How God's People Overcome Oppression

Exodus 1:8-22

Last week: Intro to Exodus, the Israelites and God’s deliverance and faithfulness

(READ EXODUS 1:8-22)

This week’s subject deals with two truths, which must be studied carefully and intently, b/c we can (will) learn as believers

The world rejects God and persecutes believers:

About the assurance from God that He delivers His people when/if they hold on to their faith and persevere

In the first truth, we see this pictured in the situation the Israelites find themselves:

Under persecution and oppression, under the tyrannical rule of an evil Pharoah.

The lost their position, privilege, and comfort

(Why?) Ignorance, Fear of the people, and the Fear of loss

In the second truth, we see the truth that God delivers by means of,

The purpose and plan of God,

The faith of those who fear God, and

A mother who believed God

The contrast for us today is this:

The persecution of God’s people (believers) is inevitable, it’s a sure thing if a person sincerely seeks after the Lord

The persecution is a guarantee if we are bearing witness of Jesus Christ

The persecutions may and will vary—from mild to severe; following Jesus may bring

shunning or ridicule, or in some parts of the world,

physical enslavement, abuse, or even death for one’s faith

(In fact) The persecution of God’s people is such a sure/promised thing—if a believer says he/she’s never once been persecuted calls into question the very validity and substance their faith

The persecution of believers has the same tried and true solution…faith and trust in God and God alone

Remember three (3) things:

One-Egypt is a picture of worldliness---Pharoah is a picture of Satan

Two-God had delivered Israel to Egypt—He was multiplying them—in the midst of bondage God was moving—

Third-WHEN GOD MOVES IN THE LIVES OF BELIEVERS INDIVIDUALLY AND CORPORATELY PERSECUTION IN SURE TO HAPPEN

I. (v.8-10) The Causes of Oppression—why do others persecute and enslave others?

Exodus 1:8-10 “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we; come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and it happen, in the event of war, that they also join our enemies and fight against us, and so go up out of the land.””

(Three reasons)

Ignorance

Context and Culture

New king new nothing of Joseph, knew nothing about God---not the only true and living God

New king (or anyone) who enslaves and places people in bondage does not know God—not in a personal way

New king new nothing of history—or paid little attention to history:

To the contribution Joseph made to Egypt

saving them from famine

establishing them as a great nation

New king was ignorant of Joseph’s people—the Israelites; he was ignorant of

Who they were

Why and how they had gotten to Egypt

What they contributed to Egypt

The great value and dignity of human life-the sanctity of life

God Himself

(You and me)-As believers, we must know:

You cannot expect a lost person to act/behave/have understanding which a believer OUGHT to possess.

Human nature is to

Reject what is not understood and look down on what/who’s different

Reject Christians b/c the message we carry ultimately confronts others with their sin, and

A person (ignorant or not) who refuses/neglects/hides from this----their nature is to persecute/reject the message

What must a believer remember? The Words of Jesus

John 15:18 ““If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.”

We often look at the account of Exodus through a lens of, “look at what happened to them,” yet fail to realize that while it may not be as the Israelites situation, believers often find ourselves in situations of oppression and bondage

From the world

(Warren Wiersbe) “We live in a world that endorses sin, especially if you, “get away with it.” We will be persecuted for living differently than the world.” As we continue to stand and live for God’s truth and carry the message of redemption, we can experience this:

In the workplace: the supervisor/owner/boss who holds authority over believers and may mistreat them, or jeopardize their jobs

In social settings: the crowd/group who protests and lashes out at believers for standing up and supporting God’s truth

In government, as officials abuse power and restrict freedoms and in some cases, enslave believers

From others-

So-called friends

Co-workers

Sadly and even more devastating, persecution and oppression can come from inside our own home(s).

The spouse who misuses his/her authority and becomes un-supporting, distant, dominating, or threatening

The husband outside a relationship with Christ, or an active relationship with Christ, cannot and does not operate by any other means than worldliness in the marriage: for them,

Love is conditional

If you will, then I will

If you don’t, I will withhold

If you fail, I will bail

Roles are misaligned

The primary role of a husband is to lead his wife to sanctification, so she’s presented as a beautiful bride for Christ (without spot or blemish)

Ephesians 5:27 “that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”

To love her as Christ loved the church

Ephesians 5:25 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,”

To love her and care for her as the weaker vessel—but this does not mean she is less equal!

