Waiting

What do you think of when you hear the words ‘Old Testament’? Many different images may come to mind. Laws, miracles, kings, Israel, covenant. However it is doubtful the word ‘waiting’ comes to mind. Given the fact that large periods of history or at least large number of years, are referred to and described in a few sentences, this is understandable. But when we stop and reflect on this its meaning is profound. From a chronological perspective, hundreds of years go by in the Old Testament with nothing particular happening.

God’s people are simply living normal lives and, well, waiting. God promises Abraham a son when he was 75 years old. Wonderful! But Isaac was not born until he was 100! That’s 25 years of waiting for God’s promise to be fulfilled. Moses was God’s chosen leader to deliver Israel from slavery and he spend 40 years in the desert looking after flocks of sheep. 40 years! That’s not the mention Israel’s 400 years of slavery in Egypt or the 400 or so years of silence between testaments. God’s people knew God’s promises and covenants in these periods but they did not see them realised in their lifetimes.

As it says in Hebrews 11:13 and 39:

“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.”

“These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.”

But why does waiting matter?

For a few very important reasons. Firstly, learning to wait means learning to trust in God’s timing and not ours. Many godly Jews must have wondered when the Messiah would come and why he had not come yet, especially as they endured military conquest, Gentile rule, oppression and little prosperity.

For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. Matthew 13:17.

God in his infinite wisdom knew what he was doing though. At just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly (Rom 5:6). The Lord’s timing is best and waiting means trusting in Him and not ourselves. In this way waiting is an act of humility. Pride says I want what I want when I want it. Humility says I want what the Lord wants in his good timing.

Waiting is also an act of trust. As humans we are strongly bound up with our experiences. Throughout our lives we experience, see and feel some very profound and influential things. This shapes who we are. As Christians there is always the temptation to let our personal experiences and emotions overrule the clear teaching of Scripture. To avoid doing this is not blind, dogmatic, faith but rather trust in God’s Word. Jesus is the Good Shepherd and loves us more than we can fully understand. As the greatest act of love in history he went to the cross for us. We can trust him. We must trust him over and above our own experiences. We wait because we trust.

All of this is not to say that we don’t work with our time and strength and resources to obey God, follow him and build up his Kingdom. We do all of these things on a daily basis. To be a disciple of Jesus is to be a person of action (Matt 28:18-20). The biblical idea of waiting is not inaction, but allowing God’s agenda to rule over our own.

Remember Saul’s sin (1 Samuel 13). He was asked to wait seven days for Samuel, but he grew restless, impatient and scared when his soldiers started to leave. The Lord certainly required action from Saul – there were battles to fight and enemies to defeat – but Saul was not obedient. Saul’s problem was that he sought action on his own terms, not on God’s terms.

Let us not make the same mistake. In ministry we long for many things – people coming to faith, our churches growing, people maturing in Christ and the Gospel being proclaimed. These things require action and are thoroughly biblical. The danger is that we can pursue them in our own strength, with our own means for our own agenda.

As we live and serve as Christians there is always an aspect of waiting. Waiting for the Lord to work the miracle of salvation that we cannot do in our own strength or persuasion, waiting for the faithful, daily, Word based ministry to produce long term gospel fruit and ultimately waiting for the Lord Jesus himself to return. As God’s people may we continue to seek this balance between waiting and working. It is the only way the Kingdom of God grows. And when it gets hard let us remember that while the Lord promises to grow his Kingdom, he keeps time differently to us.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9.

Zeal Without Burnout Book Review

Zeal Without Burnout is a compact, to the point, practical guide to effective stress management for pastors and Christian leaders. The target audience are people in pastoral ministry and vulnerable to the pressures of the job. A quick glance at the burnout statistics for people in these roles certainly vindicates the great need for this kind of book. As the book quotes, 1500 people each month leave pastoral ministry dues to burnout, conflict or moral failure in the USA alone (Quoted on page 16 from Today’s Pastors (2014) by George Barna). Pastoral ministry is a stressful, relentless and demanding profession. Developing practically and spiritually wise working habits that enable long term, viable ministry is the crux of the book.

The layout of the book is quite simple and easy to follow. After introducing the topic and defining the issues, each chapter addresses vital aspects of sustainable ministry – Sleep, Sabbath rest, Friends etc. – before ending with some encouragements. Each chapter has real life examples from pastors who have burned out or nearly burnt out.

