***Start off with Choose Your Own Adventure***
Throughout our lives we are going to have to make a lot of decisions. Most often when we are thinking about what direction to go or what decision to make we try to make the decision that is best for us. In our culture we are told that picking the job that pays more is best. We are told that sitting next to the smart kids in class is best so we can cheat. We are told that we need to play two sports, take AP classes, and get straight A’s is best so we can get into a good college. The question that I want to think about tonight though is, “Is choosing what our culture says is best always actually the best thing?”
To explore this question I want to look at a decision that Moses made that most definitely went against the culture. Open your pew bibles to Exodus 2 we are going to look at verse 11-15 in pieces so please keep the Bibles open and follow along.
In this passage, Moses had to make a choice. ***Read vs. 11*** On the one hand Moses could choose to ignore the beating and walk away. On the other hand Moses could choose to intervene for the Hebrew, who was one of his own people. If Moses chose to ignore the beating we would have continued to gain power and wealth in Egypt. He would have enjoyed a glorious life with many treasures and other worldly pleasures. If Moses chose to intervene and save the Hebrew he would be giving up the luxurious lifestyle that he was raised in. He would have been choosing to be recognized with the Hebrew slaves instead of the Egyptians. Moses’ whole life must have flashed before his eyes as he tried to figure out what to do. After some thought though Moses makes his decision. ***Read vs. 12***
In Hebrews 11:24-26, Moses is commended for this choice. “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.”
Moses understood that choosing what the culture said was best was not what God thought was best. In fact in these verses in Hebrews, it says that if Moses had chosen to ignore the beating and live comfortably as an Egyptian, it wouldn’t have been just a worse decision, it would have been sin! Anytime in our lives when we reject God or the things that he teaches us, we are disobeying God which is what sin is.
Moses knew that it was more important to follow God than to follow the Egyptians rules and standards. He had the same understanding that Joseph and his parents had; the understanding that this earth that we live in is not our home or final resting place. At the end of verse 26 in Hebrews 11 it says that Moses made his decision because he was looking forward to his reward. Moses knew that at some point God was going to honor the promise that he had made to bring all of the Hebrews to the Promised Land and he knew that that land would be better than anything he could have experienced in Egypt.
As I talked about the last couple of weeks, we too have a promise of a land that will be better than anything than we can experience here on earth. We too have a choice before us to decide whether or not we are going to associate ourselves with the people or things in this world that are seeking after pleasure, comfort and riches. Or are we going to associate ourselves with the people and things that have their mind set on heaven and a relationship with Christ.
We can choose the first, live out our lives and then be left with nothing when we die because we don’t have a relationship with God. Or we can choose the second and be left with absolutely everything when we die because we get to live out eternity in heaven with Christ. That’s your choice to make!
Let’s go back and look at the next two verses in Exodus 2. Moses had made the best decision to associate himself with God and with the Hebrews but then something bad happened. Moses became proud! In Acts 7:25 we read that after Moses killed the Egyptian he “thought his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them.” ***Read vs. 13*** Moses sees this fight break out, so he puffs out his chest and goes and confronts the man beating up the other man. “Hey there, why are you hitting this man? You should be like me and choose to work with God’s people.” The man reacts harshly. ***Read vs. 14a*** This put Moses in his place and he became scared. ***Read vs. 14b***
Have you guys ever dealt with people who brag about something that they did right or well. It’s annoying! I did it the other day to Melissa. We went out to dinner on Friday night in Gloucester and after dinner I paid the bill. I was in a good mood and had some extra money so I decided to give the waitress a really good tip. On the way out of the restaurant I began asking Melissa to figure out what percentage I had given her, trying to boast and make Melissa proud of me. As I opened the passenger side car door for her she looked at me as she got in and said, “If you want to do something nice that’s great but it kind of ruins it when you brag about it.” I was really embarrassed after that. I shut her door and walked around the car to my side, got in, and apologized.
When we make decisions in this world that are Godly we can’t brag about them. When we brag about things like that we are trying to elevate ourselves and make ourselves look good. Instead we need to be humble and we need to elevate God as the reason for making our decision. This is exactly what Curt Schilling did when he talked about his choice to pitch in Game 6 of the Yankees-Red Sox series. Before the reporter could even ask one question, Schilling gave all the credit to God. “I didn’t do that on my own efforts,” he said. “God gave me the ability to compete and He deserves all the credit.” Schilling could have very easily acted like Moses. He could have pumped out his chest and claimed, “Look what I did!!” But he didn’t.
We need to act the same way when we make the right decision. We can’t start acting better than everybody else and we can’t try to elevate ourselves to a place where we don’t belong.
Let’s look now at verse 15. ***Read vs. 15*** Why did Moses flee from Egypt here? At first glance, many people would say that he fled because he was scared of Pharaoh who was trying to kill him. Hebrews 11:27 though, bluntly says that Moses was not scared of the king. So why did he flee? As I studied this passage today, the best choice for why Moses fled pointed to the fact that Moses didn’t want to confront Pharaoh with his decision. Instead, he ran away because it would easier.
When we make Godly decisions we need to stick to our decisions. Sometimes when we make the right decision that is pleasing to God, we only live out that decision in front of certain people. Then, when we are confronted by certain people, we back out of the conversation by trying to change the subject or give a half way answer that kind of makes both sides happy. I used to do this all the time in high school. I had friends who would ask me what religion I was I would say that I was Baptist. That way, I wasn’t denying my faith completely but saying I was Baptist didn’t sound as bad to my friends as saying I was a Christian. When we make a decision we need to stick to it though and live it out in front of everybody.
Even though Moses originally had trouble with this eventually he went back to Egypt and confronted the Pharaoh to, “Let my people go!” Even though I once had trouble with this I now proudly profess to my friends that I am a Christian. The secret to sticking with a decision is found in the second half of Hebrews 11:27. “He persevered because he saw him who is invisible.” Moses was often talked about as having conversations with God face to face. It was only through his direct relationship with God that Moses was able to persevere. It was the same thing for me. It wasn’t until I really invested in my relationship with God and got to know him better that I finally was able to persevere when friends confronted me. It will be the same thing for you guys as well. When you decide to make a Godly decision that goes against what the culture says you will have to turn to God for help in sticking with your decision. It is hard to make a Godly decision sometimes and the strength that is needed only comes from God.
We need to try our best to make Godly decisions because what God wants for us isn’t always the same thing that the culture wants for us. We need to understand that following God and having hope in heaven someday is going to be better than anything else we can do here on earth. We need to be humble about our decisions and give credit to God for why and how we made them. Then we need to persevere in our relationships with God so we can stick to the decision we made.
