Exodus 1:22-29 – The Good Mother – Bible study

Exodus 1:22-29 The Good Mother What does it take to be a good mother? Was she even a good person? Lets consider Jochebed. Her name is not listed in this text. She is simply portrayed as Moses mother. We get her name from \#Ex 6:30\, where Moses genealogy is given. Lets consider a couple of thoughts about Jochebed. I. Jochebed had principals. A. Principals are values, rules, standards that a person uses to govern their lives. This was early in mans existence, before God had given the law. Many simply did that which was right in their own eyes, but not Jochebed. B. Jochebed was selfless. She was willing to die for what she thought was right. 1. The Bible does not tell us, but I believe the risk of death was real for Jochebed. a. Pharaoh had parents throwing their children into the Nile River \#Ex 1:22\. (1) The Bible does not say soldiers came and threw the babies into the river. It says the parents were commanded to do it. (2) Parents would not do that without an over-riding reason. b. My own theory is that Pharaoh not only threatened the parents but probably any other siblings. c. If I am correct, Jochebed was risking her life and the entire family was risking theirs. 2. Some things are worth the risk of death. a. What things? (1) Family is. I dont know my heart but I believe that I would give my life for my family. (2) The Savior is. (3) Some countries are. I believe if we could restore America to God, it would be. (4) Some principals are worth dying for. Freedom and justice are principals worth dying for. (5) If you have a big enough heart, even a stranger is worth dying for. Ro 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. b. Which of these things, if any, you would die for, you must decide; however, it is obvious that Jochebed had made her choice. She was willing to risk her life and the lives of her family for this newborn baby. 3. I noticed that Jochebeds enemy was her own government. a. Pharaoh was the ruler, the king, the potentate. (1) Pharaoh gave an order to cast the male babies into the river. Jochebed refused. (2) Did God want her to cast her son into the Nile? No. (3) Why not? Arent we supposed to obey the authority over us? (4) Not when the authority commands us to violate one of Gods commandments. b. Every human being has an obligation to obey God over men. \#Acts 5:29\. (1) This obligation needs to be understood as our government continues to make into law commands which are in direct opposition to God. (2) In fact, it was that very obligation which justified existence. (a) Those who decided to break away from Britain, believed that when a government refuses to care for the best interests of its subjects and further, violates the subjects God- given rights, that those subjects have a duty to God to overthrow that government. (b) That does not mean that Christians or any citizen can be belligerent or defiant of government. (c) God calls us to be respectful of our government, to obey it unless it commands us to disobey God, and to submit to it. C. Jochebed had courage. 1. What is courage? a. Some think it is the lack of fear, but that is not it. b. Courage is determination to do what is right regardless of the outcome. 2. Jochebed had the determination to do what was right regardless of the outcome. a. Some seem to think that Christians in the Bible knew what the outcome of their actions would be. b. Maybe God promised them they would be safe. Maybe they had a vision. 3. There is no reason to think that. a. Jochebed did not know if Moses would live or not. (1) The basket could have sunk. (2) A crocodile could have swallowed the basket and the baby. (3) Someone could have found the basket and just dumped it. b. She did not know that Pharaohs daughter would find the basket. c. She did not know that Miriam would make the suggestion she made to the princess. d. She did not know that she would be her own babys nurse. 4. The only thing that we know for certain was that Jochebed knew that if Moses was cast into the river, he would die. 5. A thought. a. You dont have to know how things are going to end to refuse to do wrong. b. You only have to know what is right to refuse to do what is wrong. (1) Christian, you cannot let uncertainty stop you from refusing wrong and attempting right. (2) I think one of the reasons people love the story of David and Goliath is because David has no assurances of what was going to happen. He just knew what he was not going to let happen. He was not going to let some Philistine bad-mouth his God. Do you remember the question David asked? "Is there not a cause." If there is a cause, stand up! Enter the battle. Fight the good fight. Dont worry about what happens. Be courageous. (3) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did not know how things would turn out. They said as much. "If it be so, our God is able to save us. But if not, we will not serve thy gods." \#Dan 3:16-17\ 6. Instead of looking for assurances which can never be given, look for courage to do what is right whatever the outcome. D. Jochebed had faith. 1. At this point, I am not going to attempt to make you think that Jochebed had a great faith in God, for the Bible does not say that. a. The remainder of Moses story tells me that she will have a great faith in GodMoses will display great faith in God when he renounces the pleasures of Egypt to be identified with the people of God. b. But right now, we have no idea how much faith she has. 2. But I do know that she had some faith in God. How much, the Bible does not say, but she had to have some. 3. The Bible tells us what the least amount of faith you can have is. Heb 11:6 he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. 4. For Jochebed to risk the family that she had, she must have believed that God was and that He rewards those who seek Him. a. That is the bear minimum of faith one can have to have any relationship with God. b. It is not muchno more than the size of a grain of a mustard seed, but Jochebed believed that God was and that He would do something good for her and her son or else she would have been a fool to risk the rest of the family. c. I dont think this woman was a fool. E. So here are three principals that Jochebed had. 1. But what of our question? Is Jochebed a good mother? 2. Having these principals does not prove that Jochebed is a good mother. a. It proves that she was a good person. b. A principled person is a good person but that does not necessarily mean he or she will be a good parent. c. What makes a good parent? Passing these kinds of principals to your children. d. The difference between a good person and a good parent is that the good parent is successful in building into the lives of their children godly principals. e. The goal of parenthood (1) is not just to produce a child, (2) not to get that child to adulthood, (3) not even to produce a working, married, and happy child. (4) Our goal has a parent is to get our children to worship Jesus, to think like Jesus, to live like Jesus, and to love Jesus. II. In that case, Jochebed was a very good parent. A. Moses was not a perfect man, but he was a principled man who understood the importance of work, marriage, being a good father, duty, faithfulness, and more. B. But the thing his parents taught him best was the importance of serving Godeven if it cost him his place in the palace! Heb 11:25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; 27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible. C. Moses chose to identify himself with God and Gods people instead of enjoying the comforts and pleasures of the world. 1. Maybe it is difficult for us to understand what Moses had. 2. He was the rock star of his generation! Whatever he wanted, he could have. 3. Moses left the mansions, the money, and many pleasures to join with the slaves of the land. 4. But it was not just the people he joined. He saw the One who was invisible! 5. In fact, \#Acts 7:25\ says that, at the time, Moses thought the people understood that he was to deliver them. Acts 7:25 For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not. D. Where did Moses learn those things? He was raised by Egyptians, even worseworldly, wealthy, powerful Egyptians. 1. It takes some kind of mothering skills for your children to be raised in the den of iniquity but still to love God and want to serve Him. 2. That was what Jochebed did. She was a good mother! 3. Wouldnt you like to be a good parent? a good mother? a good father? III. What does it take to pass Gods principals to your children? A. You have to have them. 1. You must be saved. 2. You must be right with God. 3. You must be serving God. B. If you are not, start today. 1. If you started when your children were young or even before, that is wonderful! 2. However, if you did not, dont let that keep you from getting after it today. 3. There are advances and disadvantages to both. a. The advantage to having always tried to live for Jesus is that is the only culture they knew. b. The disadvantageand we who have raised our children right do see this as a disadvantageis our children know all the right answers without necessarily knowing the Lord. c. The advantage to getting right with God and starting to serve Him with your children watching is that they get to see the power of God change your life right before their eyes. d. The disadvantage is that they may have so much of the world in them that they prefer the world to God. 4. What every parent needs to understand is that God is the One who convicts, saves, and changes! a. If He can do those things for you, He can certainly do them for your children. b. So you just start living for Jesus today!