Iron Sharpened by Him

May I just say that patience in love is very difficult?

It has now been a year and a half since I started living downtown with a friend of mine. At the time that I moved in, honestly, I didn't really know him too well. All I knew is that he was aware of the burdens I was bearing, he acknowledged that it kinda made him uneasy, but that he was willing to live together and be there if needed. I made a conscious choice that I would love him as a brother and be there in any way he needed me to be there for him.

I learned that I am definitely not an introvert at the core, although in many other ways we were very similar. I wanted to be able to relate better and use secular things as a way of connecting. I think in general this is a good way of getting to know friends better, learning what they like and being willing to appreciate it to some extent. I also shared some of the things from my childhood, like Maple Story cards. :P But there's only so many ways to build decks when I only have like 100 cards.

Early on it became apparent that he was having difficulty in various ways in trusting God in his life. And I was really in no position to tell him what to do. I also reeeeeally hate confrontation, so I didn't want to do anything that would force him away or make him hate me. I had kinda felt like he was keeping his distance because of my struggles, which was fine. It just felt very lonely and kinda enhanced the feeling of monstrosity I often feel towards myself.

As time went on though, I was and am very glad that we have become better friends and brothers. I feel like we both kinda tend to hold a lot back until it kinda just explodes and overflows. The problem being that he generally dislikes my asking if something is wrong, and I generally lean towards thinking things are wrong when they aren't. :P

Sometimes there were difficulties and we were there for each other. Sometimes there was nothing I could do, but pray. And God would do so much more than I could ask! Why I don't ask of Him more is unfortunate.

I am frequently encouraged by how he handles the problems around him. Even when he personally doesn't want to do something, his spirit is provoked by God, he acknowledges what God is saying to him, and he wrestles with it. I am honestly jealous of how intimate the conversations with God sound.

Most recently he's been reading biographies of missionaries. (I think I got him back into reading, influenced also by his long bus rides to work, but our pastor gave him the first of these recent books). And it just makes me really happy to see him struggle with their passion and willingness to sacrifice in service to God and others. It makes me so happy to see him desire to emulate that. It makes me so so happy that we can encourage each other and hold each other accountable and push each other forward to what God is calling us to.

Over the past year there are so many things I have tried to do to help him know God better, but I feel like the most effective things have always been what God did apart from my workings. I eagerly await the day when all sin and temptation fades away from both of us and we can stand shoulder to shoulder working for God's glory here and in other nations proclaiming His goodness in our lives and His faithfulness to fulfill all He has promised in this world.

Even if I never know the impact I actually have had on him, I'm just glad to have a brother who encourages me and is ready to call out sin in my life.

May we continue to grow in Him. May His kingdom come. May we be sent out. May love abound. May our hearts glorify God first and foremost.

Amen

PS. May I just say patience in love is very rewarding. ;P
PPS. I'm so tempted to just turn our friendship into intentional discipleship, but that hasn't worked so many times. But patiently living life trying to serve God and loving him and others seems to work. This is irritating to my desire to be the one who gets results, but yes, very rewarding in the long run, and MUCH more glorifying to God. :P

Feeling Freedom

Yo.

It's been a while. Quite a while. :P But I'm finally free. I handed in my Masters' thesis for examination three days ago and my defense is scheduled for next week. The weeks and months of agonizing work reading journal articles and writing 300 pages and editing down to 200 pages, it's all essentially over. These last few days have been so great. Being able to think and not have this giant looming threat of failure hanging over me. The funniest thing though is how God really humbled me through this.

See, I reaaaaaally didn't want to sit down and write it. I'd do almost anything else to avoid doing it and it got to the point where I was actually running out of time. (For some reason I had been scheduling to finish ahead of the actual due date, so there was flexibility, but yaaaa.) So here I am like 3 days before it's due, knowing exactly how much I need to do and just being like "naaaaah, let's sleep in a bit more. ... 7:21. fineeeeee. I guess I have to wake up and start." And so I went to get up and get ready for the day and as I was standing in the bathroom I started feeling faint. So I sat down on the bathtub.

...

*opens eyes* "what's this white thing? where am I?" *sits up* I had fainted and was lying on the ground with my head facing the toilet. =O So, I go to lie in my bed. 7:23. This had only happened once before (exactly the same way) way back in 3rd or 4th year, so I know it's nothing serious. Lying down I realize my knee hurts. I can't extend my left leg and walking on it is painful. Sooooooo I hop over to my laptop to start working. I figure, "well, if it stops hurting we're all good. It had better not be broken. I have a defense in a couple weeks and work in a few days." A couple hours later and it still hurts. So I'm like "fine. I guess I'll go to the hospital just to be sure. Like, if I don't get this moving, my knee will like solidify over and I'll never get to use it again. Either I go now or after I hand in this thesis. And by then it could be too late." My roommate isn't here. My friend who lives the closest is out of town for another day. It's not an emergency.