Zeal Without Burnout is an easy read. It is short, straightforward and not wordy or technical with its theology or application. It is biblical but not theological. It is a practical book for practical people. I read it in a day or so and for busy pastors (who it is aimed at) this is helpful. The brevity of the book is both its strength and its weakness. You can read it quickly and easily and be left with some easily understood warnings and encouragements that should be easy to apply (although solid biblical principles are rarely easy to apply!). I found the real life stories from Christian leaders insightful and engaging as they made the theory of burnout tangible and real. For those on the verge of burnout these examples would be deeply convicting and help in the self-care process.

However the brevity and simplicity also left me a little unfulfilled. Aside from the personal stories and basic biblical principles outlined there wasn’t a lot of ‘meaty’ content to think through and mull over. Some deeper biblical reflection and examples might have helped. However for someone on the verge of burnout, the style and content may be just what they need. It was nevertheless a good reminder to maintain biblical and healthy work practices that honour God, care for self, love family and serve wisely.

I would definitely recommend this book for those in ministry. Even those who are not burning out or under extreme pressure, the biblical principles, advice and real life stories this book contains and expounds are essential reading for those on the front-line of pastoral ministry.

The Little Things

The quaint, cosy restaurant was filled with the background chatter of busy government employees. The traditional Japanese food was cooked and served before your eyes by friendly, hard working ladies dressed in plain aprons and headscarves. It was the kind of place where you rinse off your own plates and serve yourself at the drink fountain – affordable, practical and full of character. We had just finished the paperwork to register our fourth child as a legitimate resident in Japan and were having some lunch before driving back to our hometown from the state capital, Aomori. Then something happened that is quite unusual in Japan.

The father in the family sitting next to us leaned over and started up a conversation with us. Sometimes Japanese mums or grandparents will tell us how cute one of our kids are, or ask how old they are, or perhaps ask us where we are from; but this man was friendlier than usual. After a nice chat and a yummy lunch we started to get ready to leave. Yet in the foyer my wife was convicted that she should go back and pass on our details to this family, who happened to live in the same town as us. Despite being a little shy, my wife did it…

This is just one example among many of a key part of missionary life – being faithful in the little things. As missionaries (and hopefully as Christians in general) we long seek some of the ‘bigger’, more visible results like conversions, church growth etc., however the daily work we are involved in as cross cultural missionaries is much more ‘mundane’. We attend school events, we chat with next door neighbours, we run English classes, we hand out church flyers, we become friends with the staff at our favourite cafe and basically make the most of the opportunities the Lord gives us each day to be his ambassadors.

And ambassadors we are.

“And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” 2 Corinthians 5:19-20.

More often than not the lessons I have found God teaching me in Japan have not been about the ‘big’ things or the technical skills, like how to preach a wonderful, eloquent sermon in Japanese (although this has value) but rather about my character and willingness to be obedient in the small things. For example:

• Knocking on my neighbours door to invite them to a church event, even when I am really nervous, I don’t feel like it and my Japanese is not very good.
• Praying in Japanese for a church member when it is very hard and stressful to pray in another language.
• Giving your contact details to someone you just met in a restaurant when you are embarrassed to do so.

I have found that these steps of faithfulness seem to do much more work in my own heart and character than achieve anything visible or noteworthy – at least in the short term. But more often than not that’s what the Lord seems to be interested in doing. Denying ourselves, taking up our cross and following Jesus (Mark 8:34) is a daily challenge. We offer ourselves as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1), not considering our own insecurities, fears or concerns but remaining obedient to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

By doing so we become farmers. We faithfully sow our seed every day, no matter how futile and fruitless it may seem and no matter how silly or pathetic or weak we may feel. Then we trust that God will bring the fruit. For it is the power of God at work in our weakness that is effective. As one of my OMF co-workers put it so well on the Tohoku Japan Blog:

We’ve found that weakness removes the mask of strength. Others then see the reality of our frailty and the power and beauty of God at work in us. And we, de-robed of our proud self-reliance, are being taught to work as part of a body of Christians and rely on the Lord.

In this way we simply must rely on the Lord’s strength and abide in him (John 15:4-5). It is the only way we can bear fruit.

