Jochebed—Woman of Faith
Chuck Sligh
May 11, 2014
A PowerPoint presentation is available for this message upon request by emailing me at chucksligh@hotmail.com.
TEXT: Turn to Hebrews 11 and we’ll begin in verse 23 in a few moments.
INTRODUCTION
I trust that today has been a good day for all of our mothers. But I’m very conscious that there are some in our service today for whom Mother’s Day is uncomfortable at best and even painful at worst because they have tried, sometimes desperately, yet unsuccessfully, to have children. To them, Mother’s Day can be a reminder of unfulfilled dreams.
To you, let me say that today’s message will be about a mother in the Bible, and I will be speaking at times directly to mothers in particular, but the applications of the sermon are universal. That is, they apply to everyone here, whether you have children or not; whether you’re married, single or a single parent; whether you are male or female, teen or adult. I hope my sermon does not add to your pain, but that somehow you will be able to internalize “the message behind the message” this morning.
Illus. – One Mother’s Day a “For Better or Worse” comic strip had Michael’s mother tossing and turning in bed, thinking about her role as a mother, asking herself: “Am I too tough or am I too lenient? Do I give in too much or too seldom? Do I listen to what he has to say? Do I understand him? Do I nag him too much? Am I really a good parent?” The last frame shows Michael lying on his bed saying, “The problem with grownups is they think they know it all.”
No, Michael, maybe not.
In fact, mothers recognize all too well that as they send their children off in the morning all kinds of bad things lie in wait for them—things like drugs and gangs and alcohol and pornography and moral temptation.
And they must be strong if they’re going to overcome that. In the past, our educational system encouraged development of Christian principles and attitudes. Not anymore. Too often, kids are taught that there are no absolute standards of right and wrong.
So it’s difficult being a Christian mother today. But as hard as that may be, we need to realize that difficulties are not unique to our time. In every age motherhood has had its share of difficulties. Today I want to talk about Jochebed, the mother of Moses, who reared Moses up in a difficult time, and in a pagan culture.
In case you didn’t grow up in church and learn the story of Moses from the Bible, or see Charlton Heston in The Ten Commandments or Dreamworks’ animated film, The Prince of Egypt, here’s a synopsis of the life of Moses.
The Hebrews had been in Egypt for 400 years. Though at first welcomed during a famine Joseph prophesied through Pharaoh’s dreams, they multiplied so rapidly that the Egyptians felt threatened, ultimately leading them to force the Hebrews into slavery. Yet the Hebrew population continued to increase.
In a desperate measure to control this population growth, Pharaoh direct that all male babies under two years old were to be killed. Moses was still a baby then, so you can imagine the horror Jochebed experienced.
Fearing discovery of Moses, she conceived a plan to put Moses in a basket of reeds and pitch so it would float, and put it in the Nile River, trusting God to protect him. Moses floated down the river to where Pharaoh’s daughter happened to be bathing, and when she saw the basket, she sent a servant maid to fetch it.
Exodus 2:6 tells us what happened: “And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” So she called one of her servants, who just happened to be—you’ll never guess— JOCHEBED, and told Jochebed to nurse the baby for her and that she would pay her to do it as well!
“Well, if I must. I guess since you’re PAYING me.” Wow!—Now THAT’S a deal.
Later, Moses became part of Pharaoh’s household, growing up right in the palace.
But Moses never lost sight of his identity as a Hebrew due to Jochebed’s training. He began to go out and mingle with his people. One day, seeing an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, he killed the Egyptian, thinking no one had seen him commit the crime. But when he discovered that there had indeed been witnesses, Moses fled to the wilderness where he lived as a shepherd for several years and got married.
It was in the wilderness that God called him to go BACK to Egypt (you know…the burning bush and all that…) and lead the Hebrews out of the slavery of Egypt to the land God had promised the Jews.
You probably know the rest of the story: He did return; he fought a monumental spiritual battle with Pharaoh and his pagan priests, and on the journey to the Promised Land God gave to Moses the Ten Commandments, the pattern for the Tabernacle and the rest of the Jewish Law—the things that make a Jew a Jew.
The stories of Jochebed and Moses and the journey to the Promised Land are part of the very fabric of the Bible. And the story of Moses all started with the parents of Moses, most notably—Jochebed.