So I check the bus schedule. The bus a couple blocks down actually goes right to the hospital. I just need to leave enough time to hop down the hall to the elevator, and slowly hop without slipping and dying to the bus stop, take the bus, then hop to the hospital. Got all my stuff. Let's go.

Hopping that entire hallway was exhausting. So when I get downstairs I call a cab. :P He was super nice. The doctors were super nice. Was there for like 2? 3 hours? Read a book. They said it was probably just a muscle thing and I'd be fine in a day or too, Cool. So I got a pair of crutches and walked to the bus. :P It only really hurt when it was extended or had weight on it.

Back at home time to work. :P

Oh, did I mention my glasses had fallen apart that week too? So, here I am with like a meter of clear vision and the inability to walk, essentially forced to tackle my thesis, praying that my leg heals quickly so I can work this coming week. New Years comes and I'm just at home working on my thesis all night. So I take a break before midnight. It'd been the first time in 7 years that I hadn't been at a Christian conference singing and praying in the year. I do my annual reflection and prayer and crying session, reminding myself of His faithfulness and goodness and the hope I have in Him, before getting back to work.

So, working as normal, drinking lots of water, I take leg stretching breaks every time after I go the washroom. I'm regaining some extension, but it still hurts and I can't really walk properly, So I just take a break and pray kneeling on my bed to help stretch it further. And afterward, with really no sudden thing, it feels back to normal. Praise God. :P And better than that, I think my relationship with God was much better too. It's funny, but it all worked out (aside from my parents being overly concerned about me, and me not bathing for a couple days. ;P) and I'm thankful that God does things like this in my life. I'm praying the defense goes well and that this year is all for His glory and my joy in Him.

D.Fa

Faith in Our Reward?

So,

I've probably been playing too many games lately, be it on my phone, or computer, or 3DS, or otherwise, or watching too many videos, or doing too much work (;P?) and so my eyes are getting pretty tired of screens pretty quickly. I never read books, but I don't want to wash the dishes, so why not?

So I picked up a book I started reading a year or so ago. It's all about discipleship and various things that you'll probably end up talking about as you mentor someone. This one chapter focused on various foundational things that we need to have faith in as we grow to trust God more. One section that stood out to me was about having faith in our reward.

The author tells a story about a trip to the Great Wall of China. While there he saw a worker slowly and passively picking up trash and workers at the various concession stands energetically and actively pursuing customers. Clearly there is a difference here. The one will always be paid the same, the other will make more profit if they sell more at a higher value. From this the author draws analogy to how we often see our eternity unchanging regardless of what we do after we've been saved, noting that "the doctrine of eternal security ... was never meant to negate the teaching of rewards". That we are called to exercise faith in future rewards, that our faithfulness and obedience will be rewarded.

Now this is definitely something I haven't studied much. But it is also definitely undeniable that there are many verses speaking about future rewards. Whether it be laying up treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21); persevering trials and receiving a crown on life (James 1:12); overcoming and receiving various blessings (Revelation 2-3); or parables of being faithful with little and being trusted with more (Matthew 24:46-47; 25:14-30). And I'm sure there's much more.

But I think I do end up thinking that what I do now won't really make a difference. As much as I think it's wrong to focus too much on potential future rewards, it is definitely something I should probably learn more about. Still though, having the eyes to see the blessings for us and others both now and in the future as we live out lives of obedience, surrender, and faith; I think that is something I need more of while realizing that the biggest reward of all is available now and forever: to delight and be truly satisfied in knowing God and the grace He has given through Jesus and the intimacy of knowing He is with us always.

May my eyes be fixed firmly on Him and may I delight in Him more and more whether through joys or trials.

D.Fa

Higher Ways

Yo,

so today was a lazy day like many others recently. My lab meeting was cancelled, so I was planning to wake up early and go do a bunch of experiments. Instead I ended up sleeping in pretty late and only doing a bit of writing work at home while also cutting my hair and cleaning up some stuff and playing some games. Wednesdays have become my P2C days since I'm usually there for lab meeting anyways. So I went to school for prayer meeting at 5:30. (Ended up catching a Chansey in Pokemon GO even though I thought I never would.)

But the really awesome thing happened at prayer meeting. We were praying through Psalm 31 where David is calling to God to be his refuge and talks about how God cares for the humble, but not so much for the proud. The prayer leader asked us to think about times God had humbled us. I thought of a few things, but the one that stood out to me was a time almost 6 years ago when I was in East Asia.

It was a normal day about 3/4 of the way through our time there on a missions trip. We were at the stage of having deeper conversations with friends and really sharing the gospel with our friends and inviting them to consider what it meant in their lives. I don't remember exactly, but I'm pretty sure at least once on this particular day our friends had not ended up meeting with us even though they had said they would. This time in particular it was like 2 hours later and they still hadn't messaged us or anything. So I was feeling really frustrated at how all of my planning had failed. But the only thing that came to mind was a hymn. I think it was Be Thou my Vision, or maybe Come thou Fount. Either way it was surprising to me. Why would I be singing in a time like this?

