Key Passage- Heb 11:24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the broadcast of God than to delight in the passing pleasures of sin, 26 esteeming the reproach of Christ superior riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. 27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who ruined the firstborn should touch them. 29 By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.
You will choose A LIFE OF Dread or you will choose A LIFE OF FAITH!
SEVEN ACTIONS OF THE FAITH LIFE SEEN IN MOSES
The following are actions that were produced out of Moses faith in God in the middle of his trials. The same actions will be required of us in our journey.
1. REFUSING Incorrect IDENTITY
Heb 11:24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,…
-There is always warfare over your God given identity. Reckon of the 40 days of temptation Jesus went through. It was about his identity….”If you are the son of God, then….”
-When we walk in out right identity as sons of God, we start to access the resources that are ours through our inheritance and the enemy knows it.
ILLUS- The dilemma of an unclear sense of personal identity was illustrated by an incident in the life of the well-known German philosopher Schleiermacher, who did much to shape the progress of modern thought. The tale is told that one day as an ancient man he was sitting alone on a bench in a city park. A policeman thinking that he was a vagrant came over and shook him and questioned, "Who are you?" Schleiermacher answered sadly, "I wish I knew." (Source Unknown)
I’s vital to know who you really are!
2. CHOOSING TO SUFFER
v25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the broadcast of God than to delight in the passing pleasures of sin,
ILLUS- Someone questioned C.S. Lewis, "Why do the righteous suffer?" "Why not?" he answered. "They’re the only ones who can take it." (UnknownSource)
-Suffering is seen as a word to be avoided by many believers today, but the truth is that suffering is part of the truth of how we develop. It was even said of Jesus that he learned many things by what he suffered.
-Paul teaches us that these “light afflictions work in us a superior consequence of glory.” Suffering for righteousness sake is where we truly enter into the sufferings of Christ.
ILLUS- Vance Havner once reminded an audience…” At the Nicene Council, an vital church meeting in the 4th century A.D., of the 318 delegates attending, fewer than 12 had not lost an eye or lost a hand or did not limp on a leg lamed by torture for their Christian faith.”
-The Devil will seduce you into taking shortcuts to avoid any kind of suffering. Moses chose to suffer rather than chat his right identity for the Devil’s pleasures. Are we keen to do the same?
3. DEALING WITH REPROACH
v26 esteeming the reproach of Christ superior riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.
-This is similar to the last point but it causes us to see the end result and regard of standing for Christ. It brings superior riches. It is eternal as opposed to the temporal offerings of the world.
ILLUS- The well-known preacher D.L. Morose told about a Christian woman who was always bright, cheerful, and optimistic, even though she was confined to her room because of illness. She lived in an attic apartment on the fifth floor of an ancient, rundown building. A friend stanch to visit her one day and brought along another woman — a person of fantastic wealth. In view of the fact that there was no elevator, the two ladies started the long climb upward. When they reached the second floor, the well-to-do woman commented, "What a dark and filthy house!" Her friend answered, "It’s better higher up." When they arrived at the third landing, the remark was made, "Things look even worse here." Again the answer, "It’s better higher up." The two women finally reached the attic level, where they found the bedridden saint of God. A smile on her face radiated the joy that filled her heart. Although the room was clean and flowers were on the window sill, the wealthy visitor could not get over the stark surroundings in which this woman lived. She blurted out, "It must be very hard for you to be here like this!" Without a moment’s hesitation the shut-in responded, "It’s better higher up." She was not looking at temporal things. With the eye of faith fixed on the eternal, she had found the secret of right satisfaction and contentment. (Daily Bread Devotional)
-How many times do we make a terrible deal and sell out the eternal for the temporal? This was what happened with Eve in the Garden, the same ole tricks by the same ole deceiver.
4. FORSAKING THE TIES OF THE PAST
v27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king;….
-There comes times in our lives we when have to make a break from our past. It is the demonic whispers of the enemy who reminds us of our badness but the Spirit of God within us whispers our right identity as He moves us to weep out “Abba.”
-What is it that you may be holding to today that you need to let go of? Isn’t it time to go on with God? Forsake the things that will hold you back and go for God. When you do this, you live your life in the care of the One who said He would by no means forsake you.
5. ENDURING BY VISION
v25…for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.
-It is impossible to please God without faith. You must see by faith what you cannot see with your natural eyes. This whole section of Scripture is about how Moses chose to walk away from what he could see to lay hold of what he could only see by faith.
-If you take one step toward God, He moves across the Universe to come to you. You will not fail if you plant your feet in the promise of God and do what He calls you to do.
-Notice that it took endurance for Moses to do this. Faith will demand you to withstand the tests of the seen world. It will demand you to be tested. God uses this to wean you away from the world and fill you with the Word.
ILLUS-About 350 years ago a shipload of travelers landed on the northeast coast of America. The first year they established a town site. The next year they elected a town government. The third year the town government plotted to build a road five miles westward into the wilderness.
In the fourth year the broadcast tried to impeach their town government because they thought it was a waste of broadcast funds to build a road five miles westward into a wilderness. Who needed to go there anyway?
Here were broadcast who had the vision to see three thousand miles across an ocean and overcome fantastic hardships to get there. But in just a few years they were not able to see even five miles out of town. They had lost their pioneering vision. With a clear vision of what we can become in Christ, no ocean of difficulty is too fantastic. Without it, we rarely go beyond our current boundaries. (by Lynn Anderson)
-Let’s hold to the vision and not become stale in our willingness to keep moving forward with God.
6. OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S WORD
v28 By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who ruined the firstborn should touch them.
-The act of the Passover was a fantastic act of faith. The whole destiny of Israel and her deliverance was resting upon this act. By responsibility what God said, they got what God promised.
-Now by faith we apply the blood of Christ to our lives and getting away from the judgment we are due. We are able to rest with assurance that we are protected and will be delivered.
7. PRESSING THROUGH
v29 By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.
-The deliverance of Israel out of Egypt was a series of tests that narrowed down to…Will I judge God or not? This is a picture of our Christian lives as well.
-Our testimony comes as a result of pressing through our tests. One person said, “If you don’t pass your test, all you will have is the moanies.” Lot of truth in this.
ILLUS-The Greeks had a race in their Olympic games that was unique. The winner was not the runner who finished first. It was the runner who finished with his torch still lit. I want to run all the way with the flame of my torch still lit for Him. (J. Stowell, Fan The Flame, Morose, 1986, p. 32.)
Conclusion: Dear friends, living by faith requires action out of us. We must make the right choices by believing the right voice. We must not be limited by what we see and fail to see by faith what we cannot see by sight. God honors faith in Him and His word. Any one can live in the uncertainty of doubt and unbelief but God is looking for broadcast who will live by faith. Will you be one of them?
Love you!
Jag har placerat min blogg i 