Their faith was so great that they were inducted into God’s “Hall of Faith.” Hebrews 11 is often called the “Hall of Faith” because in it the writer of the book of Hebrews gives example after example of faith that saved people in the Old Testament. Moses and his parents are in the Hall of Faith.
Let’s read the part about Moses and his parents: Hebrews 11:23-27 – “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment. 24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; 25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; 26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. 27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.”
I’d like you to notice four things about Jochebed from our text:
I. FIRST, JOCHEBED SAW THE POTENTIAL IN HER SON – Hebrews 11:23 – “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child…”
Notice that this verse says they saw that “He was A PROPER CHILD.”
Compare Exodus 2:2 – “And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that HE WAS A GOODLY CHILD, she hid him three months.”
Acts 7:20 – “In which time Moses was born, and WAS EXCEEDING FAIR, and nourished up in his father’s house three months.”
“Goodly child” and “exceeding fair” means he was WAY cuter than YOU’RE baby ever was! Remember these are the reactions of parents. She loved him as he was and expected the most of him. She thought he was the cutest, the smartest, the most wonderful little baby boy that had ever been born.
She had a biblical view of children. To the modern, sophisticated, career-oriented woman, children are a bother. They’re an impediment to attaining all that men have in the business world. They’re a barrier to advancement—and advancement and self-fulfillment in the world of work is what it’s all about.
But Jochebed didn’t think that way. She had a biblical perspective on children. She saw children as a gift from the Lord—God’s heritage.
Psalm 127:3-5 (EXPAND AS LED) “Lo, children are an heritage [i.e., “blessing”] of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. 4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. 5 Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.”
Illus. – Tony Campolo says that his wife is a brilliant woman with a PhD and capable of pursuing a profitable career. But she elected to stay home with her children when they were young.
Her decision didn’t bother her at all except when other women would ask, “What do you do?” She’d say, “I’m a homemaker. I stay home and take care of my children and my husband.”
They’d usually respond with a deadpan, “Oh, well then…” and then ignore her. So Mrs. Campolo came up with this response when she was asked what she did: “I’m socializing two Homo-sapiens in Judeo-Christian values so they’ll appropriate the eschatological values of utopia. What do YOU do?”
They’d often blurt out “I’m a doctor” or “I’m a lawyer” and then wander off with a dazed look in their eyes.
Believe me guys, if your wife stays with the kids at home, she’s WORKING! Jane Sellman says, “The phrase ‘working mother’ is redundant.”
II. JOCHEBED NOT ONLY SAW POTENTIAL IN HER SON; SECOND, NOTICE THAT JOCHEBED DID THE RIGHT THING NO MATTER WHAT THE COST – The second part of verse 23 says “…and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment.”
She and her husband dared to violate the law to save their son. Generally we are to obey the law, and obedience to the laws of the land is something God wants us to teach our children.
• Paul said in Romans 13:1 – “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.…”
• And in Titus 3:1 he told Titus to teach his people “…to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates…”
• And Peter said, “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake…” (1 Peter 2:13)
However, there is a time to break the law: We’re to obey the laws of man in every case EXCEPT when they command us to do something that violates GOD’S commands. When commanded to not preach in the name of Jesus, Peter responded “We ought to obey God rather than man” (Acts 5:29) There are many examples of this in the Bible—Daniel, the three Hebrew Men, Jesus, the Apostles, Paul.
In spite of the command of the king, Jochebed hid her son. The verse specifically says that she and her husband “were not afraid.” I believe that this is one of the reasons Moses became the great man that he did. He learned from his mother’s and his father’s courage – Note verse 27 – “By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.”
Moms and dads—do you realize the impact your example makes on your children? When you choose to do the RIGHT thing instead of the expedient thing, your children are watching—and learning. When you choose to do right—even to your own hurt—you set an example that your children will never forget.
Illus. I remember a missionary I knew in Okinawa named Bill Quisenberry whose family in Oklahoma lost their farm during the dust bowl days of the Depression. Then his father died, and his mother was left alone with four children to feed.