Later that afternoon we met up with the rest of the Canadians and we found out that this one guy had shared the gospel and like 3 of them came to know Jesus as their saviour! The chestnut gang or something was their name? I was feeling really unhappy. Why should all of his friends accept Jesus and I can't even meet up with my friends. And I really struggled through what it meant to have the joy of salvation. In the end I learned of how God's plans are really higher than mine and that when my plans fail His are always at work, but it wasn't until today that I kinda figured out why a song had come to me. When sinners repent and turn to Jesus all heaven rejoices! The angels in heaven were singing and that overflowed into me? I think that's pretty crazy that kinda out of nowhere I'd have a song of praise while at the same moment men and women were turning to Jesus. Crazy.

It's crazy to think that things like that when we have no idea why things are happening God will eventually help us see what He was doing and why He did it that way. I still don't know why I didn't get to meet up with my friends, but humbling praise while He works is kinda awesome anyways. If only I thought this way more often.

God is great and His ways are higher. May His praises always be on our lips.

D.Fa

1 John 1:9 - Guilt and Shame

Yo,

something that I've been thinking a bunch about lately, as mentioned previously, is the concept of shame and it's really shedding a lot of light on things that I had just not even noticed before. One of the places that I think this has made a huge difference is in regards to the Bible where the concept of guilt and shame are often mentioned.

Previously I hadn't really understood them and thought they were essentially the same thing. They are definitely similar, but shame is so much deeper. Guilt is a feeling that you did something wrong and leads to reconciliation, trying harder to not do it again, and similar positive results. Shame is a feeling that you are bad and leads to isolation, despair, hopelessness, apathy, and the like. Shame makes you see yourself as less and not being worth trying.

And so, as I learned about shame, whether consciously or not, I couldn't really get a hold of it because it didn't seem Biblical. Where did the Bible ever talk about shame or overcoming shame?

And I think this really stemmed from an ignorance. I wasn't seeing it because I didn't know it was there. And now, I see it in places I'd never even imagined it being. Places so simple and yet so profound.

A verse that I'd heard over and over again and told others over and over again has now become so much more. 1 John 1:9 says "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." And I had always read that as simply forgiveness and grace for the things we had done, God's justice, His mercy, His grace and love; the legal requirement paid on the cross as Jesus died on our behalf. Us clothed in His perfection, covering our sin, covering our badness. The cleansing just being of the sin, that it was behind us. The idea that we may struggle with feeling as though, as a result of our sin or not, that we were bad, that we were unrighteous, that there was nothing that could cure that; that idea hadn't crossed my mind. But God is greater than our guilt and the requirement of death for sinners (paid through the cross to bring us life), and He is greater than our shame and feelings of worthlessness (as we trsut in Him He makes us new, He cleanses us from alllllllllllllllllll unrighteousness!)!

He is faithful and just. We are forgiven and made new in Him. Amen.

I am forgiven. I am made new.

D.Fa

Guilty Worship

Yo,

A while back I asked myself a question which I thought was really troubling and caused guilt even though the source was what seemed to cause so much pure joy in my life. So I was very conflicted.

"Why does it seem that I value the word of man over the Word of God? Why, when I am feeling down, or even often in general, do I turn more often to Hillsong than to the Bible?"

And this came out of a place where some of the moments that I felt best about life and my present situations would be in listening to one song over and over again. Whether it was at work, or at home, or on a bus. It seemed that I was most full of joy when deeply reflecting on the word's of my favourite contemporary Christian artists. Why not in reflection of God's word? Why not in prayer? Why was this it?

This week at a Christian conference I had a realization of the reason that this is, and how it is a good thing and not bad. Which, let me tell you, makes me feel so much better about those situations and about myself.

The conference was held by Power to Change - Students and it was the 5th I had attended. There were so many great sessions and workshops that spoke truth into a variety of situations from God's judgement to time management and everything in between.

What was very different than in many other years was that there was an emphasis on overcoming shame. I will end up talking about this later in relation to my life, but for now, I will give a brief overview. Guilt and shame are different. Guilt makes you want to do better because you see that you did something that wasn't good. Shame makes you want to do less because you feel you are bad. the speaker went over briefly how to combat shame in recognizing it, regulating it, revealing it, and reality checking it. Largely seeing that it's there, in the moment stopping and reminding yourself of the truth of who you are in Christ, and bringing others along to help you and others.

Again, I will get more into this, but I have come to acknowledge that I do struggle with a lot of shame in my life. When I read the Bible the truth there is encouraging, but I often read it so quickly that it doesn't have time to sink in. Songs written by Christian artists take that truth, whether a lot of it in hymns, or smaller chunks in other songs, and really go into that. They put it to music. They sing it in the chorus again and again. And my own listening to it again and again; singing it; ending up memorizing it; singing out gladly to the God who has done this in worship; reminding myself continually of who I am because of Jesus; this allows the truth to sink in so much more deeply than it can when I don't give the Bible the time it deserves, when I don't put aside the time to just speak with God and enjoy Him. even while multitasking I can reflect on the truth of the gospel and let it sink in.

