Hebrews 11:23-29 Moses & the Five Aspects of Faith

Bible Study Series: Jesus in Hebrews - Better by Far!

Bible Study Lesson: Hebrews 11 Moses & the Five Aspects of Faith

by I Gordon

What do you think of when you hear the name Moses? Charleston Heston and the Ten Commandments movie right? Ok... many of you will be saying 'Who? What? How old are you?' Fair enough, it's even way before my time and I haven't seen it. But what was Moses known for? What was his character like? I want to explore what Hebrews 11 says about our friend Moses¹ today and I'm afraid to say it's all bad. Naaa... it's all good. The life of Moses, and specifically the summary that we are given in Hebrews 11, provides a great place to look at five key aspects of faith. So in this study...  

• We'll start with a quick overview of Moses' character and life
• We'll focus on the five aspects of faith that are associated with Moses in Hebrews 11:  
  • Faith to do what is right
  • Faith to reject worldly temptations
  • Faith to conquer fears
  • Faith to trust the blood!
  • Faith to believe that God will make a way

Let's go...

Moses - Quick overview

Let's start with Moses' character and an overview of his life. My go-to here is always the well-known quote by D.L Moody which sums things up so nicely:

Moses spent 40 years thinking he was a somebody, 40 years learning that he was a nobody and 40 years seeing what God can do with a nobody!
D.L Moody

• The first 40 years: We know that though born into adversity, through the providence of God he was raised in Egypt by Pharaoh's daughter (Exod 2:10). Thus, he had a powerful and privileged upbringing. So we read that by the age of 40, 'Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians, and he was a man of power in words and deeds.' (Act 7:22). And yet despite his position, power, pleasures and privilege, an internal conflict was brewing in the heart of young Moses. The unseen hand of God was working and an identity crisis was growing. Was Moses really Egyptian... or was he Hebrew? Could he stand by while seeing his fellow Hebrews persecuted or should he do something about it? Well, you probably know the story... This growing call within to protect and even deliver his people from their bondage bubbled over. He struck down an Egyptian who was beating a fellow Hebrew, and then had to flee for his life to Midian, leaving all that he knew behind. 
• The second 40 years: Moses lived as a shepherd in Midian. Egyptians despised shepherds (Gen 46:34) so here was Moses, raised as a son of the most powerful ruler in all Egypt, now living in quietness doing the very thing that was an abomination to the Egyptians! In one sense, by worldly standards, it looked like such a comedown for Moses. But this was God's training ground for Moses. This is where he learnt something that Egypt couldn't teach him. Something that would be essential if he was to be later used by God. And that is humility and meekness. And as Moses would one day write himself: 'Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.' (Num 12:3) And you are ever completely proud or led by the Holy Spirit to write such a thing about yourself! In this case it is the latter! 
• The third 40 years: The last 40 years of his life were his most productive for God and are what Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy focus on. Who says that the last part of your life is just winding down aye? For Moses there was no retirement and things were really just getting started at age 80! God called to Moses from a bush and when he heard the assignment... well, Moses wasn't too sure. Actually, that is being kind to Moses. He was very resistant to being used (Exod 4:10) and just wished God would find someone else. He was fearful of speaking before Pharoah yet God had chosen the right man because God had been preparing him for 80 years for this day! And Moses grew to be both a courageous (Exod 14:13–14) and compassionate leader (Ex 32:32). In fact in Judaism, Moses is held in the greatest honor of all², even surpassing Abraham.

So with that as a background and overview, let's focus on the five aspects of faith that are seen in his life, as shown in Hebrews 11.

1. Faith to do what is right (and the faith to let go!)

Heb 11:23  By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict.

So the first faith mentioned is not actually of Moses himself (for he had just been born... give him time!) but that of his parents. Moses was born into adversity, with the decree of Pharaoh ringing in the ears of all the Hebrew mothers, that all male newborn sons should be put to death (Ex 1:16). Oh goodness... Not good! But Moses' mother couldn't allow this to happen. And so, by faith, she hid him for the first three months of his life. Our passage says that Moses was 'no ordinary child' (NIV) or that he was 'a beautiful child' (NASB). Stephen, in the book of Acts, said Moses was 'lovely' (NASB) or 'well pleasing' (NKJV) 'in the sight of God'. There was clearly something very different about Moses even from birth.   

Exo 2:1-10  Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi.  (2)  The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was beautiful, she hid him for three months.  (3)  But when she could hide him no longer, she got him a wicker basket and covered it over with tar and pitch. Then she put the child into it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile.  (4)  His sister stood at a distance to find out what would happen to him.  (5)  The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the Nile, with her maidens walking alongside the Nile; and she saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid, and she brought it to her.  (6)  When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the boy was crying. And she had pity 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)  Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go ahead." So the girl 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)  The child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. And she named him Moses, and said, "Because I drew him out of the water."