1 Peter 3:7 “Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.”

Values are misplaced

When a husband places more value on the physical/material needs for himself or even for his family, his family will suffer

While it is biblical that a husband works to support, protect, and provide for his family—if a husband places more value on financial, societal, or material security—he is neglecting the spiritual security his family desperately needs from him

This places his family (his spouse and children) in bondage; b/c as the leader of the home, in pursuing and valuing things more than Christ, he is leading his family further from spiritual maturity—and this always leads to bondage (loneliness, regret, anger, bitterness, feelings of not being valued)

The wife outside a relationship with Christ, or an active relationship with Christ, cannot and does not operate by any other means than worldliness in the marriage:

Love is conditional

If you don’t, I will not

If you will, than I will

If you fail, I will bail

Roles are misaligned

The primary role of wife is described best in God’s creation of Eve as Adam’s help-meet (help-mate), to be Biblically submissive to her husband in obedience to the Lord

To love and support her husband—to come alongside and be his partner

To see and love her husband as the spiritual leader of the home

Values are misplaced

This places the family (her spouse and children) in bondage; in bondage to a set of expectations only Christ can fulfill for her

The parents, outside a relationship with Christ, or an active relationship with Christ, will raise their kids alongside the world

We must see the point--

Liberty is a foreign concept to those surrendered to worldliness/bondage to sin

1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

Liberty was a foreign concept to Pharoah—b/c he was ignorant

Liberty is foreign to those who persecute believers today—b/c they are ignorant when it comes to the truth of Jesus Christ

Fear of people

Context and Culture

The new king feared the people were threat to his nation and their way of life

The new king feared numbers and the strength of the Israelites

Israel’s population was expanding rapidly

Israel was becoming a might force—just b/c of their sheer numbers

The Israelites were different from the Egyptians—in appearance, lifestyle, and religion

The new king feared the Israelites would join with some enemy force and overtake/attack them

The enslavement of Israel was based off of ignorance, fear (of people), and fear (of loss)

You and me—The world and others (lost) persecute and oppress b/c they fear the believer will threaten their way of life (the truth is, it’s the truth of God’s Word which threatens their way of life—God’s Word is offensive to them, b/c instead of treating their sin as the world does—acceptance, God’s Word treats their sin for what it really us—an offense against God-and labels/calls them out for what they really are—sinners

Because of this, the world, others, the lost---believe they must stop and silence believers. Think about what we stand for:

Believers teach and preach love—just not the love the world defines

Believers teach and preach righteousness; that God through His Word commands

Purity

Modesty in dress and language

Sexual morality (within the confines of marriage, which one man and one woman—monogamy and the one flesh)

Clean speech/No cursing

Controlled thoughts

Disciplined living/honesty

Believers teach and preach unselfishness and sacrificial living/giving (the doctrine of self-denial)

Fear of loss

Context and Culture

The king feared if Israel might leave the land of Egypt—and their labor and economic power would be lost (this would be a severe blow to Egypt’s culture and society).

You and me

The doctrine of self-denial goes against the doctrine of the worl

II. (v.11-14) The First Oppression—enslavement; and seeing how it was overcome (God’s purpose and promise)

Exodus 1:11-14 “Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were in dread of the children of Israel. So the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor. And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage—in mortar, in brick, and in all manner of service in the field. All their service in which they made them serve was with rigor.”

The persecution against Israel was brutal; slave-masters were set over them, who forced them (physically) to labor for Egypt. Egypt’s intentions were to:

Stop Israel from population growth

Our enemy (Satan) would love nothing more than to see believers cease to multiply; and he’s at work to that end

seeing churches die

seeing churches divided

seeing believers distracted/divided/in bondage

Break the spirits of Israel and keep them from bearing children

Our enemy today wants nothing more than to see believer’s spirit’s broken

Reminding them of their past

To use our past against us

In seeing us succumb to trials/temptations

Planting seeds of doubt and mis-trust

Planting seeds of distraction (ScrewTape Letters)

Cause many of them to die from the enslavement and hard labor

The point to see:

(Context and culture)

The attempt was deliberate and it the method was vicious and cruel—it was that of enslavement, of being beaten down, abused, and slowly killed off until Israel was literally, “beaten into submission.”

Israel’s freedom wasn’t just restricted—it was lost. They were enslaved and forced to work for a cruel, oppressive nation (Egypt)

(You and me)

This is (was) you and me before our deliverance—sin is vicious and cruel. It is enslavement—it beats us down, abuses us, and the enemy’s desire is to see us live in submission and enslaved to it, until we are killed off

Sin doesn’t just restrict our freedom, our freedom is lost (we are lost). Paul explains this well, about who we were (or are depending) in sin:

Ephesians 2:1-3 “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”

Israel overcame the persecution. How?

(Context and Culture)

Israel multiplied and continued to bear children; the more they were persecuted, the more they grew.