The day after we met the family in the restaurant we received an e-mail from our new friends. They not only got in touch but they also wanted to come to our church! We were delighted, excited and shocked at the same time! Sure enough the next Sunday they came to our church, stayed for lunch and seemed to have a really good time. All we could do in response was praise God for his provision, kindness and work. We had done so little but God had done so much.

That is our great God. He takes weak things and makes them strong, he takes small things and makes them great. When we are faithful in the little things, he does big things.

Old Wives Tales, Wisdom and the Word.

‘What is you weight this week?’ is the question asked of my wife during her pregnancy each and every check up at the hospital. The conventional wisdom in Japan is that a woman should only put on as much weight as the baby weighs (if that!). If you put on ‘too much’ weight you will promptly receive a lecture on the need to stay slim during pregnancy. This medical wisdom sits alongside many other common beliefs such as: don’t have a bath when you have a cold and after birth don’t leave the house for a month. Every society has its common conventions, sayings, old wives tales and superstitions – collectively lumped in together and labelled ‘wisdom’.

Much of this wisdom is broadly true and relates to the basic practicalities of life, but societal wisdom also touches on morals and shapes community values at a much deeper level. ‘If you are not caught, it is not a sin’ is one example in Japan. From what I understand this way of thinking extends to other Asian countries and seems to have its roots in Buddhism. Regardless of the exact origin, it is a mindset that profoundly influences the worldview of many people. As a result, when presenting the Gospel in Japan many people simply do not think they are sinners. As long as the external appearance is maintained, all is well. Such is the conventional wisdom.

But what about godly wisdom? Proverbs 1:7 describes the source of wisdom:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

True wisdom will not be found by observation, in a science lab, by reading many books or following the given social norms in the society you live in. Wisdom is found in God alone, because he is the source of wisdom and he is wisdom.

For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. (Proverbs 2:6)

In an age when multitudes of opinions, ideas, ‘facts’ and information are accessible on the internet and readily forced upon us, true wisdom can feel illusive at best. As Christian our mind can all too easily be cluttered with worldly wisdom that affects our decision making. Godly discernment is no easy task. Yet thankfully the Lord in his infinite wisdom and grace has provided us with everything we need.

From poetry, to proverbs, prose to narrative, letters to historical writings, the Bible deploys a wide variety of literary genres to convey God’s wisdom and encourage people to accept it and apply it. It is not merely a matter of conveying knowledge, but about fearing the Lord, transforming the heart and obedience. Note the language of Proverbs 4:23-27:

²³ Above all else, guard your heart,
    for everything you do flows from it.
²⁴ Keep your mouth free of perversity;
    keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
²⁵ Let your eyes look straight ahead;
    fix your gaze directly before you.
²⁶ Give careful thought to the paths for your feet
    and be steadfast in all your ways.
²⁷ Do not turn to the right or the left;
    keep your foot from evil.

The verbs here are dramatic, expressive and concrete. We guard, keep, remain steadfast, fix our gaze and don’t turn so that we don’t merely hear wisdom but apply it with discipline. This is the wisdom God has graciously communicated to us through his Word.

Psalm 1 contrasts the wicked and the righteous and the key difference is the reading, meditation and delight in God’s law. Psalm 112:1 puts it this way: ‘Blessed are those who fear the Lord, who find great delight in his commands.’ Note the links between wisdom, fear of the Lord and delighting in God’s Word. It is not rocket science, but it is hard to apply.

It is also hard to preach. As the Gospel is presented in Japan we are asking people to set aside their cultures wisdom and accept the wisdom of God in the Bible. We are asking people to set aside their ancestor veneration, their desire to conform to the rest of their society and their desires to pursue the best education and career they can possibly gain. These are enormous sacrifices for a Japanese person.

And yet some do. Because people understand wisdom when they see it. People recognize truth when they hear it. And the Word of God is the wisdom and the truth. And once proclaimed it never returns empty (Isaiah 55:11).

Donuts, Lucky Dip and Homemade Jam: Community life in Japan and the ministry and presence.

“So what am I doing at the bazaar again?” I asked my wife as we jumped in the car and headed off to our four year old’s kindergarten bazaar (something akin to a fete back in Australia). “You are serving donuts honey”, my wife, who had signed me up to volunteer at the bazaar, replied. What exactly that meant I did not know – but living with uncertainty is a daily experience as a missionary in a foreign land.

