DRAWING NEAR
November 25
Accepting God's Plan
"By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months
by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and
they were not afraid of the king's edict" (Heb. 11:23).
God makes His plans; you walk in them by faith. He doesn't need your
help or counsel--just your obedience and trust.
It has been wisely said that trying to improve on God's plan is more
pretentious than trying to improve the Mona Lisa with an ink pen. All
you'd do is ruin the masterpiece.
The story of Amram and Jochebed, the parents of Moses, is about two
people who refused to ruin the masterpiece. They trusted God
implicitly and did everything possible to see His plan for their son
come to fruition.
Because of the number and might of the Hebrew people in Egypt, the
pharaoh enslaved them and ordered that all male Hebrew babies be put
to death. In direct defiance of that wicked edict, Moses' parents hid
their baby for three months, then placed him in a waterproofed basket
along the banks of the Nile River near the place where Pharaoh's
daughter bathed. One can only imagine the faith it took for them to
risk their own lives, as well as the life of their baby, by placing
him into that basket and introducing him into the very household of
the one who wanted all male Hebrew babies slain.
By God's providence, Pharaoh's daughter found the baby, took pity on
him, and adopted him into her family. More than that, the Lord used
Moses' quick-thinking sister, Miriam, to arrange for Jochebed to
nurse and care for her own son! That gave Moses' family the
opportunity to teach him of God's promises for Israel to inherit the
Promised Land, become a mighty nation, and be a blessing to all
nations. They helped instill within Moses the faith in God that would
later characterize his life.
You may never be called on to make the kind of sacrifice that Moses'
parents made, but no matter what the risks, remember God always
honors your obedience.
Suggestions for Prayer:
Thank God for His plan for your life. Seek wisdom and grace to live
accordingly.
For Further Study:
Read of Israel's oppression and Moses' birth in Exodus 1:1--2:10.
Drawing Near, Copyright 1993 John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.gty.org
~~~
Exodus 1:1--2:10
1 Now these are the names of the children of Israel who came to
Egypt; each man and his household came with Jacob:
2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah;
3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin;
4 Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
5 All those who were descendants of Jacob were seventy persons (for
Joseph was in Egypt already).
6 And Joseph died, all his brothers, and all that generation.
7 But the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly,
multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with
them.
8 Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.
9 And he said to his people, "Look, the people of the children of
Israel are more and mightier than we;
10 "come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and it
happen, in the event of war, that they also join our enemies and
fight against us, and so go up out of the land."
11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with
their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and
Raamses.
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and
grew. And they were in dread of the children of Israel.
13 So the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor.
14 And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage; in mortar, in
brick, and in all manner of service in the field. All their service
in which they made them serve was with rigor.
15 Then the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the
name of one was Shiphrah and the name of the other Puah;
16 and he said, "When you do the duties of a midwife for the Hebrew
women, and see them on the birthstools, if it is a son, then you
shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live."
17 But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt
commanded them, but saved the male children alive.
18 So the king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them,
"Why have you done this thing, and saved the male children alive?"
19 And the midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are
not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth
before the midwives come to them."
20 Therefore God dealt well with the midwives, and the people
multiplied and grew very mighty.
21 And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided
households for them.
22 So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, "Every son who is
born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save
alive."
2:1 And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter
of Levi.
2 So the woman conceived and bore a son. And when she saw that he
was a beautiful child, she hid him three months.
3 But when she could no longer hide him, she took an ark of
bulrushes for him, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the child in
it, and laid it in the reeds by the river's bank.
4 And his sister stood afar off, to know what would be done to him.
5 Then the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river. And
her maidens walked along the riverside; and when she saw the ark
among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it.
6 And when she had opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the
baby wept. So she had compassion on him, and said, "This is one of
the Hebrews' children."
7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and call a
nurse for you from the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for
you?"
8 And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go." So the maiden went and
called the child's mother.
9 Then Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away and
nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages." So the woman took
the child and nursed him.
10 And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter,
and he became her son. So she called his name Moses, saying, "Because
I drew him out of the water."
These devotions are posted with permission from John MacArthur's
first (1993) devotional work, _Drawing Near_, and they are also sent
out daily for free to several folks via e-mail.
In addition, John's second (1997) devotional, _Strength for Today_,
is also available free via e-mail only. _Strength for Today_ follows
the same format as what you have seen here from _Drawing Near_, but
with different monthly themes.
If you would like to receive daily devotions via e-mail from either
of these series, just let me know (via e-mail), and I will gladly add
you to the list(s) of your choice.
You can hear John MacArthur daily via the Internet by visiting:
http://www2.oneplace.com/Ministries/Grace_to_You/
and
http://www.gty.org.uk/
You may email John MacArthur in care of Grace to You at:
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me, please contact me via e-mail for quickest results.
In Christ,
Peter
Peter G. Chase :: Columbus, Ohio, USA
pchase1@wideopenwest.com
STOP! Who do you think Jesus is?
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To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and to discover that the prisoner was you. -Alistair Begg
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