How? God—God’s great promise to send the promised seed through Israel would be carried out and fulfilled by Himself

No Pharoah, no ruler of earth, no man, or created being can or will ever thwart the plan and purpose of God

So what did God do? He gave the people of Israel strength to conceive and bear children

(You and me)-How do we overcome this persecution of sin and it’s enslavement? God and God alone

God’s great promise to deliver man from their sins, which was first promised in the garden

Was realized in the Song of Mary in Luke 1:54 “He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy,”

Was put on display on Calvary’s cross in the death of His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins

Was finalized and sealed in the resurrection of Jesus Christ

God’s great promise of deliverance was not to be thwarted by the enemy—the Bible even says the enemy and those who serve him had no clue

1 Corinthians 2:6-8 “However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

The reaction of the enemy (Egypt)

(Context and Culture)

Egypt increased it’s ruthless labor upon the people; made life even harder

Israel was forced to make brick and mortar to build whole cities for the Egyptian government

Israel was forced to farm, plant, tend, and harvest new fields

“Rigor” or “ruthless” (Hebrew)—means a fierce, back-breaking, and crushing labor; labor that literally breaks the body down

Egypt was determined to control and keep Israel from growing and multiplying, so they launched whatever evil they could come up with

Going back to last week, be reminded of this: God is faithful to His nature—His character-to Himself. He fulfills what He promises, regardless, here within the nation of Israel:

God poured His grace upon Israel—keeping them strengthened so that He caused a great nation to be born of the seed of Abraham

(You and me)

The enemy will and does stop at nothing to enslave people, even believers, so they cannot follow Christ and follow after His will

He will stop at nothing to keep lost people from grace

He will stop at nothing to keep the believer stuck in religion, his/her past, or distracted by the things of this world

But know this about how we overcome and about the enemy

How we overcome

Revelation 12:10-11 “Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.”

We overcome the enemy by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ

We overcome the enemy by our testimony (living out our faith)

We overcome the enemy by unwavering devotion to God

About the enemy-The enemy knows his time is done; he knows his days are numbered

(Revelation 12:12 “Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”” )

III.(v.15-21) The Second Oppression—a plot of deception; seeing how it was overcome by those (midwives) who feared God more than man

Exodus 1:15-21 “Then the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of one was Shiphrah and the name of the other Puah; and he said, “When you do the duties of a midwife for the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstools, if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live.” But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the male children alive. So the king of Egypt called for the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this thing, and saved the male children alive?” And the midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth before the midwives come to them.” Therefore God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and grew very mighty. And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided households for them.”

(Yes we will be speaking on the sanctity of life)

The king’s plot

Ordering two midwives (supervisory midwives) to actually see that all baby boys were killed at birth—while still in the delivery stool—to kill them without the mothers’ knowledge

(Midwife #1) Shiphrah—means beauty

(Midwife #2) Puah—means splendor

Scholars believe these two midwives were Egyptians who came to faith in Yahweh and were included in Israel

The plot was to deceive the new mothers that there was some complication arose which resulted in their death

How was the deceptive plot overcome?

(Context and culture)

The fear of God

The midwives simply feared (reverence and awe) God more than they feared the king

(You and me)-We must realize as believers, when faced with opposition, oppression, and/or persecution, we live out our days for an audience of ONE; because that One is who’s image we are created in and at the end of the day—He’s the one who defines you—He’s the one who holds us together and walks us through all the circumstances of life. He’s the one Who’s the Giver of life

Romans 8:31 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

Romans 8:34 “Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.”

Hebrews 11:24-27 “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.”

The king’s response—furious anger

(Context and culture)

The king called and questioned the midwives

The answer of the midwives was not direct—but full of truth

“Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth before the midwives come to them.”

The response of Pharoah was he accepted it—b/c he did not strike out at the midwives/nor imprisoned/nor executed—they were free to continue on

God’s response

(Context and culture)

God blessed the midwives and continued to bless Israel (v.20-21)

God continued to multiply the people (v.20)

God gave the midwives families of their own (v.21)

(You and me)—The testimony of these women is that they feared God more than they feared man

Who do you (we) fear most, man or God?

When facing ridicule, mocks, accuses, threatens, and imprisons/attacks us…do we fear the world so much we:

give in and go along?

deny Christ?

become discouraged and defeated and give up?

Again, who do you (we) fear most, man or God? Be mindful of Scripture

Matthew 10:28 “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

2 Thessalonians 1:6-9 “since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,”

Remember God gives believers rest now and eternally and vengeance on those who persecute believers and reject Him

Hebrews 10:30-31 “For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

1 Peter 1:17 “And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;”

Isaiah 51:12 ““I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid Of a man who will die, And of the son of a man who will be made like grass?”

