The first chapter of Exodus seems so far away. The world was in chaos. Spiritual leadership had been drowned out by the plethora of lifeless gods. Egypt was both a powerful economy and a hedonistic civilization. The leaders of Egypt had forgotten the blessing of Joseph and were now firmly set against anything that might include Yahweh. The people of God had been marginalized and then enslaved. There was all-out oppression toward anyone who might confess their beliefs in the God of Israel. In light of all of it, I suppose that maybe the commencement of Exodus is not so far removed from us.
The second chapter, however, features the heart of Jochebed, the mother of Moses. If for a moment, I wish we could forget about the Red Sea-parting Moses or the Rock-striking Moses. He was none of those things when Jochebed decided to save him. He was a baby with an unknown future, born into a whirlwind of confusion and death. The Nile had already boasted of a human graveyard to thousands. Pharaoh was moved by fear and hate, resulting in the murder of the Hebrew male offspring. It was a dangerous time to have a son.
Nevertheless, Jochebed decided that Moses was worth the cost of her own life, even though she had no knowledge of his future. Moses would become Israel’s greatest leader. He would communicate with God in a way unknown to common man. Even God would one day say, “I speak to others in visions, but to Moses I speak face to face.” Yet Jochebed knew none of it. She wasn’t saving the future leader of Israel. She was just saving his potential. She wasn’t preserving a prophet; she was preserving the possibility of the anointing.
We cannot always predict what the future may hold, but we can preserve the potential. The Church is the mother of us all and it is incumbent upon us to protect the future of each other. God is not finished with us yet and that is enough for each of us to show mercy and grace upon one another. Our potential is the thing held in the balance. The possibility of a great revival; tangible miracles; blessings of every kind are all held in that realm of potential.
The heart of a mother knows what I speak of when I say, “We must Protect the Promise.” Who knows that what we build through mercy, grace, kindness, and love might actually save the one who will lead us into a mighty promise land.
Pastor Jeffrey Harpole