Hebrews 11:23

Hebrews 11:23 says, By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment.  His parents were not afraid of the king's, or pharaoh's, commandment.  The life of Moses actually begins with the faith of his parents.  Moses was born under a death sentence.  This was not the death sentence that we could say we are all under due to sin, but an actual death sentence decreed by the Pharaoh.  Still, just as the parents of Moses were concerned with saving him from a physical death, we should be concerned with saving our children from a spiritual death.  We should make sure that they know about the sacrifice of Christ for their sins.  Moses was first hidden, and then he was placed in the household of the Pharaoh.  Verse twenty-four adds, By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter;  Moses could have continued in a position of privilege and authority, but by faith he chose to be identified with God and God's people.  All the honor and privilege in the world should never come between God and us, if we are truly followers of Christ.  We must act in faith, no matter what the consequences might be.  Verse twenty-five continues, Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;  Like Moses could have, we could choose to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, but hopefully we will do as Moses did and choose to endure affliction, if necessary, in order to remain true to God.  Verse twenty-six states, Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.  Since Christ had yet come into the world, this would mean that Moses had faith in the coming Messiah, the suffering Servant.  We today put our faith in the return of Christ, Who is the eternal King.  Verse twenty-seven adds, By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.  Moses stood up to the Pharaoh, not because of his own strength, but because of his faith in the invisible God.  Moses could not see God physically, but he could see the evidence of God's work in the world, and so can we.  Verse twenty-eight continues, Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.  Moses kept the Passover through faith, and not as some empty ritual.  Moses recognized the power of God when he worshipped Him.  When we worship God, we should always acknowledge that He is the power behind all creation, and we should never just go through the motions of worship.  Our relationship with God is real if we accept Christ as our Savior and Lord, so our worship should be real also.  Verse twenty-nine declares, By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.  Some people today, to downplay the power of God, say that the Israelites passed through more of a swampy area than a divided sea, but the Bible says they passed through the Red Sea on dry land.  Either this is true, or the Egyptian army drowned in a marsh.  Verse thirty adds, By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.  There are also people today who attempt to explain away this miracle by saying that the horns that were being played simply hit the right harmonic frequency to vibrate the walls apart.  I do not believe that we need to explain miracles, but we must simply accept them by faith in the sovereignty of God.