The Hero's Shadow (Exodus 2:1-10)

Every great story introduces a protagonist. Often, the protagonist proves to be the most heroic and memorable character of the story. In God's big story, the main character shows up in shadows and types long before we meet him face-to-face. We've already seen His shadow once in the person and work of Joseph. We're about to get another glimpse of the Hero in the face of Israel's heroic leader.

A Hero is Born (v. 1-2)
Our hero (lowercase, of course) shows up in a sticky situation. He's a "fine" child from the tribe of Levi, and his mother loved him so much that she couldn't bring herself to kill him. Instead, this brave woman and her husband chose to hide the precious child. For three months, the baby went undetected, and we can only imagine how he was cherished during those three months!

The child's parents were people of faith, and hiding this baby was the fruit of their trust in God Almighty. Hebrews 11:23 gives us some insight into their reasoning for hiding him. One reason, of course, is that he was a "beautiful" child. Yet there was another, much deeper reason they hid the baby. By faith, they were not afraid of the king's edict! It would have been foolish to have the baby boy out in the open for everyone to see, but even hiding a baby for three months was risky business!

Who would have known that their faith would lead to the salvation of their nation and pave the way for the world's Hero several thousand years later?

A Hero is Rescued (v. 3-6)
Though our hero has shown up, he too needed a Hero. That's precisely how his story start. Many elements of his life foreshadowed Jesus, whose story we constantly sense as we read the history of redemption. The child's sister even got a firsthand glimpse of God's powerful working. Imagine seeing your parents' faith answered by God in such a tangible way!

The baby was hidden in a "basket," but don't miss the glorious Hebrew connection here. This same Hebrew word was translated as "ark" in Genesis when God called righteous Noah to rescue his family and the animals. The ark was covered in pitch (also on Noah’s ark!) and sent down the Nile River where he would be rescued by none other than Pharaoh's daughter, who showed "pity" for this Hebrew child. It was God's amazing plan to send this Egyptian girl to part the reeds and rescue this child, and one day God would part the "sea of reeds"—the literal Hebrew translation of the Red Sea—to rescue Israel!

Just as Noah's ark foreshadowed the rescue of this dear child, so this baby's rescue foreshadowed another water rescue—one that would take place in a much greater body of water in a much grander way in a few decades! By God's powerful hand, this baby boy was rescued by the daughter of the king who would one day try to destroy him and his people.

John Piper says, "God can do more in five seconds than we can do in five hours or months or years," and it's because God is always at work behind the scenes in millions of ways to get His glory. We pray and trust God because we know that He is always at work for our good and His glory.

A Hero is Raised Up (v. 7-10)
After this water rescue, our hero's brave sister suggested that his mother nurse him. What a brilliant plan—and it worked! This allowed the child's own blood family to raise him and it even provided additional "wages" for his mother. This small reward for faith is a subtle hint that God would later plunder unsuspecting Egyptians. Being with his family also meant that the boy grew up as a Hebrew among Hebrews, perhaps hanging out with Aaron and Miriam for a few years.

Our young hero's parents passed down their faith, and it eventually became his faith, too. Hebrews 11:24-26 reminds us that by faith this child would grow up and refuse to be an Egyptian. He was so aware of his Hebrew lineage that he chose to be reproached by his adoptive family rather than seek comfort. He passed up the "fleeting pleasures of sin" that could have given him an easy life (v. 25). He left behind the treasures, wealth, ease, security, and royalty of being a child of the world’s king to suffer alongside Israel and be a child of Christ the King. 

Why would he do such a thing? Wouldn't it have been wise to seek a position in Egypt like his great uncle Joseph? Couldn't he have done more for Israel if he had fought their oppression by gaining status, becoming king, and legislating change? Perhaps. But that wasn't God's plan! He "was looking to the reward" of his faith—God Himself (v. 26). We too must set our eyes on things above where Christ is rather than on the things of this earth (Col. 3:1-2). Only then can our upward and forward-looking faith bring us to seek God's will, even if we must lose comfort and security for His name's sake.

What’s His Name?
If you’ve read this story, you already know. If you haven’t, you’re probably chomping at the bit! The child God rescued and raised up was named Moses by his Egyptian mother. His name is special because it has two unique meanings. In Hebrew, his name sounds similar to "draw out”, and in Egyptian, his name meant "born." Moses was the baby who should have died, but God had plans for him to escape abortion and be drawn out of the water so he could be used to draw Israel out of Egypt! 

What a glorious picture of God's faithfulness! No matter where you're at in your story, God is up to something good. Even when we are weak and helpless, the Lord is our help (Psa. 46:1).

Reflection Questions:

1. How have you seen God at work behind the scenes in your life during a difficult trial? How did it impact your faith?
2. How does the faith of Moses’ family remind us of the importance of our faith and the impacts it can have on future generations?
3. What are are some ways we can live by faith in everyday, mundane situations?
4. How does the foreshadowing of Jesus in Moses' story help us see the biblical storyline and plan of redemption more clearly?
5. In what ways does Moses' courage and willingness to leave behind worldly comforts and security encourage us to do the same? In what ways do you struggle to do this?

Prayer Points:

1. Ask  for faith to follow God rather than people, even in situations that can remove our sense of comfort, ease, or security.
2. Pray for a heart that looks to God as our greatest reward rather than the treasures and rewards of this life.
3. Worship God for His good and faithful working behind-the-scenes for our good and His glory.

Photo by Darya Sannikova: https://www.pexels.com/photo/trees-near-body-of-water-3021140/