20121021
All of us know and love the story of Moses well. We can see three great aspects of faith from his life. First, the refusal of faith (Heb. 11:24-25). As the adopted son of the Egyptian princess, Moses could have led an easy life in Egypt’s palace. But his faith moved him to refuse that kind of life. He chose to identify with his own suffering people – the Israelites. Faith causes a believer to hold the right values and make the right decisions. The phrase “pleasures of sin” does not refer only to lust and other gross sins. It describes a way of life that some people call “successful” – position, prestige, power, wealth and freedom from problems.
Moses’ refusal of faith led to the reproach of faith (Heb. 11:24-25). In the USA, there was a mayor of a large American city who moved into a dangerous and decayed housing project to demonstrate the problems and needs of minorities of her city. But she also kept her fashionable apartment and eventually moved out of the slum and back home. She can be commended for her courage in trying to feel the pain of the people but Moses left Egypt’s palace and never went back to his life of luxury there. He identified with the suffering Israelite slaves of Egypt. People of faith often have to bear reproach and suffering when they stand up for God. The Apostles suffered for their faith. Contemporary Christians in China know what it is like to bear reproach and suffering. If reproach is an evidence of faith, how much of this aspect of faith is happening in our own lives as Christians in Singapore!
Finally, there is the reward of faith (Heb. 11:26-29). God always rewards faith, if not immediately, at least ultimately. Over against “the treasures of Egypt”, Moses “was looking ahead to his reward”. Moses’ faith enabled him to face Pharaoh unafraid and kept his faith and trust in God. The endurance of Moses was not a natural gift for by nature Moses was a hesitant and retiring man. This courage came as a reward of faith. The faith of Moses was rewarded with deliverance for the Israelites. When we trust ourselves, we get only what weak people can do. When we trust God, we get what God can do. The experience of Moses is proof that biblical faith means obeying God in spite of circumstances and consequences.