IV.(v..22) The Third Oppression—a murderous law; seeing how it was overcome by a mother who believed God over man (world)

Exodus 1:22 “So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “Every son who is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.””

(Context and culture)

(Context and culture)

Pharaoh’s decree:

Pharoah was furious—every evil he could conceive he launched. Yet, any evil plot he had, was overcome

Pharoah had one option left: the law of the land and he passed a law of murder:

All baby boys born in Israel were to be drowned—at the hands of all the Egyptians—Pharoah actually ordered his own people to drown baby boys born of Israelite women—in the Nile River

How was Pharaoh’s decree/law overcome?

A courageous mother who believed God—the mother of Moses herself

The account of what she did—is of such importance—a whole study is necessary to cover her great faith (Next week—so come back)

The point to see?

The evil and ferocious persecution against God’s people launched by Pharaoh

Enslavement under the worst possible conditions

Plot of murder and feticide

The evil and ferocious persecution was overcome by God

God touched the heart of a believer—who refused to obey the law of Pharaoh

Moses’ mother refused to obey Pharaoh and kill her baby boy

Moses’ mother stood her ground

Maybe against other woman

Maybe against well-intentioned advice of friends who told her just to follow the world/Pharaoh, to avoid persecution or possible execution

Setting out to save her newborn son—a son who was to become the great deliverer of Israel

(QUESTION)—Do you think Mary may have faced opposition—given her situation?

Her faith to believe and trust in God—ushered in the Son of God

(You and me)

God meets the needs of His people

Just as He raised up the mother of Moses, who would bring deliverance to the nation of Israel,

He met man’s deepest need (of grace and of salvation) in sending us His Son

Matthew 1:21 “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.””

John 3:17 “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”

Romans 3:25 “whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,”

“Who needs to live?”

Each generation, every people group is faced with this question

It’s a question Pharaoh faced and heartbreakingly answered b/c of economic/political factors—believing Hebrew babies presented a threat to his rule/lifestyle/way of life of Egypt—He made a devilish edict

Each generation, every people group is plagued with the same, similar, poisonous spirit of murder

Each generation makes the value of life relative; a generation of self-centered people place little or no value on

The unwanted or unplanned pregnancy

The handicapped child

The sick who require extensive/expensive care

The older people who can no longer contribute economically

The people who proclaim the true teachings of Jesus Christ and His Word

The sanctity of life—this—the sanctity of life is under lethal attack:

The truth of God’s Word is shoved aside for public opinion

The truth of being created fearfully and wonderfully in God’s image has been exchanged for a lie that says we have the right and authority to possess the keys to life and death

We must hold to what Scripture teaches: b/c God’s Word which defines and places a person’s real identity and value and how we are to guard/protect the sanctity of life:

Joshua 1:7 “Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.”

Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”

Genesis 5:1 “This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.”

Job 31:15 “Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?”

Psalm 119:73 “Your hands have made me and fashioned me; Give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.”

Psalm 139:13-18 “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You.”

Jeremiah 1:4-5 “Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.””

1 Corinthians 6:20 “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

(WORSHIP TEAM)

To the unbeliever here or listening on line today

The Bible’s language is clear and strong about what what enslaves you the most; and what enslaves you the most is what can cost you the most. What enslaves people the most is sin. It’s master is the devil—the evil one—the father of lies

And like Pharaoh (who is a picture of Satan), Satan will stop at nothing to see you chained, bound, and in bondage to sin. He will use whatever and whoever to keep your mind distracted and your heart diverted from realizing the truth:

In sin, you walk intentionally,

“…according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”

In sin, you walk intentionally in what you obey

Romans 6:16 “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?”

But there is a way out: God has sent you His messenger and His deliverer—Jesus Christ to take you out of bondage and enslavement and into liberty

To the believer here today:

Persecution is to be expected if you belong to God—if you are one of His children

It was told to Abram in Genesis

Genesis 15:13 “Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years.”

It was experienced by Shadrach, Meschach, and Abed-Nego:

Daniel 3:22-23 “Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.”

It was experienced mightily by Job

Just read the majority of the book itself

It was/is promised to believers today

James 1:2-3 “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.”

1 Peter 4:12 “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you;”

2 Timothy 3:12 “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”

But as God’s promise to Abraham was assured to Jacob in Genesis 46:3 (“So He said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there,”) and as God delivered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego from the fire and preserved Daniel from the teeth of lions, and as God delivered back to Job all he lost and then some......believers today have a promise of blessing and assurance

The blessing: the kingdom of heaven

Matthew 5:10-12 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

The assurance:

Romans 8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”