Call to Worship 1 Peter 2:11
Hymn JBC # Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness
The Lord’s Prayer
Offering
Scripture Exodus 2:11~25
Sermon “The Flight of Moses”
https://youtu.be/_jjruFfqTEI
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 297 I hear the Saviour say
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Let us also listen today to God’s message through the story of Moses that is depicted in the Old Testament [the book of Exodus]
Moses is one of the greatest people even among the characters in the bible. He later shoulders the role as a leader who saves the Israelites that lived the life of slavery in Egypt for 400 years and makes them flee from Egypt.
However, the bible does not depict any human being as a perfect man. It is because any human being is imperfect. No matter how great achievement that person has left, the bible distinctly writes the mistakes they have committed or even their weakness.
Even king David who was told to be great, had a relationship with the wife of a man that was his own soldier, and made her pregnant. And to conceal that matter, David stationed that soldier (Uriah) at the front line of the battlefield on purpose and made him die in battle.
Peter who was Jesus Christ’s leading disciple insisted emphatically [Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you.]
However, after Jesus was arrested, he eventually denied Jesus even three times (as Jesus prophesied) saying [I don’t know that man.]
Even in today’s passage is depicted a sin to Moses, a terrible mistake which he has committed that can’t be erased.
Moses that was born as a child of Hebrew living in Egypt, was hidden by his mother for three months after he was born. It is because Pharaoh, the king of Egypt who feared the overpopulated Hebrews commanded that all boys that were born in the nation be thrown into the Nile River.
Moses’ mother who could no longer hide him over three months, put the infant Moses in a papyrus basket, and placed it among the reeds at the river’s brink. It was then found by the Egyptian king’s princess, and surprisingly, Moses’ biological mother ended up giving him milk as a wet nurse.
And as Moses grew up, the princess of Pharaoh took him back. What happens after that is not written in the bible in detail, however, Moses lived in Egypt’s royal palace, and there he attained manhood. Today’s passage is the story after that.
In verse 11 which is the beginning of today’s passage is written as follows.
11 One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people.
I don’t know how but, Moses knew the fact that he was a Hebrew. Probably, the princess of Pharaoh must have told Moses of that matter as he grew up.
Moses grew up, left the royal palace and went to his fellow countrymen. He must have been hurt upon seeing his people under strenuous labor. Moreover, he must have felt anger as well concerning that matter.
Moses saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew who was one of his people. He looked around and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
There is also an interpretation of this term “beaten up” in [An Egyptian has beaten up one of his fellow Hebrews] that means “beaten up to death”.
In that case, it would mean that Moses took vengeance of his fellowman that was killed. However, Moses hid the dead body of the Egyptian that was beaten up to death. In my opinion, it was probably because Moses’ conscience must have told him “What you have done is wrong.”
Moses might not have heard clearly the voice of his conscience at that time. However, the motive “to hide” shows that Moses himself had the feeling of guilt, and the consciousness of “this should not be known to people”.
Driven by temporary anger and resentment, he has beaten up to death an Egyptian that beat (killed) his fellow Hebrew ～ even if it’s not completely incomprehensible, it was one terrible mistake that he has committed which remains throughout his life.
Moses must have thought that what he has done can be hidden by burying the Egyptian’s dead body in the sand. However, that sin did not remain concealed. It was soon uncovered that the matter had already been known to people.
When Moses went out again the next day, two Hebrews were struggling together this time.
Moses confronted the man at the wrong side and asked [Why do you strike your fellow?], then that man answered Moses [Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?]
Those words made Moses afraid. It was because the fact that he killed the Egyptian the day before was made known.
Moreover, even the utterance [Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?] must have pierced him within. I think Moses had also a strong sense of justice but emotionally intense, and being driven by that intense emotion, he seemed to be a person that acted abruptly. (At least, still during this time)
Moses remembers that he killed the Egyptian the day before, and he must have been reminded of his sinfulness of taking someone’s life diving by his own sense of justice and anger.
And I think that Moses was made to realize that even without being aware of it himself, he had been feeling like “a ruler or judge” judging other people.
We also need to be careful, for we often feel like a ruler or a judge (thinking “I am right”), and we judge what others do.
I hope that we become aware even to such our self through prayer and God’s Word and we do not judge others.
What Moses did (that he killed the Egyptian) was made known even to Pharaoh. And so, he sought to kill Moses.
Having known that Pharaoh was after his life, Moses ran away from Pharaoh and fled to the land of Midian. And there, he sat down by a well.
Moses was really at a loss, and must have thought “what should I do now?”
The crime of murder that he has committed became widely known, his life is sought after by the king of Egypt～ that to Moses has turned into a desperate situation. And yet, however, God’s protection and guidance never left him.
Women came to the well where Moses was, to give drink to their flock of sheep. They were daughters of a Midian priest. And it is written that shepherds came and drove them away.
The weak women must have been disrupted or robbed off from those shepherds their opportunity to draw water from the well to give drink to the sheep.
Moses then stood up, helped the women and watered their flock. As they came home to their father, he asked his daughters that came back much earlier than usual [How is it that you have come back so soon today?]
His daughters responded [An Egyptian delivered us out of the hands of the shepherds, and even drew water for us and watered the flock.]
Moses was not an Egyptian. He was a Hebrew, but the daughters thought that he is an Egyptian. Moses who was reared at the royal palace of Egypt must have been given the impression as an Egyptian due to his words and behavior.
Their father said, “Don’t leave that man, call him that he may eat meal”, and he sent his daughters for Moses. He then came over to the women’s house, and since he was content to dwell with them, their father (Reuel) gave Moses his daughter Zipporah for marriage.
Moses and Zipporah had a son, and Moses named him Gershom. This name is a Hebrew word that means “sojourner (or foreigner).
It is written that Moses named his son “Gershom” for he said [I am a sojourner in a foreign land].
What does it mean by [I am a sojourner in a foreign land]? Moses knew that he was a Hebrew. Therefore, he must have thought that he was a sojourner (foreigner) even while he was in the Egyptian royal palace.
And escaping Egypt, he had to flee to Midian, and again Moses was a “sojourner” even there. How did Moses feel about that matter? He probably thought [I am a sojourner (foreigner) wherever I go…]
Moses must have felt a little anxiety or sadness for the fact, “I am a sojourner” who doesn’t live in his homeland.
This term “sojourner” has a significant meaning through the bible. That is, “We are all sojourners on this earth”.
We received life from God, and became a living being on this earth. We are born in different regions or countries respectively through God’s plan.
However, despite being born (origin) on this earth, the bible tells as follows.
Philippians 3:20
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
It is told that the Exodus event was around 1300 years B.C. It is a matter long before (1300 years before) Jesus Christ was yet to be born as a human being.
However, since Christ is God, He is One who was present at any period, surpassing eras, and is with us even now through the Holy Spirit.
The bible says that that place is where Jesus Christ comes from as our Savior～ and it is in such heaven where our citizenship is. In that sense, we are all sojourners (foreigners) on this earth.
As mutual sojourners, we live on this earth helping and supporting each other. We were never created by God to live fighting and killing each other.
As the heavenly Father God guided and appointed a calling to Moses in the Exodus period, His guidance is also with us to this day, moreover, there is a calling that he gives to each one of us.
What is that calling? As we listen to the bible, pray and worship God together, we will come to know His plan and calling that is given us.
Let us then walk our life in obedience to that.