In those days before public assistance and welfare, they literally had nowhere to go, and no resources—nothing! As a last resort, she went to a prominent community leader seeking work to support her family. He offered her a job in the saloons and gambling halls around the oil wells. He said the pay was only so-so, but with a wink, he hinted that a beautiful woman like her could “make a LOT of money on the side” if she was available for the men—if you know what I mean.
She and her children were LITERALLY on the edge of starvation—but she refused to go to work for him in ANY capacity. She chose instead to move her family to a CAVE and did piecework in town—earning just enough to get by.
When he was 14, Bill hitchhiked out to California to find work picking fruit. He was a veritable story right out of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath.
But Bill was as straight an arrow as any man I ever met. His mother’s example of doing right NO MATTER WHAT THE COST infused him with the same spirit. His sermon illustrations were peppered with stories of doing right in difficult circumstances during one of our nation’s worst nightmares.
…And he learned it from his godly mother.
Moms—and dads—your kids are watching you, the decisions you make, the choices you make, the sacrifices you make, the way you endure trials, the way you handle adversity, the way to treat people, the way you love or do not show love, the way you talk, and whether you’re honest at all times or willing to cheat a little along the way. And their character will be forged by the example of you and your spouse. Don’t fail them!
III. THIRD, NOTICE THAT JOCHEBED IMPARTED FAITH TO HER SON – Hebrews 11:24 – “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.”
Faith now moves from parents to child. Jochebed’s plan to save Moses allowed her to become his nurse according to Exodus 2:7-10. As his nurse-mother, she would teach him about his people and her Lord. She would teach him about how Abraham trusted in God and it was counted to him as righteousness. She taught him about Joseph and his faith in God even when he was in Pharaoh’s dungeon.
She herself was a great example of faith. How many of you would send your child down a river, trusting in God to take care of him? Her teaching and her example would turn Moses into a man of faith. And when he grew older, he would choose to serve God and help His people. His mother’s patient instruction taught him to be a faithful son.
Moms, don’t underestimate the power you have to help your child come to faith in God. James Keller said, “Every mother has the breathtaking privilege of sharing with God in the creation of a new life. She helps bring into existence a soul that will last for all eternity.”
Moms, realize that your greatest responsibility as a mother—with your husband, if possible—is to raise your child to trust in Jesus and live his or her whole life for Him. If you succeed there, you’re successful, even if you live in a shack or a cave.
And YOU’RE responsible—not the babysitter, not the nanny, not the schoolteacher, not the Children’s Church teacher, not the teen leaders. YOU are most responsible for the spiritual welfare of your child. Take that responsibility seriously.
IV. FINALLY, JOCHEBED HELPED MOSES TAKE THE LONG LOOK IN LIFE – Hebrews 11:25 – “Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.”
Moses saw the temporary nature of the pleasures of sin for a season. He chose to suffer with the people of God instead of live in palace pleasures. He understood that suffering is temporary. He saw that eternal riches were in the Lord, not Pharaoh’s palace – Hebrews 11:26 says, “Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.” He learned to walk by faith, trusting God in difficult times.
And how did he learn these things? He learned them from godly parents who walked what they talked. He learned them from parents of faith, who never wavered in their faith in God, even when things looked bleakest for the Hebrews.
CONCLUSION
So…what is God speaking to you about today?
1) Do you see kids as a blessing or a burden? Get on God’s side on this issue. If you’re not careful, you can resent what God calls a blessing. Love those little ones; train them; discipline them; do all in your power to help them achieve the plan God has for their lives.
2) Parents, do right, no matter WHAT the cost! – What an example you can show to your kids!
3) Moms and dads, impart faith to your kids! – How do you do that?
• By teaching them about God in your home.
• By explaining the Gospel to them until they understand and seek salvation.
• By reinforcing it through continued teaching and by being an example of trusting God even in the midst of adversity and trial.
• By keeping them in church.
• By keeping them in teen activities where they can be around other teens who are learning to trust in God and live for him.
• By encouraging them to listen to Christian singers and groups who talk about applying their faith in daily life.
• By exposing them to Christian books and movies where they can see positive illustrations of faith.
4) Finally, moms and dads, keep your eye on eternity and what’s important in life, and impart those truths to your kids. [EXPAND AS LED]
May God help each of you, whether moms or dads to be the kinds of parents you are called by God to be.
