Hebrews 11: Moses

Dear TVCC Students,
We hope that you all are having a great fall and getting ready for spending time with your families over the holidays. We are continually thankful to walk alongside of you as we all seek to pursue the Lord and learn from the book of Hebrews. Last night Sonny walked us through an overview of the life of Moses from Hebrews 11 and highlighted how Moses was able to forsake the pleasures offered by this world because he was focused on eternal things, namely Christ. Here is a recap...

Hebrews 11: Moses

~11:23: By faith Moses was hidden by his parents. Moses’ parents knew that their son was special in the eyes of God and by faith they disobeyed pharaoh in order to obey the Lord. There are times when God will call people to disobey the government in order for them to obey the Lord. 

~Acts 5 is an example of a time when the disciples had to chose between obeying the Lord or the government.  Peter and the other apostles obeyed the Lord rather than man. When the government interferes with obedience to the Lord, our obedience should be to the Lord. There will be times when it will be difficult for us to obey the Lord because there is a spiritual war going on (Ephesians 6:12)! We must remember that all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2 Timothy 3:12)!

Q: Read through Ephesians 6. How does this relate to Moses and what does it teach us about how we are to go about fighting the spiritual battle that is around us?

~11:24-26:  Moses was raised in the house of pharaoh and was eventually offered one of the most prestigious positions in the world. Moses knew the Lord and all of the eternal satisfaction offered by walking with Him and chose to obey God rather than obtain the passing pleasures of sin. Sin does offer us pleasure BUT sin is evil and fleeting and destructive! Moses knew that he could have temporal fulfillment by taking the pleasures offered by Egypt OR he could exercise self control and by faith follow the Lord. The pleasures that sin offers can never satisfy and they always have consequences! In His right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16). The Lord offers eternal and lasting satisfaction and when we see Him for who He really is, all other temporal pleasures pale in comparison to what He has to offer (Philippians 3).

Q: Read Philippians 3. What temporal satisfaction has the world been offering you lately to tempt you to forsake intimacy with the Lord? How are you fighting that temptation? Remember that we must be walking in the Spirit to overcome sin. He is our source of strength against the temptations of this world...

~Again, Moses was offered the most prestigious position on the planet but he forsook that pleasure and position because he knew that what the Lord had to offer was better! When we look at the life of Moses, we see that his life reflected his faith. Our lives reflect our faith. Moses saw the Lord and His worth and realized that nothing would compare to the joy that was his when he enjoyed the presence of the Lord. Moses could forsake what the world offered because he was looking ahead to the eternal reward in Christ. If we want to continue to walk with the Lord and walk in victory against sin, we must follow the example of Moses by keeping our eyes focused on the eternal reward that is ours in Christ. This world and its pleasures are passing away but intimacy with the Lord Jesus is offered to us on a daily basis and that will never be taken from us. In Matthew 6:19-20, Jesus reminds us about this exact issue. Let us store up treasures that will endure to eternity, not fade away with this world.

Q: Read Matthew 6:19-20. In order for us to store up treasures that are eternal, we must be spending time in the presence of the Lord and growing in our understanding of His greatness. How often are you meditating on the Lord? By meditating on His Word and enjoying His presence, we will have more clear vision to forsake what the world is offering. We need time with Him! We will fail if we try to defeat sin by just sheer willpower. Like Moses, we must defeat sin by looking towards the Lord and what He is offering! We must fix our eyes on what is greater. What has lately been preventing you from enjoying time with the Lord and what changes do you feel Him calling you to make so that you can spend time with Him on a daily basis?

Dear students,

We are so thankful for each one of you. We pray that you will continue to grow in your relationships with the Lord. If we look ahead in the book of Hebrews (Hebrews 13:12), we see that as Jesus suffered for us, we will be called to suffer in this life for His namesake. This suffering though, is short lived and is nothing compared with the eternal joys that we will partake of as children of the Lord through Christ. We pray that you will experience real joy in the presence of Christ this week as you meditate on His Word. We love you all and are so thankful for you!

With hope,

~Sonny and Casi