So there was faith to hold and hide Moses and then faith to let him go. And the later would have been harder than the former. The faith to hide him was huge. This meant disobeying Pharaoh - the king of Egypt. And that didn't normally end well! You can imagine what they were thinking on every cry or scream coming from baby Moses! 'Ok little fulla, that's enough... keep it quiet.. don't want to draw any attention to this house, little man!' You can also imagine every prayer that would have gone up to God as they trusted Him for protection from the Egyptian authorities. 'Lord, we need you! Our little boy is crying and we can't make him stop. Without you, we will be discovered and we will die. But we trust you and we thank you because you are in control, you are the Most High! Pharaoh has his plans and decrees but you have a plan for our child's life, a plan for good, and that plan will never fail!' You can also imagine how many times they would have had to renew their minds with this truth and rest by faith in God's protection and unseen hand.  

And yet there came a time when they could hide him no longer and this required a new type of faith. A faith to let go completely. A faith to put Moses entirely in the hands of God. It is the faith of Esther who in the face of possible death, abandoned herself to God saying 'if I perish, I perish'. But I love how we see the working of the invisible God at this moment, because this was all ordained by Him! So who is it that just so happens to come to the Nile and find baby Moses? Yep... Pharaoh's daughter! That's God. And what is her response? It is one of pity for the child... and that's God. So what does she decide to do? She allows Moses' sister Miriam to go find Moses' own mother to care for him - yep, God again. And what's more, Moses' mother now gets paid to look after her own son! Ha! The wonder of the unseen hand and work of God!

So it takes faith to do what is right, especially in the face of opposition. Sometimes we are called to do or say what we know to be the right thing though it puts us in opposition to the norm. It may put us in opposition to our friends, our class, our work or even our government. But there is also the faith to let go. This may come with our children as Moses' parents had to do. And yes, this point came in the life of little Moses slightly earlier than it does for most parents... like, at 3 months old! For other parents it may take another couple of decades but the day comes when they know they cannot make decisions for their children anymore and have to commit them to the Lord and His keeping. But this is but one example and we also need faith to let go in other areas of our life. Abraham had to let go of his home and set out following the Lord. When called, the Disciples let go of their nets and livelihoods to follow Jesus. We have to let go of controlling our own lives and practice this old favorite:

Pro 3:5-6: 'Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.'

2. Faith to Reject the World

Heb 11:24-26  By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.

Carrying on with the life of Moses we get a glimpse into the first 40 years of his life here where we could say he had leisure, pleasure and treasure. Yet the unseen hand of God was moving in his life! Stephen, reciting the history of Israel, gives this summary of Moses at this time: 

Act 7:22-25  "Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians, and he was a man of power in words and deeds.  (23)  "But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel.  (24)  "And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian.  (25)  "And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.

So Moses was one powerful man with all that most in this world covet. Fame, fortune and fleshly desires. But as he approached 40 we read that 'it entered his mind to visit his brethren.' Where did that thought come from? God. The Spirit of God was moving internally though nothing had changed outwardly yet. Maybe you have been there? I have. The call of God moves powerfully within which those in the world can't understand. 'Why did he change so much?' they ask. 'Why is she willing to give up all that and become a Christian?' they ponder. I'm sure Egypt didn't understand why Moses would concern himself with those Hebrew slaves. 'Has he lost his marbles?' they would have asked. No. Marbles intact. The Spirit of God is simply working. 

Chariots of Fire

As an illustration³, you may have seen the movie Chariots of Fire. It's an oldie now, I know. But a goodie. It tells the true story of Eric Liddell, who at the height of his athletic career, chose to leave it all and become a missionary in China. At the 1924 Paris Olympics, the 100m was meant to be his strongest event but he chose not to compete because of his conviction not to run on Sunday. Instead he trained for the 400m where he went on to win the gold medal in a then world record time. He also won bronze in the 200m. Given that he was only 22 years of age at the time, most expected their new Olympic hero to compete again in the 1928 Games and hopefully win more medals for Great Britain. However, Liddell stunned the sporting world by putting his faith and calling over any further Olympic glory, and instead of pursuing fame, He joined the London Missionary Society and departed for China (where he had been born to missionary parents). There he served as a teacher and missionary in rural areas. Tragically, he would later die in 1945 in a Japanese internment camp in Shandong Province, China. But his life was marked by sacrifice and devotion to God, earning him admiration far beyond the track. And though many at the time didn't understand his faith which prioritized God's will over temporary fame, many have continued to be inspired by the film Chariots of Fire and books about his life.