It turns out that the job was not hard. This was a blessing because my Japanese is still not great and if someone asked for a strawberry jam donut with extra sprinkles and dollop of cream on top they probably would have been handed chocolate flavour. However it was still a humbling experience of sorts. In the small food stall that sold an assortment of goodies I was the only dad – all the rest were kinder mums – and my newly purchased apron and headscarf were barely up to the standards set by my clearly well prepared colleagues. 10 minutes in I had to ask my wife to come over and tie up my ‘sanitary’ bandana for me because I couldn’t do it myself.

This was simply one event among many where we try as best we can as a foreign family to do the socially normal things expected of a young family in Japan. A few weeks earlier I had helped out at a similar event for our oldest daughters school and turned up at the school not knowing what I was going to be asked to do! Fortunately I just had to move some kids games to the hall and set up the lucky dip tables.

Inevitably we experience many embarrassing moments and times when we don’t understand what is happening. However it is well worth it. Why? Because one aspect of our missionary life in Japan is the ministry of presence. By living in our local community, attending the local events and doing the expected duties, we are gradually lowering the walls of fear, uncertainty and ignorance that many people have toward foreigners.

The life of Jesus gives many examples of the ministry of presence. The incarnation itself is the greatest example of presence of course. Jesus Christ, the sustainer of all life (Heb. 1:3), who by him all things were made (Col 1:16), chose to make himself nothing, taking on the nature of a servant (Phil 2: 7) and becoming human so that he could best communicate the love and truth of God to broken and sinful world. Incredibly the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14).

Throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry there are numerous examples of Jesus being present with those who needed to see and hear the Gospel. Jesus went to Zacchaeus’ house, he ate with sinners and tax collectors and he chose to speak with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4) rather than do the culturally accepted thing and ignore her. Not to mention living a nomadic life with a bunch of rough Galileans! One of the ways that we see Jesus’ love is through his decisions to be with people. He went where they were, he ate where they ate, he saw what they saw and felt what they felt. He had a ministry of presence.

There are natural limitations to a ministry of presence – we have to proclaim, explain and teach the Gospel and live out its teachings – but presence is powerful. Simply by being present we show that we care. By being present we show that people matter. By being present we show love. In Western culture this is extremely important because it is so easy to just attend things that we want to or do things we are most comfortable doing. People notice when we sacrifice our time to be present, especially when they know that is cost us something to do so. The values in Japanese society are different but the fact that missionaries incur great sacrifices to come and serve here is itself a powerful witness. Presence reflects what we value. Presence reflects who we value.

The five love languages, made famous by Gary Chapman are very helpful at explaining ways we express love. Of the five, gift giving is a distant last place for me. Yet God in his infinite wisdom and ironic humour has sent me to a country where gift giving is the lifeblood of social relationships. An experienced missionary once said to me “You can’t out-give a Japanese person”, and my experience so far would confirm that conclusion!

I get along quite well with my next door neighbour and a few weeks ago he dropped around to give me some fresh apples and pears a farmer friend of his had given him (we live in an apple farming area). I was grateful for the thoughtful gift, but I also knew we would need to reciprocate somehow. Fortunately my wife had made some jam that week – the perfect gift to give in return. So I packaged up our little jar of home-made jam and took it next door a few days later. Another act of going the extra mile for the sake of fitting in.

But it is more than just ‘fitting in’ of course. It is to show we care. It is to show that even though we are funny looking Australians who don’t understand a lot of the language or culture around us, we want to try. And even though we fail at times, we want to be here. We want to be where Japanese people are. We want to love. We want to share with our lives and words that Jesus Christ is Good News and there is no other way, truth or life. After all, isn’t that what Christ did for us?

 

The Value of Short Term Workers

“Elfie-Elf!” our four-year-old yelled as she ran into church and grabbed onto the leg of her favourite elf-hat-wearing person. This man was not a family member or even a member of our ministry team—he was a short-term worker from Northern Ireland. Yet such was the joy in their relatively short “friendship”, that this enthusiastic greeting was the norm.

