Mountain Movers

By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel. (Hebrews 11:27-28)

"By faith he left Egypt." An act of faith led Moses and the Israelites out of Egypt. God had promised them something much better. Yet, they had to do something risky to see God's promises come to fruition. Certainly, Moses knew Pharaoh's character and that he would not just sit back and let the Israelites get what they wanted. Sure, Moses' legions of followers had a head start, but it was only a matter of time until the unarmed Israelite civilians-- men, women, children, including the aged and infirm-- were caught up and pulverized by the mighty Egyptian army!

Who knows what might have happened had the Israelites remained settled in Egypt? Most likely, they would have had the same predictable lives that they had before. As with the previous 430 years, they would have lived out their lives in bondage. Who wants that? Jimmy Cliff once sang, "I'd rather be a free man in a grave than living as a puppet or a slave."

By faith, Moses led, and by the catalytic action that is a hallmark of most of God's faithful, he influenced those he led. He was most assuredly aware of the magnitude of his decisions and had impact on millions, then, and today.

Moses reserved his reverential fear for God, not for the Pharoah who was worshiped as a god by the masses, and who did, indeed, exercise powerful life and death gestures just through the flick of his wrist. Moses realized that the One who created the universe in six days could do absolutely anything he wants at anytime he wants anywhere he wants in any way he wants. Moses saw how time and time again God continually humbled Pharaoh and his people while at the same time protecting and rescuing the Israelites. He knew Pharaoh's anger would come. By faith, he decided that no obstacle, including Pharaoh's intimidating potent rage, would stand in the way of his accomplishing the Will of God.

Moses persevered. In today's terms, he would be considered a senior citizen when he led the Israelites out of Egypt. He led these complaining and querulous millions through the desert wastelands on their quest for the promised land. Yet, Moses saw the invisible God, and this vision gave him strength. Faith involves this seeing of the invisible. As Hebrews 11:1 says, faith is being "certain of what we do not see." The invisible should inspire and motivate us to do great things for God. Do you only honor, respect and obey when you see a "sign" or encounter concrete evidence or the facts? Moses did the opposite. He beheld a constant, never-changing and present God. In his twilight years, this early steadfastness, this keeping-on keeping on, led to greater signs and wonders still.

By faith, Moses and the Israelites kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood. In Exodus 12:7, the Lord commanded Moses to tell the Israelites to take some of the blood of the lamb they would eat "and put it on the sides and tops of the door frames of the houses." If I decided to put blood on the front door of my apartment, the neighbors would call the police and the landlady would be furious. Yet that's what the Israelites did. Being faithful means you are not concerned about what others think when it comes to doing God's will.

Because of the faith of the God's people, the destroyer of the firstborn spared the Israelites while the "powerful" Egyptians suffered immensely. God showed His grace in how He protected and ultimately delivered His people.

Exodus 12:28 simply states "the Israelites did just what the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron." What is interesting to note is that all the Israelites were examples of the faith mentioned in Hebrews 11:27-28. Yet the author of Hebrews only acknowledges the faith of Moses in that passage. Why? Because Moses' faith inspired everyone else. There are so many examples in the Bible where God's people are going through a challenging situation and one person decides to take a stand in the name of God. God blesses that person and the others rally around him for strength. It happened with Moses, David, Jesus, and Paul and it happens in today's society as well. But stepping forward as that faith leader is easier read about, theorized, and talked about than actually activated. After all, why did it take 430 years for someone that God could use to lead the Israelites out of Egypt?

We learn something else interesting about faith in Luke 18:7-8.

"And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

The Israelites suffered heavily under the Egyptians' bondage. Chances are, God heard millions cry out to Him for justice. When the proper time came, God gave the Israelites justice. Even though there were millions who cried out to God, it took hundreds of years for God to find that one person with the faith to lead the people out of bondage. Honestly, to have the faith that God upholds is hard to find. As we see with Moses, it is easy to see what kind of faith God is looking for but it is a struggle to live out the life God wants us to. However, when someone who genuinely has that kind of faith emerges, he/she does stand out from the crowd and make a lasting impact on God's people that in turn builds their faith.

In the next chapter, we will see how God used the faith of Moses to bring about the greatest miracle in the Old Testament. The faith of one man was instrumental in saving the lives of millions of people while at the same time bringing judgment on numerous more people.