Gtcotr/ss040724
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God often calls greatness out of obscurity.
We will see this in action during the message today.
The greatest book in the history of the world and indeed the greatest story ever told is the Bible. It was authored under the inspiration and direction of the Holy Spirit over the course of 1500 years. The Bible was penned through the cooperation of more than 36 writers, comprising 66 books (Protestant 66; Catholic – 73; Orthodox – 79 to 86), and was written using 3 languages, (Hebrew; Greek; Aramaic), on 3 continents (Asia; Europe; Africa). The Bible contains over 185 songs, tells love stories, and catalogues God’s plan for mankind from the 7 days of creation to His final judgment on sin. The Bible is the Word of God and it is the truth.
The one story of the Bible is the story of redemption.
While you may have known that the Bible is the best-selling book of all time, you may not have realized that it is also the most stolen book in the world. However seldom is a complaint filed since the victims are usually Christians who would have reasonably given that copy to the perpetrators if they’d asked, and only hope the thieves begin to read the message and receive Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.
People who love Jesus and want to be like Him are strange in that way.
The Bible stories in the Old and New Testaments illuminate truths about both God and man. Today we will begin a series discussing some of the more obscure villains, victims, and heroes of the Bible.
This morning our story comes from the book of Exodus, chapter 1. The setting is Egypt; it was approximately 1580BC; just prior to the birth of Moses. The Children of Israel had been living in Egypt for about 350 years and it had been 280 years since Joseph, their protector and benefactor, had died. Since Joseph’s death, the Israelites had become no more than foreign slaves to the Egyptians and the Egyptians were a little afraid of the Israelites.
Let’s pick up the story in Exodus 1 and see if you can pick out the villains, the victims, and the heroes today.
Exodus 1 NKJV
6 And Joseph died, all his brothers, and all that generation.
7 But the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with them.
8 ¶ Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.
9 And he said to his people, “Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we;
10 “come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and it happen, in the event of war, that they also join our enemies and fight against us, and so go up out of the land.”
11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses.
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were in dread of the children of Israel.
13 So the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor.
14 And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage — in mortar, in brick, and in all manner of service in the field. All their service in which they made them serve was with rigor.
Verse 10 – They said: We are afraid of them so, “let us deal shrewdly with them,” lest they multiply and take their opportunity to get away from us.
Isn’t this just like the world? The world is upside down. The best the Egyptians could come up with was: “Let’s make it hard on them; let’s make their lives bitter; we are afraid of them so let’s make them afraid of us and control them with fear. THAT WILL MAKE THEM WANT TO STAY WITH US! Jealous insecurities drove Pharoah and his friends insane.
The scriptures have it right when they say that The wisdom of this world is foolishness. (1 Corinthians 3:19) Ok – on to our main characters for part 1.
You know, Murder is wrong. And it seems especially heinous when innocent people are murdered. One of the most barbaric acts ever is the murder of innocent, defenseless, sweet little babies. Since making the Israelites tired and frustrated and afraid did not slow them down, what was the next step for Pharoah? The next step for Pharoah and his friends was to keep their numbers and strength small by killing their babies. Unfortunately, this would not be the last time we saw this strategy in play.
Two of the 5 most heart-breaking murders in the Bible for me deal with the government sanctioned murder of innocent babies. The killings were born out of insecurity and the fear of losing control. One in the Old Testament and One in the New Testament. And it’s not only seen in Bible times.
The same thing is happening all over the world today. From communist China to the democratic USA, we are seeing government sanctioned and government promoted, and government funded killing of babies in efforts to maintain control and cut down on the numbers of unwanted children who might one day upset the balance of power or the status quo of those in charge today. Murder is all about control.
And there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9)
Why is the killing of babies in Egypt 3500 years ago a part of the message at Church On The Rock today? Because it shows the pattern and the pathway taken by the devil in his attempts to stop the plan of God. Let’s follow along to discover satan’s unfolding plan in this account. What did the demonically inspired leaders of the nation decide to do? They said we will:
Exodus 1
15 ¶ Then the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of one was Shiphrah and the name of the other Puah;
16 and he said, “When you do the duties of a midwife for the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstools, if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live.”
e. When making it hard bitter bondage didn’t work …
f. When paying people to make bad things happen didn’t work … what will Pharaoh and his friends do?
Exodus 1:22 So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “Every son who is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.”
But guess what? God took care of those who refused to go along to get along. Just like Daniel, and Esther, and Peter … some people said no!
Our heroines for this morning includes three women.The first two are:
Exodus 1
17 But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the male children alive.
20 Therefore God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and grew very mighty.
21 And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided households for them.
God will always protect the righteous and provide for those who fear Him.
Our third heroine for today is the mother of Moses … what a brave woman.
You can read about Jochebed, the mother of Moses, beginning in Exodus chapter 2. This woman is an amazing example of someone who was unwilling to bow to the ungodly legal and immoral social pressures of the day. Jochebed laid her life on the line for what she believed was going to please God. She refused to go along just to get along.
What can we do to please God in situations like this today?
Emulate anyone in the story except for Pharoah and his friends.
(Reference Note: The 5 most heart-breaking murders in the Bible for me include: Abel and Cain; The children killed by King Herod in Bethlehem; John the Baptist; the murder of Jesus; and the executive order requiring everyone to participate in the murder of babies in Exodus.)