My favourite songs are often slower tempo and acoustic. And they reflect on the truth that Jesus died so that I could live, that no matter what I am His and He is mine, that in resurrection Jesus reigns supreme, that He is faithful to bring to completion all the things that He has started, that sin and death are destroyed and I don't need to worry about them; things like that. Listening, literally hundreds of times to a single song like this really allows the truth to wash over me and renew the hope I have in the gospel and the mighty God who has done it.

I'm not saying that I shouldn't try to really worship God better through my times in the Bible or prayer. I definitely need to work on those. However, I am so relieved that listening to or singing Christian songs and feeling great because of it isn't a bad thing due to idolatry or anything, but that it is a way I can renew my mind and worship God.

=]

May He be praised and may I become more like Him each day in obedience and surrender to the One who is truly good and loving. May my hope be renewed each day as I learn more deeply of the great love that overcomes my shame and the wrath that was rightly mine through the cross.

Amen

Culture Shock in My Own City

Yo,

I find it really odd to say, but I think I am currently experiencing the beginning of culture shock.

A couple days ago I moved into a new condo and it's really different from everywhere else I've ever lived. Just yesterday I was walking to the bus to go to work and in the span of like 15 minutes I was approached five times for spare change. There are people everywhere ranging from homeless to businessmen suited up and ready to conquer the world. Small businesses. Historic locations. Rainbow flags. Rainbow crosswalk. Starbucks down the street. LCBO downstairs. Walking home at night, drunk people and open bars. People at night.

I don't think I'm really that close to downtown, but I am faced with the reality that I do live downtown and everything is different now.

I need to figure out how to build relationships here. I need to figure out how to show people love on the streets whether I have change or not and use those brief conversations to share eternal truth and hope. I need to figure out how to feel comfortable in a place that is so foreign to me and, in many ways, believes a worldview that is different, if not opposed to how I see the world and myself.

Moving to Asia or Africa was less of a shock.

I understood that I'd be paying a much higher rent than I had previously. I understood that my life would be different. I understood my condo was beautifully clean and modern. I understood the transit. I understood. But I was not prepared for this.

I pray that God would help me to really grow in my faith while in this place. That I can meaningfully impact the lives of my housemate, neighbours, community, and those I interact with regularly. I pray that I would be building solid foundations of spiritual habits.

D.Fa

Japan 2016 Entry 4

Yo yo swageroo,

Today was pretty sweet. Traditional breakfast at Pastor's house. Children's English class day 2. Lunch. Beginner adult English class. A bit of worship. Visiting a wycliffe missionary for dinner.

I know I've said it before, but yo. We are so blessed here. Literally everyone is pouring out love on us and it makes it so much easier to love others.

The morning English class was a little bit less well planned out than yesterday's, so it felt like it was kinda lame, but it sounded like the students enjoyed it still, which is great. We have 7 great girls (and one of the girls really likes pokemon go. ;P) and I'm so blessed to know them. Today NP shared her testimony and it seemed like they were paying much more attention during chapel time than yesterday.

The afternoon class was with all new students, so we didn't know what to prepare for. Our class was 7 great men and women! They were so enthusiastic to try and speak English and were asking great questions and as such we only actually ended up getting through half of the material we had planned. ;P At one point one of the guys (instead of practicing the english we were supposed to) just asked AL about how she became a Christian. And later when she actually shared a testimony another guy who isn't yet a Christian was all like "Ya. What she said is actually in the bible". He had checked. ;D So happy to be their teacher. Haha

Had a few minutes between class and dinner, and I'd been feeling kinda accused and guilty, so I ended up praying a bit and grabbed the guitar in the chapel and played. Good times. God is good.

Dinner was taco rice. Amazing concept. Rice, chilli, other toppings, in a bowl. Legit. But the best part was hearing how MN had discerned to become a missionary with wycliffe to Papua New Guinea. It was a long process of fear and then taking steps to pursue God's calling to missions. She also ended up sharing part of how she had come to know Jesus. Q . Q  one time her friend had invited her to a Christian run English camp not expecting that she'd believe. She went because she wanted to know English better and ended up asking for God to be in her life. The effects of an English camp was salvation for her and likely for thousands more through the work of translating the bible into one of the about 800 languages in Papua New Guinea. Wow yo. Completely changes how you see this week on English camp here in Japan. God can do such crazy amazing things.

Her testimony also really resonated with the team. She shared how at one point she was reading Isaiah 27 or 28 while discerning her call and it was about a farmer who tills the field, then sows, working hard to bring in a crop or something. How can I expect fruit if all I do is till? We need to take the steps towards the goal.

