, to trust and honor God, and shape his character for a life of service. For years, Moses was trained in the royal courts of Egypt. “And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds” (Acts 7:22, NKJV). As Moses matured as a man, he made a conscious decision that changed his life and the course of history.
Read Hebrews 11:24-29. Think about what Moses left behind and what he had to face instead. Try to look at it from his position, before he made the choice. What was he leaving, and what was he choosing to accept by leaving?
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Egypt was one of the greatest powers in the ancient world at the time, if not the greatest. The Nile River created such fertile land that Egypt, flush with crops, was a wealthy and powerful nation, and Moses himself would have been at the top of this kingdom. It’s hard to imagine how tempting the lure of the world, the world of Egypt and all its treasures, must have been to him in his early years. Surely, he must have found the adoration, the pleasures, the riches, tempting. No doubt, he probably very easily could have justified staying rather than to throw in his lot with a bunch of despised slaves.
And yet, what? As Scripture says, he chose “rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (Hebrews 11:25, NKJV). And talk about afflictions? A major part of the book of Exodus deals with the struggles and trials of Moses, who, even after all he went through, was still not able to cross over to the Promised Land (see Numbers 20:12). Yet, in the end, we all know that Moses made the right choice, even if at times he must have wondered himself if he really had.
| From a worldly perspective, Moses should have stayed in Egypt. However, as Christians, we have been given a view of reality that takes us way beyond this world. When we are tempted by the world, how can we keep the big picture always before us? Why is it so important that we do so? |
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Just what is treasure in heaven and what has it got to do with the story of Moses? We sometimes picture heaven in terms of what we call wealth here. Streets paved in gold, foundations of precious stones, mansions with luxurious furnishings, and so on. There are verses in the Bible that mention these things for sure. But the main verse about heavenly treasure says this:
... and that is right in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount; which is all about the principles of Christian living.
Right before this scripture is the Lord's prayer, which says among other things: And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Moses earned the adjective "meek" because he learned to put others ahead of himself. He argued with God to kill him rather than the Israelites who were behaving like a real pain in the neck. It would have been so easy to say, It serves you right! You are getting what you deserve.
Moses must have felt unappreciated at times. If he was in a democracy, he would have been voted out. Treasure in heaven is not about social capital. It is about maintaining a perspective that puts God and others first, irrespective of personal interests. And, you don't do that because there are better things in heaven and you are going to get your share of those. It is about doing the right thing now.
After Jesus talked about that He is the bread of life (John 6:53, 66), many people forsook Him. But the disciples stayed. Jesus asked Peter why he stayed when the others left. His response was basically that he had found life (some commentators say peace) and there was no other place to get that peace.
When we have that peace, it’s like a little piece of heaven on earth.
We can keep the big picture before us by focusing on God's Word, trusting and obeying Him, and remembering the ultimate purpose for which we have been called. When we remain focused on God and His promises we are reminded that this life is only temporary and that He has something even better in store for us. This helps us to resist the allure of the world and instead pursue what is righteous and good. Pursuing what is eternal rather than what is temporal is crucial because it reminds us that our hope should not be in this world but in the life to come.
Why did Moses take the 'road less travelled' - the one that was opposite to what 'worldly wisdom' might suggest is the most self-advantageous path to pursue?
Moses' summary statements to the Israelites, in Deuteronomy 30:15-20, reveal the truth about the life that Moses had come to see. And what is that 'simple' truth? There are two options you are free to try and live by - but only one actually, viably leads to true life. And it's not the option that 'world wisdom' promotes (Proverbs 14:12).
God is not commanding humanity to 'do things His way or else'. Rather, God is compassionately attempting to alert us that there is only one way that will actually work and inviting us to walk in that way - if we are willing (Matthew 23:37). Just like Moses, we too can live in harmony with that wisdom and respectfully offer that same invitation - via our actions as well as our words - to anyone who may be interested.