Our daughter did not care what country Richard came from, how old he was, or that he spoke with a funny accent; she just knew that time with Richard was full of fun, silly games, and undivided attention.

The world of a TCK (Third Culture Kid) is filled with change, cultural challenges, and a degree of uncertainty; but friendships with short-term workers like Richard are like a nugget of gold in a rugged landscape. For parents too, having short-term workers join them in ministry is like a breath of fresh air.

When we read Paul’s letters in the New Testament it is clear that “short-term” workers played a vital role in his ministry too. If you skim through the endings of Paul’s letters they are full of names of those who were serving with him at that particular time. Some workers were with Paul for long periods (Timothy, Luke, etc.), but many are only mentioned once and presumably spent limited time with Paul. Their contribution, however, was no doubt significant for the kingdom of God and a great encouragement to Paul.

I used to play basketball in Australia, and player participation varied from week to week. Sometimes we only had five players (i.e. no substitutes). These were tough nights! In the first half I could enjoy uninterrupted play without being “benched”, but the second half was not so enjoyable. Our team would tire and start making mistakes. Inevitably we would start to be overtaken on the scoreboard. Bench players had a lot of value.

While short-term workers are not mere “bench players”, they can fulfill some similar functions. Long-term workers are human. We get tired, we get discouraged, and over time we can lack fresh ideas and energy. Short-term workers bring all of this in abundance! They are often enthusiastic and bring a variety of gifts and passions.

I went to one ministry event run by short-termers recently, and even though I’m only in my mid-30’s, I felt so old! The short-term team was reaching a demographic of people that I was personally unable to. They were opening doors into schools and universities. Something our long-term team had difficulty with.

This was the body of Christ working as it should. “From him [Christ] the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:16 NIV).

I continue to pray for the Lord to raise up many more short-term workers for Japan and other nations. In doing so long-term workers are inspired, the excitement of mission is taken back to sending countries, and more long-term workers are raised up. Short-term workers help grow the kingdom of God and bring glory to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. And there is nothing more valuable than that.

What’s A Certainty? – Exodus 3

The old saying goes there are only two certainties in life – death and taxes. Sometimes, however, other things seem to be certainties. Take an example from the sport. At the 2016 US Masters, Jordan Spieth, the defending champion led the field by five shots heading into the last 9 holes of the tournament. I’m sure at the time the betting odds would have suggested he was almost a certainty to win the Masters again. Yet after some disastrous shots in the last few holes, Spieth lost the lead and lost the tournament.

When it comes to God’s plans, however, their certainty is assured. The events in Exodus 3 let us look beyond the usual human perspective and glimpse the awesome power of God’s will. After being assured of God’s concern for his people at the end of chapter 2 (vv. 24-25) we return to Moses, who now lives a rather simple and humble existence as a shepherd. But it is in Moses’ lowly state that God chooses to reveal himself and his plans to Moses, not when he was Prince of Egypt.

Moses has already failed once at rescuing God’s people and after a long time in the desert is in no mood to do so now! Throughout chapters 3 and 4 Moses shows his unwillingness to obey God’s call by questioning his ability, speech and standing among the Hebrews among other things. But God will not be denied. Neither Moses’ opposition, nor Pharaoh’s resistance (vv. 19-20), nor the existing inhabitants of in the Promised Land (3:8) will stop God’s plans to rescue his people from Egypt and bring them into the land he promised Israel’s ancestors.

The Lord, who reveals himself as Yahweh in verse 14, is aware of the opposition to his plans but simply explains to Moses how he will still have his way. God’s plans will not be thwarted. They are a certainty. Sometimes it is very easy to lose this heavenly perspective. Moses was well aware of his own weaknesses and the mighty power of Pharaoh. I am sure he struggled to see how God would achieve all of this at the time (hence his reluctance!). But Moses, at least at this point, did not know the God he was dealing with.

Today we face the same problems. We have incredible promises and rich blessing recorded for us in God’s Word. We read God’s Word and even memorise some of the great promises it contains. But what happens when our life experience or feelings contradict the truths in God’s Word? When we wonder where God is when our child gets bullied at school, or we are abused for holding to God’s truth when everyone else accepts certain sins or when we have prayed for the salvation of a friend or family member for years and seen no fruit. These deep and painful experiences can cause us to question God’s ways, God’s presence or God’s power.