And for me it resonates too, but more that that is what I'm trying to do. Being here this week is a step for me. I actually feel super at home here. I haven't done too much exploring yet, we'll do a bit of that tomorrow, but man. I think I could see myself living and working in Japan. I love so much about everything here and doing ministry with a church. MN's testimony also included to a degree how she was fully funded by this church (and she was there for 14 years!). And now we see her serving faithfully and working with the church while also inspiring others of missions and bible translation. A beautiful partnership of church and parachurch organizations. < 3

But yo. So good. Swagerooster. Ttyl

D.Fa

Japan 2016 Entry 3

Well, it seems yesterday's post couldn't publish because I tried to attach photos... haha. So you'll get it when you get it. ;P

Today was crazy. It was our first day of class with the kids so I did some extra lesson plan prep before breakfast and so had NP. =D We conferred and got all our stuff from LS. We all prayed together in a big group and went off to class. Our 7 girls are all so sweet and well behaved and energetic. < 3 We were learning activities, ordinal numbers, and months today and will review a bunch of that tomorrow. A spoon relay was a hit of a game to help demonstrate 1st 2nd 3rd.

Bento lunches were great! Did some lesson planning for the beginner adult class tomorrow with AL. It should be a fun class.

Then we went to a mall for some shopping, buying some food, and dinner.

I'm pretty tired now. Haha Time flies yo.

Ttyl

D.Fa.

Japan 2016 Entry 1

Yo,

So I'm in Japan now. Me and four other young adults from my church back in Ottawa are here in Soka (North of Tokyo) for 12 days teaching English, sharing testimonies of God's work of salvation in our lives, and serving with our brothers and sisters here. I still feel like I'm dreaming, like this is all fake and I'll just wake up all of a sudden.

I had written a page in a physical journal, but I think it'll be easier if I just write it here. The church has provided us with WiFi, so I might as well use it to make blogging easier. ;P

I'm actually astounded with how much I can understand, and how I'm actually so much more confident to speak Japanese than I am to even speak French. I really enjoy being praised by everyone here for my Japanese skills, but at the same time it is very tiring to speak another language. Previously when I had gone somewhere that most people spoke French better than English I tried to speak French more. After a few weeks I grew tired of the extra effort and stopped trying. I kinda feel like that is already starting to set in... but it's only been a couple days.

We got to meet LS yesterday. She is a missionary who has been here for a while. She has prepared great lesson plans for us and knows the children since she is the one normally teaching English here. She's pretty funny and very friendly.

The team is good. We apparently all really like milk tea. ;P In free time a few of us have been playing Pokemon (including LS  haha).

Although things are good, I feel scared. The thought of giving into sin and temptation is looming and I hate the thought. I am scared of not giving ministry my all. I am scared of not making the most of this time and opportunities. I pray that God would be giving me comfort and peace in Him. That I would be assured of His great might and power at work in me and in this place.

Also Pastor's 2.5 year old daughter is super cute. =P

Ttyl.

D.Fa

By Faith: Moses Part 2

June 26^th – Hebrews 11:27-28

Good morning everyone. I do really love being able to dig deeply into God’s word, so I’m happy to be here again getting to share the word of God with each of you. If you’d like to follow along in the pew bibles or on your cellular devices, please do. Before we get into the word today, let’s pray

If I asked you what your greatest fear would be, what would you say? Although not necessarily the most reasonable greatest fear, possibly the first large fear that comes to mind would be spiders, or snakes, or darkness. // Not to say that those things aren’t scary. But in reality, they don’t actually pose a great threat on our lives, especially in Canada. In Canada we have one poisonous snake the Massasauga Rattler that has only caused a handful of deaths ever, and our most poisonous spider the Fiddleback or Brown Recluse spider lives in less disturbed areas, doesn’t like to interact with humans and will only bite if pressed against the skin, even so it will rarely cause more than a rash. And darkness? I’m sure you’ve experienced winter in Ottawa, but worse so winter in the Yukon. More dangerous in reality is running into a bear at a campsite (maybe 500 attacks, ~50 deaths), frostbite and hypothermia, or accidentally colliding with a deer on a highway (thousands of deaths) or driving in general which takes about 2500 deaths each year in accidents. These things all boil down to some extent to a fear of death, which to a degree is a good thing, it keeps you alive. Aside from fear of things that could kill you, what are you scared of? Scared of poverty? Scared of letting others down? Scared of suffering? Scared of death of your loved ones? Fear of the unknown? Is there anything scarier than those things and scarier than death? This is where we are going today as we continue our study in Hebrews 11.

Briefly, the context of the book of Hebrews. It was a letter written to Hebrew Christians as they fall out of favour in the eyes of the Romans. To remain as Christians they would lose much and face suffering. So they were greatly tempted to go back to Judaism for safety and security since it was an officially recognised religion. They were tempted to turn back to what they knew. But through faith, the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen, the author is encouraging them to persevere. Heb 2:1-3 “Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?”

