Moses – From Zero To Hero
God has brought about many significant changes in the lives of men and women through the centuries.
Our lesson Sunday speaks of Moses as a “Zero,” but he was not always that way. Born to a Hebrew family, he was adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter and brought up to be an Egyptian prince. In spite of his Egyptian connections, Moses longed to see his people freed from their captivity. While visiting his people, he saw an Egyptian taskmaster mistreating a Hebrew slave. Moses killed the Egyptian and thought he had gotten away with it. However, the next day he saw two Hebrews fighting and when he intervened, the men rejected his leadership.
13 The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?” 14 The man said, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “What I did must have become known.” (Exodus 2:13-14).
In the New Testament, Stephen commented on this event.
23 “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his fellow Israelites. 24 He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. 25 Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not (Acts 7:23-25).
Stephen’s account informs us that Moses had the intention, as a young man, to deliver Israel. This, however, was not God’s plan. Stephen attributes this, at least in part, to the stubbornness of Israel. I believe another factor was God’s timing. As a young, Egyptian Prince, Moses might have taken the glory for himself, but as the story unfolds we see that only God could make it happen.
Because of Moses’ actions, he had to run away from Egypt. He forfeited his rights as an Egyptian. He settled in Midian, became a shepherd, and grew old. When God finally called him, he was 80 years old, beaten down and broken by life. Moses did not think he had much to offer anyone anymore. He saw himself as a “Zero.”
This is where we find Moses when he encounters the burning bush and his destiny. God offers Moses a spiritual makeover, but will he cooperate? I’ll say more in my lesson.
I Hope You Will Join Us! Joey
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