But taking hold of the truths of Scripture and choosing to see things from a heavenly perspective reinforces truth. And the truth is that God is at work, he does care for his people (vv. 7-8) and his wonderful plans will always work out. Remember God allowed his people to endure slavery for centuries before he redeemed them, Moses endured terrible criticism and opposition from his own people, yet God still used him powerfully.

What has authority in our lives? What do we treat as a certainty? Despite the challenges we might endure in life there is a sure hope and anchor for our lives. For in Jesus all of God’s promises are fulfilled. All of his plans are completed and all of our hopes are realised.

God’s Strength in Our Weakness

When I first arrived in Japan in February 2015 there were many things I expected – learn Japanese, eat okonomiyaki, join a church, build a snowman, and make friends with very patient Japanese people. While in time all of these things have happened, (some more successfully that others) I have been surprised by the more important lessons God has wanted to teach me. These have been lessons of humility and weakness.

I remember having a conversation with an OMF leader about his time at language school. His remark was telling: “At language school I learned that I was a great, big sinner’. I could entirely relate! Entering a cross-cultural context where I couldn’t communicate, where I was adjusting to huge social and cultural change with a young (and growing family) and where I was constantly tired brought out all of my sin, weakness and character flaws.

Instead of living out the fruit of the spirit, more often than not I signed in confession, ‘What a helpless wretch am I!’ (Rom 7:24). The cry of my heart has often not been for the Lord’s strength to be shown in my weakness, but ‘I just want to be able to do it myself’. I recall going for a prayer walk one evening when I was especially frustrated at learning Japanese. I cried out to God in great annoyance, “You did a really good job at Babel!’ Yet ironically it was something I did in English that brought me to my lowest point.

Earlier this year I preached in English at an international church. I love preaching and did so regularly when I was serving at my home church in Australia. I prepared my sermon, and while I was very grateful for the opportunity, after preaching I really felt like it did not go well. Later that week I sank to a new low. If I couldn’t do anything well in English what hope would I have in Japanese!

Yet, as is often the case, it is at our lowest that the Lord teaches us the most important lessons. That week as I sat on our apartment balcony in (rather depressed) prayer, the Lord spoke to me with clear and powerful words. My complaint was true – yes I will never be able to do anything well for the Lord, regardless of the language, if I am doing it in my own strength. It was a paradigm shift that hit like a bolt of lightning.

Without humbly and prayerfully seeking and submitting to the power of God in our lives and ministry we will not produce fruit that lasts. As Paul proclaims in 1 Corinthians 2:4: “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.”

Of course this is an age old lesson, but God needed to bring me to my knees to force it from my head to my heart! And on our knees is surely the posture we need to maintain. As Church historian Earle. E. Cairns reflects: “Prayer ranks first in the coming of revival…There cannot be revival unless Christians pray for it”. How we long for revival in Japan and this revival surely starts within us, as we humbly and prayerfully render our hearts (and ministry) unto God.

This article was first published in the Japan Harvest Spring 2017 edition.

Diamonds in the Rough – Exodus 2

If you could ask God for anything what would it be? There are many things we pray about, worry about, dream about. What is at the top of your list? What is the desire of your heart, the ultimate dream? When we read the first few verses of Exodus 2 (verses 1-4) I wonder how the Levite woman would have answered that question? Her son’s life was under threat, she was forced to float him down the Nile in a basket and all she could do was helplessly look on.

Exodus 1-2 paints a bleak picture for the Israelite’s. They were enslaved, oppressed, persecuted and their sons were being killed. Their very survival was at stake. It is worth remembering that this is the people of God. Their ancestors had been given great promises of land, descendants and blessing, but at this stage they were only blessed numerically, and even this was under threat due to the murderous orders of Pharaoh (v. 16, 22). Exodus 1 describes their treatment with terms such as oppressive (v. 11), forced labor (v. 11), being worked ruthlessly (v. 13, 14) and their lives being bitter with hard labor (v. 13). Things did not look good for Israel.