Hebrews 11 that we have been going through this summer is a list of many examples of that faith lived out, persevering even though they did not receive the things promised, but only saw them and greeted them from afar. Last week we looked at the first part of the faith of Moses in verses 24-26. The author of Hebrews through the example of faith was encouraging the church to persevere and not be afraid of loss and suffering. Hebrews 11:24-26 ““By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.” Moses had a willingness, he was unafraid to endure the loss of all things and suffering for the sake of being found in Christ and partaking in the promises of God. Even as the church falls out of favour and may suffer for following God, He would still be worth it. The promise of entering into His rest, of salvation through Christ, it would be worth all they lost or suffered. Hebrews 11:27-28 continues “By faith [Moses] left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them.”

Today we will see more of how the author addresses that desire to turn back to Judaism, especially through Moses. We will see how faith is lived out in each of these verses: faith overcoming fear, faith overcoming wrath, and how through Christ alone we can be saved from the wrath of God.

1.                 Moses the Man of Faith

Something I have yet to ask you this week or last is this: Who was Moses? If I dropped his name with no context what would you think of? Probably the 10 Commandments? The burning bush? Parting the red sea? Writing the first 5 books in the old testament? The Prince of Egypt movie? ;P

If you were Jewish, what would you think of? ***

Now, I’m not of Jewish descent, so I can’t say for sure, but from what I’ve read it would probably be quite similar but with much more reverence since in addition to the things he did, he was also a great prophet and leader, the arbitrator between God and man through the time of Egypt and the wilderness. He was the one who gave the law that the people of God might live by it. // Moses, the man of the law.

And this is very interesting since so far in the whole book of Hebrews Moses has not been identified like that. So far through the book Moses has been mentioned as being Heb 3:2,5 “(Moses also was) faithful in all God's house … Moses was faithful in all God's house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later” and we see that faith again in Heb 8:5 “They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” By faith he followed God’s instructions and patterns. And we see this again in Hebrews 9:19. By faith we see him leading the people in verse 3:16 as he himself was following God. Other than in Hebrews 11, Moses is only described one more time in the book as trembling, but not once was he described as a man of the law or confident in his own works. And in Hebrews 11, as we’ve seen all summer, the author points out the faith of the individuals. After today’s two verses by faith the Israelites cross the red sea. And following that by faith the walls of Jericho fell. There is no mention of the law. // Moses is described as a man of faith.

What was the purpose of the law then?

Without getting too deep into this topic today, the law was there to show our need for faith. In total Moses was given 613 laws from God covering every aspect of life from worship, to relationships, to diet and clothing, to sickness and health. In the book of Romans the reason for the law is described as follows: Rom 5:20 “Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” Rom 3:19-20 “Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” Rom 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. The law came to show clearly that none was able to live a righteous life by themselves, to stop any mouth that might think so. Even one disobedience led to expulsion of Adam and Eve from the garden. No one was able to fulfill each of those requirements on their own strengths.

And Moses himself knew this well. As we read in Exodus 2, he had killed a man before any of the major life events we know him for. He had acted on his own to save the Israelites before God had called him to do so. Although he had a heart of faith in God’s promises and was unafraid to suffer or lose the wealth of Egypt, he had acted impatiently, and, potentially for his own glory, he had acted to become the saviour of the people.

Let’s finish our discussion of Hebrews 11 before we come back to this. Let’s finish looking at the faith of Moses the author is pointing out, but know that although Moses was the man of the law, more so he was a man of faith. The question we’ll come back to later: if Moses himself was living by faith, not the law, what does that mean for the Hebrew church who are thinking to return to Judaism and the law?

Let's look at what Moses did.

2.                 By faith Moses left Egypt not being afraid.

Verse 27 picks up right where we left off last week, ““By faith [Moses] left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.” Let’s go to Exodus to see what happened.

Exodus 2:11-15 “One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. When he went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, “Why do you strike your companion?” He answered, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is known.” When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And he sat down by a well.”

But this verse raises a question the author of Hebrews says “he left Egypt, not being afraid”. It seems in Exodus that Moses is afraid of Pharaoh who plans to kill him. And so he flees to Midian, which is just to the East of Egypt’s borders. Is this verse really referring to Moses fleeing? And if so, if he wasn’t afraid, why did he flee?

Excellent questions! Again, I don’t want to spend a lot of time on this, but the answer that most people believe is that this verse is referring to the first time he leaves Egypt, not the second time with the Israelites. Some of the most convincing reasons for this is that Hebrews 11 generally follows chronological order of events (for moses he was born, he killed the Egyptian refusing to be son of Pharaoh’s daughter, he flees, he comes back, he keeps the Passover, they cross the sea, etc.). Secondly, the Greek used for ‘he left’ is singular. And more over later when they all leave they are being begged to leave by Pharaoh, they would have nothing to be afraid of or endure. For these reasons and others I have come to believe that it is more than likely referring to the first time that Moses left Egypt. So then, if it is referring to this event, how can we reconcile Exodus saying “then Moses was afraid … Moses fled” and Hebrews saying “he left Egypt, not being afraid”?