How could have Moses stayed in Egypt, knowing that the king had sent men after him to kill him? He basically ran for his life without contemplating about the right decision. This is somehow contrary to what the lesson today is trying to point out, since the fame and treasures of Egypt would have been of no use to Moses as a dead man.
There is no record in the Old Testament about Moses praying every day to God, as Daniel did during the time of captivity. By this I‘m just wondering whether Moses had kept his faith in God or not.
What I find interesting about his character is mentioned in Exodus 2:16-19
This act of help shows the natural character of Moses; although he lived as a prince with servants, now he‘s serving others. Yet God put him in His school for 40 years to reshape his worldly character to prepare him for a higher duty. That‘s how God works in our lives too.
„For whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth“. Hebr.12:6
Hi, Amina. Those are some great thoughts!
You asked how Moses could have made a deliberate choice
when in fact he suddenly had to flee for his life.
I think I see a possible answer in the obviously inspired words of Stephen, as recorded in Acts 7:23-29 (NKJV).
If Moses' act in killing the oppressive Egyptian was, as Stephen seems to suggest, intended as an act of war -- expecting the children of Israel to rally behind him and throw off the yoke of slavery -- then it would appear that Moses must have made that deliberate choice, to identify with them and their God of righteousness, before ever going down to see how "his brethren" were doing.
I hope this helps.
That is very thoughtful exegesis R.G. And I think, right on point.
It is important to note that when Moses decided to side with the Israelite and killed the Egyptian he was in effect rejecting his privileged status in Egypt and identifying with his enslaved people.
He fled because he was afraid of what Pharaoh would have done to him and Pharaoh in fact wanted to kill him.
The text in Hebrews is a reference to Moses' return to Egypt under God's guidance, to free the Israelites. On this occasion he was not afraid of Pharaoh.
My understanding of Hebrews 11:25-26 KJV is about Moses' first choice to side with the Israelites, when he defended an Israelite from an oppressive Egyptian task master, that ended in the task master's death.
It is my understanding that Stephen in Acts 7:23-29 retells Exodus 2:11-15.
Hi Amina,
The Bible does say Moses made the choice. He made this choice before he killed the Egyptian and the king came after him. I believe his early training from his mother helped him in making that decision. He didn't go about things in the right way, however, and he did need further training from the Lord. Sister White says that character is shaped in the early years of life. Therefore, he had just the right amount of time with his mother to shape his character for Christ and he did not depart from it. The Bible does not indicate that Moses' choice was by default because he had to run. He had already made his choice. The Scripture quoted in the lesson tells us that.
Today, if I hear a voice inside my mind asking me "why?", what will I answer? What excuse will I give to this question?
How do I know to distinguish the voice of Love from all the others?
Moses was instructed totally differently from his blood people. But the teachings of his childhood about his reality, about God and his original family, was never forgotten. He must have heard some voice to make him answer with such a strength, at times. He was impulsive, but the right voice helped him to become calm and patient. The Spirit of God molds us; we must learn to listen to Him. While I try to learn more about God's wisdom by reading The Scriptures, praying and worshiping, I learn to distinguish His voice inside my head, being my conscience sometimes, or impelling me to do something that will be a blessing for others around me.
Today, if I hear the voice of the Spirit, may I surrender to His call, and repeat this as long as I live! What about you?
I'm not going to suggest Moses' choice was easy, but I think Hebrews 11:26 gives a good idea why Moses did what he did. This verse tells us that Moses chose disgrace for the sake of Christ. So his choice seems to be motivated by a friendship with God. I think if we have that same friendship, the choice will be easier for us too.
While Moses made the choice to side with His people and leave the palace, he didn't wait for God's guidance, but went out and ended up killing the abusive Egyptian taskmaster. He still needed to learn to depend upon the Lord, at that point. He was taking things in his own hands, and from his human standpoint it made sense to help God out. After all, he had military training and was considered mighty in words and deeds.
But God sent him out to herd sheep for 40 years, to learn meekness and dependence upon God and unlearn his human training, and thus prepare himself for the difficult job ahead.