On the darkest nights however, the stars shine the brightest. In the midst of pain, suffering, fear and doubt God breaks through. I don’t think Moses’ mother could have dreamed of what God was about to do. For a vulnerable, fretting mother this is what God did:
– Her baby was found in the river by the Princess of Egypt (v. 5).
– Her child was not killed, his life was saved because the Princess had pity on him (v. 6).
– Moses was returned to his mother under the protection of the Princess (vv. 7-8).
– Moses’ mother was paid to raise him (v. 9).
– The Princess would adopt Moses into the Royal family (v. 10).
– God would use this baby as his chosen instrument to rescue Israel and take them out of Egypt.

Despite the suffering of the Israelite’s God had not forgotten them. He knew their hardship, he remembered them and was concerned about them (2:24). It may have felt like the deepest darkness for the Israelite’s but God provided diamonds in the rough. God would continue to graciously provide for the Israelite’s throughout their history despite their sins, disobedience and unfaithfulness. This culminated in the sending of his own son, the most brilliant diamond and the brightest light. As Isaiah 9:1-2 prophesied:

‘The people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.

The night Jesus was born was the night of nights. It was the history changing, hope giving night when all of the darkness of humanity, the stain of sin, the brokenness in our hearts would once and for all be dealt with. As the brilliant Christmas Carol describes it:

O holy night the stars are brightly shining
It is the night of our dear Savior’s birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new glorious morn

The Autocrat and the Obedient – Exodus 1

One of the popular sports in Japan in Sumo. It is often broadcast on TV and it has some fascinating rituals and culture. Before a fight the wrestlers throw salt around, stretch and stare at each other for long periods of time. Interestingly, there are no weight divisions in professional sumo. This last fact is interesting because the difference in sumo wrestler sizes sometimes makes it looks something akin to David verses Goliath!

In Exodus 1 we see the beginning of a different kind of wrestling match, only this time it is between God and Pharaoh. In one corner there is Pharaoh, ruler of the greatest kingdom of his day, considered a deity by his people and a man with absolute power in a worldly sense. In the other corner is God. From the very beginning of Exodus it is clear that there is no real contest.

Pharaoh was short-sighted in his goals. He wanted a political solution to a population problem and thought slavery and oppression would work. If Pharaoh had of been aware of who he was dealing with then he would have known he did not stand a chance. God has already made significant promises to his people through Abraham (see Gen 12:1-2 and Risk and Reward). Whoever cursed and mistreats Israel would in turn be cursed.

Exodus 1 is full of irony in this regard. Pharaoh tries to oppose God’s people and God’s plans, but all of his opposition has the opposite effect. Examples include:

Pharaoh orders midwives to kill boys (v. 16) — Midwives given families of their own (v. 21)
Pharaoh enslaves Israel (v. 11) — Their numbers greatly increase (v. 12)
Royal decree to kill boys (v. 16, 22) — Royal Princess adopts Hebrew boy (who becomes God’s instrument to redeem Israel from their slavery, 2:10).
Boys to be thrown into Nile (v. 22) — Moses drawn out of the Nile (2:5-6)
Israelite boys to be killed (v. 16) — Oldest sons in Egyptian families to be killed (4:22-23).

Clearly God’s plans were not going to be stopped by Pharaoh. However as the story in Exodus continues it is also clear just how hard, stubborn and proud Pharaoh’s heart is in rebellion against God. On the other hand we see a beautiful picture of faith under enormous pressure in Exodus 1. Verse 17 read:

‘The widows, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.

Pharaoh was the all-powerful ruler of the land but the midwives know who was really in control. They knew who to fear. They were not swayed by worldly power or threats or fears for their own safety. They knew the God who made the universe and answered to him alone. They were also wise and shrewd. They did not try to openly oppose Pharaoh, but gave thoughtful and slightly evasive answers while fully obeying the Lord (vv. 19-20). They were not tempted to compromise or justify disobedience for reasons of personal comfort.

This is so relevant in our cultural setting today. Just think about areas like:
– Evangelism and not being ashamed of the Gospel.
– Standing firm on biblical truth in the face of strong and relentless social pressure.
– Radical obedience in areas that can be ‘justified’ by the norms of the world.
The midwives were blessed as a result of their obedience (vv. 20-21). God had not yet taken away Israelite’s slavery, but he was still able to bless those faithful to him. In a pluralistic and low morality culture, may we know who to fear and who to obey. After all, like mismatched sumo wrestlers, there is no real fight when we oppose God. The result is always assured. Just ask Pharaoh.