If we look to Stephen’s account in Acts 7, we find this additional information: Acts 7: 23-29 “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian. He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was giving them salvation by his hand, but they did not understand. And on the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why do you wrong each other?’ But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ At [the retort of the Hebrew man] Moses fled and became an exile in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.” (the rest on the screen too).

God had promised to free His people after 400 years and the time was drawing near. Moses had been blessed in his miraculous adoption and all the subsequent education and power he had received. Associating with the Hebrews and knowing that their freedom was coming soon he acted to free them unafraid of loss or suffering, but was rejected by his people. There’s nothing to indicate whether God had spoken to Moses before these events and told Moses that deliverance would come through him, and it sounds like Moses was acting presumptively, supposing that his people would realize what was happening. Moses had some faith. That is what we can discern from these verses. But that still doesn’t answer our question, and somehow makes it seem that he is scared of the Hebrews.

Hebrews 11:27 “By faith [Moses] left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.”

Interestingly there is a parallel that the author of Hebrews is making here by his choice of words. Just a few verses earlier verse 23 reads “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they were not afraid of the king's edict.” Just as his parents were not afraid of the pharaoh’s edict that all male Hebrew babies were to be killed, Moses was not afraid of the pharaoh’s anger. In both cases they were willing to disobey Pharaoh in order to submit to God.

Luke 12:4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do.” Concerning Kings who set themselves against God and His anointed Psa 2:4 “He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.” His power and might is so much more that in comparison Isa 40:23 “[he] brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness.”

It is by faith in God’s might and faithfulness to his promises that Moses’ parents and him act against the Pharaoh, and also that Moses leaves not afraid of Pharaoh, though he may be somewhat afraid. If Pharaoh really wanted to, it would have been well within his power to chase Moses and kill him. The end of Hebrews 11:27 gives further evidence for this idea that Moses is somewhat scared saying that Moses “endured as seeing him who is invisible”. By faith, Moses endured his fear of the king by setting his hope on God. And by faith trusting that God would save the Israelites in His own time even if it wasn’t by Moses’ hands.

As A.W.Pink puts it (An Exposition of Hebrews) “Faith and fear are opposites, and yet, strange to say, they are often found dwelling within the same breast; but where one is dominant the other is dormant. The constant attitude of the Christian should be, "Behold, God is my salvation: I will trust, and not be afraid" (Isa. 12:2).”

For the Hebrew church following a message to keep their eyes on God’s rewards and be unafraid of loss and suffering, this further encouragement of faith that overcomes fear would be a perfect message as they lose favour as Christians. No matter what the kings or rulers may be able to do, faith in God and His promises helps us overcome that fear. ““By faith [Moses] left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.” And in the same way, by faith we can endure as we keep our eyes set on Him who is greater than anything the world can throw at us. John 16:33 “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Psalm 16:8 “I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” God is far stronger than any ruler. When we place our faith in Him and His promises we will not be shaken.

3.                 By faith Moses kept the passover.

We see a portion of God’s strength as we read the rest of the exodus account. Acts 7:30-31 ““Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to [Moses] in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord:”  Exo 3:16-20 “Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go”

God will stretch out a mighty hand for the sake of His people. To summarize the next seven chapters of Exodus, Moses talks with God, he reluctantly goes to the Pharaoh asking for him to release his people. Pharaoh refuses making their work even harder, and then a cycle begins. Moses is told what will happen, he tells Pharaoh, Pharaoh says no, a plague comes on the egyptians, Pharaoh begs for the plague to end, the plague ends, and pharaoh’s heart becomes harder, refusing to let them go, so Moses goes to God. Rivers of blood, frogs covering the land, gnats everywhere, swarms of flies ruining the land, livestock dying*, boils and sores*, thunder and very heavy hail striking down man beast and plant*, dense swarms of locusts eating up all vegetation, and darkness for 3 days*. After all that Pharaoh still would not listen. His heart was hardened.

Exodus 9:15-16 “by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.”

God is far stronger than any ruler.

God’s strength is actually terrifying. Far scarier than any spider, snakes, darkness, or even death.

A passage we’ve already read said Luke 12:4-5 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!” Jesus here says ‘fear God’. In Exodus 3, the account of the burning bush, to shorten the passage I chose only some of the verses but verse 6 says “And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.” This fear is mentioned by Stephen in Acts 7:32. And the one mention of Moses in Hebrews that I skipped earlier is in verse 12:21 in reference to Exodus 19 at Mount Sinai before the 10 commandments were given Exo 19:16,18 “On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. … Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly.” Hebrews 12 refers to this day and says Heb12:21 “so terrifying was the sight that Moses said “I tremble with fear.””

Could you imagine being one of the Egyptians going through these 10 plagues? Day after day some terrible thing that had never been seen in Egypt. Things that the magicians could not do. Death of your animals and fields. Darkness, pitch black darkness for 3 days. Who was this mighty God who was afflicting them?

