Verse of the day: Exodus
2:15-16 When Pharaoh
heard of this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from the face of
Pharaoh and dwelt in the land of Midian; and he sat down by a well. 16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. And
they came and drew water, and they filled the troughs to water their father’s
flock.
Moses
fleeing to Midian was no coincidence; and neither was his meeting the seven
daughters of Jethro, the Midianite Priest, and his future father-in-law. The Midianites
were also descendants of Abraham, as Midian was the son of Abraham and Keturah,
the wife Abraham took after Sarah’s death. It was no coincidence that God led
Moses to dwell amongst his own distant relatives, who at this time still held
on to Abraham’s religion, and worshiped God. It is in Midian that the Moses
will receive the rest of his preparation in order to effectively serve the
Lord. As he was raised for forty years in luxury and power, he will now learn
to live a life of poverty and hardship in preparation for the task that lie
ahead in leading God’s people out of Egypt. There is a false narrative being
preached in some circles today, where we are taught to believe that serving God
always leads to material prosperity and blessings. However, that kind of
teaching flies in the face of what we see in the life of Moses, Jesus, and the
Apostle Paul (just to name a few). Isaiah 53:3-12 records the prophecy
concerning Jesus’ suffering. In Acts 9:15-16, Jesus sends Ananias to minister
to Saul, the Apostle Paul, and says to Ananias, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before
Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how
many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” Can God choose to
bless us materially as we serve Him? Of course God can do that, if He so
chooses. The fact of the matter is, however, that God will often call us to
give up the luxury, and comforts, we live in, and go to places where we will
face persecution and hardship. What we fail to see when He calls us to that is
that the heavenly reward that comes with this willingness to sacrifice is far
greater than any earthly wealth or blessing we could ever gain. Moses was
readily willing to give up his life as Pharaoh’s daughter’s son in order to
suffer with his people (Hebrews 11:24-26), and now he finds himself in Midian,
not realizing that his training in enduring hardship has already begun, in
preparation to be used by God in a mighty way. We, as born again believers,
must cast away the manner of thinking that says that we will never suffer
persecution or poverty in our service to the Lord. Jesus foretold that we would
be hated for His sake (John 15:18-25). He warned us that in this world we will
have tribulation (John 16:33). However, notice what is taking place here. Moses
stood up for his people, and was misunderstood, which led to his having to flee
Egypt. Nonetheless, God used this turn of events for Moses’ good, and God’s
glory (Romans 8:28). God protected Moses from Pharaoh by using his Hebrew
brother’s rebuke to warn him of the impending danger he was facing. He now has
led him to safety amongst people who descended from Abraham, and amongst them
provided him a place to dwell and have a family; all the while preparing him
for the great task that God would use him for, forty years later. Sadly, we are
an impatient people who expect God to do things on our timetable, and when He
does not, we get discouraged, and walk away from His service. Too often we are
not willing to give up our earthly possessions in order to go serve in places
where we will not have the same luxuries; so much so, that far too many of us
are not even willing to be inconvenienced in simply rearranging our schedules,
or our own set priorities, in order to go share Christ with our neighbor, or go
give of our time and resources to someone God has put before us who has a need.
We must always be ready and willing to allow God to take us out of our comfort
zone so that we can go and do that which He desires of us in sharing Christ
with others, or simply being a blessing to another brother or sister in Christ.
What are we truly willing to do, or give up, for the sake of being a faithful
servant for the Lord? What is He calling us to give up, in order for us to go
wherever He wants to send us, but we are holding on to for dear life? It is
time to let go, and be willing to suffer whatever necessary for the cause of
Christ, and the glory of God.
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