So we read that Moses 'chose rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures⁴ of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.' Moses will always be remembered as one who put God, and God's people, above any earthly riches or glory. That is how Heaven sees him. How, and for what, would you like to be remembered? 

3. Faith to conquer fears

Heb 11:27  By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen. 

The third aspect of faith is seen with Moses not fearing the wrath of the king. Now it should be said that Moses had had his fears. He was fearful when he initially had to flee Egypt (Exod 2:14-15). He was fearful when initially asked to be 'God's man' and deliver his people. He was fearful initially at the thought of speaking before Pharoah (Exodus 3:11, Exodus 4:10) My 'loose' Bible version states Moses' reaction at the time this way: 'I have an idea' Moses said, 'how about you find someone else!' And yet courage came through faith and this is an important point for many of us. We all have fear in one area or another. So how does the Bible say that fear can be overcome by faith? Think about the following verses and tell me what the common factor is amongst them. And I'll make things easy for you by highlighting parts of it (don't say I'm not good to you!)

Deu 31:6  “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Isaiah 41:10  “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Psalm 56:3-4  “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise—in God I trust and am not afraid.”
Proverbs 3:25-26  “Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the Lord will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared.”

Ok Einstein... your turn. Can you see how fear is overcome by faith? Fear is only overcome to the degree that we see that the Lord is with us, loves us, and is keeping us. So where is your focus? What is currently making you afraid? It is in that area that you are not trusting in the person and presence of the Lord. Faith overcomes fear, as Moses himself found, but we have a very real part to play in this. You will remember what Jesus said on the night before going to the cross:  

John 14:27  “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you… Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”  

Did you note that? 'Do not let... your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.' Do not let it happen. Our natural bend is often towards fear. But we are not to let that happen. There are examples in the Bible where fear weakened faith and nearly always it directly followed 'where' the person was looking. You will remember that Peter was walking miraculously on the water by faith... until he started looking at the waves and began to sink. His fear started to overcome his faith because he had his eyes on the wrong thing! You will also remember when the 12 spies brought back the report of the Promised Land, 10 couldn't see past the giants in the land and brought back a fear based report that discouraged the whole congregation. In fear they said 'we are like grasshoppers in their sight'. Joshua and Caleb said yes, there are giants in the land, but they are like grasshoppers in God's sight! A totally different perspective. It was similar when the Israelites shook in fear at the sight of Goliath, yet David's faith overcame fear as he brought God into the situation and called on the name of the Lord. He had the right focus! So it all depends where we are looking. That is why Jesus said 'Do not let... your hearts be troubled.' When our focus is right, faith thrives. So if you are fearful, ask yourself where is your focus? Moses, scripture says, was able to see Him who is unseen. So was Joshua, Caleb and David. As many others were. The question is, can you? And can I? 

4. Faith to trust the blood

Heb 11:28  By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that he who destroyed the firstborn would not touch them. 

The fourth aspect to faith is critical in becoming a Christian but also in being the Christian you have become. It is faith to trust and rest in the blood. Let's go back to the first Passover, in Egypt, where Moses told all the Israelite families to place the blood of a lamb on the doorposts of their house so that they would be saved from 'the destroyer':

Exo 12:23  When the LORD goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.

You can imagine an Israelite child saying 'Dad, are you sure that blood on the door will keep us safe? Is that really enough to protect us from the destroyer? Do we need to do something else? How do we know that just that little sign of the blood on the door is enough?' For such a child, and any person with such fears in that day, where would their peace come from? It would come only from knowing that God, who cannot lie, has made a promise that anyone under the covering of that blood will not die nor be harmed and are perfectly safe. Now this picture is for our salvation as well. The salvation for the Israelites didn't come down to their personal goodness or morality. It came down to this one point - had they believed God and followed His instruction to apply the blood? And the blood of Jesus, our Passover Lamb, has been shed for us, and again the question is not about our worthiness or goodness but are we under His blood? Have we accepted His blood, His death, on our behalf for our sins? Regarding our eternal salvation, that is the ONLY place of ongoing peace in our lives.

Rom 5:9  Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! 

Now put yourself back in the shoes of that little Israelite girl in Egypt, waiting for the destroyer to come that night. Her father has killed the lamb and applied its blood to their door frame but the girl still has fears. 'Is it going to be enough? Am I safe? Or will I die too?' she asks. Good question. Is she safe? Yes, she is perfectly safe for she is under the blood. Yet her current experience is not one of peace. Her feelings are not of safety but of fear and anxiety. This is what it is like for many Christians who still live with doubts and concerns over their salvation. Are they saved? Yes, if they believe in the person and work of the Lord Jesus. Are they living in the peace that God would have for them? No, not at all.  