Could you imagine being one of the Israelites? Day after day some terrible thing that had never been seen in Egypt. Things that the magicians could not do. Death of animals and fields. Darkness, pitch black darkness for 3 days. Who was this mighty God who was afflicting the Egyptians? What was stopping Him from hurting the Israelites?

Now that we’ve caught up, Hebrews 11:28 continues “By faith [Moses] kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them.”

In Exodus we read Exodus 11:1,4-6 ““Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. … About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again.”

Exodus 12:3,6-7,11-13 “Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household. … the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

“Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. …(how to cook and eat it)… It is the Lord's Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.”

Hebrews 11:28 “By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them.”

It’s pretty interesting the way this plague is introduced. In comparison to the others, this one was wasn’t just threatened and then it happened leaving the Israelites safe as in the last 5 plagues. When livestock died, the Israelites’ livestock didn’t. When boils and sores came. The Israelites weren’t affected. When there was thunder and hail, just the region of Goshen where the Israelites were was safe. When there were 3 days of darkness, the Israelites had light. But this time the plague would affect them unless they killed a lamb. Why was their God now attacking them? “I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt”. That means everyone! But “when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you.”

Hebrews 11:1 “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

By faith Moses was assured that Exodus 6:5-8 “I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’” By faith Moses was assured of these promises they hoped for.

By faith Moses was convicted of the unseen reality. Never before had all the 1^st born children died at once. Never before were the Israelites to sacrifice a lamb for each house and put the blood on the doorpost that they would live. God’s great might and strength had been shown again and again in Egypt and now God's wrath was going to be shown through the tenth plague, the Destroyer of the firstborn.

God’s just wrath is upon all people ever since that original sin was passed down through our broken nature. People have been rejecting God, whether in small or big ways. Whether it is hardening your heart and enslaving others, or choosing selfishness and impatience over God’s plans, or lying, we have been rejecting God and His reign in our lives. This plague was not for the Egyptians alone. This one was going to come on both the Egyptians and the Israelites. A right fear of God’s awesome and terrifying power, worse than death, that was announced to be targeting all peoples. But God gave grace to the Israelites. // He made a way that they could be saved from His wrath. // If by faith they killed a spotless lamb and sprinkled the blood on the door post, they could trust God’s words and be saved.

Exo 12:27-29 “And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock.” So Pharaoh told the Israelites to leave Egypt.

By faith Moses had a right fear of God, and through faith trusted in God’s words, acted accordingly so that those things which had never been seen wouldn’t affect them. He trusted in God’s strength and power and ultimate control. He obeyed by faith. His faith was seen in action. By faith Moses and the Israelites were spared. By faith and God’s timing they were leaving Egypt.

4.                 Likewise, By faith

The reality is that God’s wrath is on all people, that we too by faith as Moses said in the wilderness must choose life or death. Rom 1:18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.” Luke 13:24-28““Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.”

And this wrath is diverted by faith alone, through the blood of the spotless lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Not through works or teaching, or through being in Jesus’ presence even. When John the Baptist first saw Jesus he said John 1:29 “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” John 3:14-20, 36 ““as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. … Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

By faith, Moses in the wilderness lifted up a bronze serpent that the wrath of God towards the sinful, rebellious Israelites through snakes might be stopped. By faith Moses kept the Passover, an annual reminder of how God alone provided freedom for His people through faith in the sacrificial lamb of God. By faith, Moses spoke of a coming prophet like himself, of the Christ. By faith, Moses was looking to the reward. By faith Heb 3:25 “Moses was faithful in the house of God as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later.”

If Moses himself was living by faith, not the law, what does that mean for the Hebrew church who are thinking to return to Judaism and the law? // Don’t go back.

The author of Hebrews again and again throughout the book of Hebrews speaks of how Christ is far superior to the shadows that were the temple rituals, and the priesthood, and the prophets. And how to reject him would result in sure destruction. Heb 2:1-3 “Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” Hebrews 10:11-12,14 “every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God … For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” Through faith in the sacrificial blood of the spotless lamb of God, Jesus Christ on the cross; through faith alone in God’s provision could they be saved, overcoming any fear of loss or of suffering, overcoming any fear of unjust rulers or punishment, overcoming any fear of the wrath of God. Not through the law, but through faith in Christ alone. This message through the life of Moses and especially through the Passover would have again and again pointed to Christ who said:

John 15:5-6 “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”

1 John 4:15-19 “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.”

If you have not confessed Jesus as the Son of God, as the propitiatory lamb of God who has taken God’s wrath from you upon Himself; If you do not know that love expressed so perfectly through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross even while we were God’s enemies, I pray that today God would be drawing you closer to that saving faith to the gracious gift of God, salvation apart from works. For it says

Rom 3:19-26 “Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Hebrews 10:19-23 “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” Hebrews 12:28-29 “let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.”

Let’s pray.