As we continue our series called Faithful, we are looking at some people in the Bible who showed great faith. The Bible tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6).

Faith is the act of completely trusting in God with everything that we are. It is something that we not only talk about, but we live it out in our words and actions each day that the Lord gives to us. Each one of us has placed our faith in something or someone. If someone would to take inventory of your speech and actions, what or who would they say that your faith rests?

The answer to that question comes from the choice that we willfully make with our lives. We all make choices every day. Some of them are bigger than others. We choose what we are going to eat or wear on a certain day. Those are not necessarily things that you would post to your social media feed though. Other decisions carry more weight though. Some of those choices might be what college you would go to, who you will spend the rest of your life with in marriage, or whether or not to retire.

The choices that we make in life have a way of making us who we are. This is also true of the people we read about in the Bible. Today, we are going to look at Moses from the Old Testament. Moses is also another person that is well-known from the Bible. There is even a depiction of him on the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C.

Moses was a man who had to make some key decisions in life. These decisions marked him in history as a person who was a man of faith. The author of Hebrews shares the section of the Hall of Faith concerning Moses in Hebrews 11.

4 Key Points of Faith in Moses’ Life

Hidden by his parents

By faith Moses, after he was born, was hidden by his parents for three months, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they didn’t fear the king’s edict.

​Hebrews 11:23 CSB

The first point of faith that we see in Moses’ life is actually faith shown by his parents. Exodus 2 tells about when Moses was born. There had been an edict put out by Pharaoh to kill all the Israelite boys by throwing them into the Nile River. Moses’ parents were not going to go along with this. They knew that there may be repercussions, but they could not go along with this.

This point in Moses’ life is very important. Though Moses did not show faith himself in this instance, it was through this act of faith by his parents that a foundation of faith would be laid in his life. Moses learned about faith by the example of his parents first.

This is a word to each of us. The generations that come after us will learn about following God from what they see in us. What the next generation sees in us pertaining to faith will guide them to make decisions as to whether or not it is worth following. This is why God told Moses to share with the Israelites later on the importance of demonstrating the faith for the next generation to see.​

These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

Deuteronomy 6:6–9 CSB

Refused to be known as Pharaoh’s son

​By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter and chose to suffer with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasure of sin. For he considered reproach for the sake of Christ to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, since he was looking ahead to the reward.

Hebrews 11:24–26 CSB

The author of Hebrews shares another point of faith in Moses’ life when he shared that Moses refused to be known as Pharaoh’s son. When Moses’ parents put him in the basket and laid him in the river, it was Pharaoh’s daughter who found him. She would take him in and raise him as her own. You could say that she adopted Moses. It was Pharaoh’s daughter who gave Moses his name because it means “drawing out” in Hebrew and “born” in Egyptian of that time.

Moses was raised in the most powerful family of the time. He had the best of everything: education, clothes, food. To many, it would have seemed as if he had hit the jackpot. There came a point though when he chose to not take the easy route. He knew that he was not an Egyptian even though he lived in the king’s palace. He knew that the Israelites were “his people.” He made the choice to be identified with the Israelites rather than stay in the comforts of Pharaoh’s house.

What determines what choice we will make in a situation? Do we look for the easy and safe route? Do we look for the path of least resistance? As attractive as those look many times, they are not always the best choices. While it may seem easy in the moment, the easy paths may keep us from what God wants to do in our lives.

The Bible says that Moses chose to suffer with God’s people rather than take the easy road to fame. He counted it more beneficial to be associated with God’s people and what God was doing, even though it would call for tough times, rather than go with what is popular and easier.

We are tempted often times to take the path of least resistance. We do not like conflict. We want things to be hunky dory. It is a lot easier to just go along with the crowd instead of taking a stand. But as the old saying goes, “if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” We demonstrate our faith when we choose to stand with God’s people and do things God’s way in the midst of a sea that goes completely against that current.

Left Egypt behind

By faith he left Egypt behind, not being afraid of the king’s anger, for Moses persevered as one who sees him who is invisible.

​Hebrews 11:27 CSB

A third point of faith that the author of Hebrews shares with us is that Moses stepped out and left Egypt behind. Not only did Moses associate himself with the people of God, but he left it all behind. He had caught the vision of what God had for him and determined that it was better than anything this world had to offer.

The author of Hebrews shows that Moses stepped out in faith in this way because he saw Him who is invisible (God). Some people call faith blind, but it is not. God has given us every reason to trust Him. ​

For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse.

Romans 1:20 CSB

What more does God have to do to prove Himself? There is nothing more that He could do. He keeps this world going… He continues to provide breath in our lungs… He has made the gospel available to us. When faith arises within us, it will call us to step out and put it to work. It isn’t a blind following. God lays out a vision of what could be and asks us to pursue it trusting Him. We cannot live a life of faith in Christ and continue to hold on to this world.

Led the Israelites to freedom

By faith he instituted the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn might not touch the Israelites. By faith they crossed the Red Sea as though they were on dry land. When the Egyptians attempted to do this, they were drowned.

​Hebrews 11:28–29 CSB

The final point of faith that the author of Hebrews shares about Moses is when he used the tools God gave him to lead others to the freedom God had for them. When the author of Hebrews talks about the instituting of the Passover, he is referring to the miracle signs that God gave to Moses to soften Pharaoh’s heart. These signs culminated in what we know as the Passover – when the Israelites would sacrifice a spotless lamb and apply the blood to the doorposts of their houses so that the Death Angel passed them over.

This was a foreshadowing of Jesus on the cross. Jesus was the Lamb of God who shed His blood for the sins of the world. Anyone who comes by faith to Jesus and has their sins washed by His blood finds forgiveness and freedom from sin and hell.

The author of Hebrews also talks about how, by faith, Moses led the Israelites through the Red Sea on dry ground. When the Egyptians tried to follow, they were destroyed. This shows us that we can only come to God on His terms and in the way that He has set forth – through faith in Jesus. We cannot fake it. We cannot imitate it. We either have it or we do not.

Moses had never done any of these signs before. He had nothing other than the word of the Lord to lean on in this. Moses knew that God’s word is trustworthy and able.

Have you experienced the wonder of the gospel? Have you had your life changed by the power of God through Jesus Christ? There is no imitation or other way to do this outside of coming to Him and following Him by faith.

Conclusion

Moses is one of many figures in the Bible who was just an ordinary person that God used to do extraordinary things. The reason for this is his faithfulness to God. We can experience the power of God in mighty ways as well if we will be faithful to what God calls us to do.