I wrote in a previous study on this that 'The greater your confidence in the blood of the lamb, the greater your realisation of the peace of God.' That is true. By faith, we too keep that Passover as we trust the promises of God, that the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, has taken and paid the price for our sins. As mentioned earlier, this is all part of following what Jesus said to His own: 'Do not let your hearts be troubled!'

5. Faith to believe that God will make a way

Heb 11:29  By faith they passed through the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were drowned.

We come now to the fifth and final aspect of faith that is presented in connection with the life of Moses. Speaking of the Exodus under Moses, our passage says that 'by faith they passed through the Red Sea'. You again remember the story I'm sure. The Egyptian army blocked their way behind. The Red Sea blocked their way in front. Israel was trapped and to most the situation seemed hopeless. In fact many cried out in fear that it would have been better if they had died in Egypt. Yet Moses wasn't fazed. In fact he seemed strangely serene. Almost like he knew something that they didn't. And so we read:

Exodus 14:13 Moses said to the people, "Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever.  

Moses looked past the current situation to see the salvation of the Lord. He knew that God would make a way. A long time ago I wrote a study called God will make a way. It is the most popular study on my site. What does that tell me? Well, that there are many people that need to know that God will make a way. Many Christians feel trapped like the Israelites did. They feel paralyzed by their current situation and can't see a way forward. And let's be honest, many situations in this world are very difficult and give a sense of hopelessness. To give you an example, one man that read my article wrote in with the following:

Will God make a way for me?

I just read your article about God making a way. I do appreciate it but I'm struggling to believe it applies to me after all I have been through the last 10 or so years. I have been depressed and watched my life crumble to the point I can hardly get out of bed. I'm 63 now and retired on a pittance that doesn't cover my monthly expenses. I still feel abandoned by God and despair of life and would rather not be here anymore. I'm stuck in a broken down RV and my family has for the most part abandoned me... I feel like the waters have swept over me and I am drowning. No one has an answer for me about where is God in all this. Why won't God at least let me die? I'm sorry to bring you down but I at least had to tell someone how I feel because I have no one.
In Christ...

I left out part of what he has gone through but let me say it is very difficult for anyone. I wrote back, a few times, expressing my sorrow and that I would pray for him (which I continue to do). I tried to give him hope, for with God there is always hope. But often that is hard to see when you are right in the thick of it. And it certainly makes it harder when a person is dealing with depression as is the case here. It reminded me of my mother who had a full nervous breakdown in the early 2000's and was stuck in bed, unable to take any stimulus whatsoever. Even listening to a Christian radio station was too much for her at the time. For many months there looked like there was no progress or way forward. But God... God made a way. So if you are going through it, wondering if God will make a way for you, begin to thank the Lord that He can make a way for you. And as CHM wrote 'Never interpret God's love by your circumstances; but always interpret your circumstances by His love.'  

Getting back to our text you will see that by faith the Israelites passed through the Red Sea. Does that mean they had no fear? No. I'm sure they were looking at those sea walls on both sides thinking 'hmm, just stay where you are, thank you very much!' There would have still been some trepidation, but they still followed what God had commanded through Moses anyway and kept taking steps of faith forward. In one way it was a step of faith into the unknown for no one had ever done this before... but it was based on the promise of a known God. And that was enough for them!

And what of the Egyptians? Did they have faith? No. They had presumption. They had no promise of God that things would be fine if they were to step into the Red Sea. And, well, we know the results! 'And the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were drowned.' That is the short and not so sweet end to their story! So let us have faith in the promises of God and not presume on things God has not said!  

Conclusion 

So we have seen five aspects of faith in the life of Moses. To reiterate them, they are:

• Faith to do what is right (and faith to let go)
• Faith to reject worldly temptations
• Faith to conquer fears
• Faith to trust the blood
• Faith to believe that God will make a way

And we have seen that:

• Faith trusts God's promises for He cannot lie, so His word is our source of strength and hope.
• Faith reminds us of God's presence, that He is with us and that God plus anyone is always a majority! 
• Faith empowers courage for we gain boldness and peace in the presence of God.
• Faith looks past the worldly temptations and focuses on the eternal.

So I hope that has been helpful to you. It is always good to focus on what God says is important and we are seeing that in a very specific, condensed, and easy to follow form in Hebrews 11. 

God Bless.  

FOOTNOTES