To Encourage You

Hebrews 11:24-25 “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.”

Are you a name-dropper, or know anyone else who is? It’s the condition of being quick to identify with someone else because it reflects well on us. Sometimes I’ve fallen into this temptation. When I played football in high school one of my teammates went on to play starting tailback for Penn State. In my college years, I played with an individual that went on to make a name for himself in the NFL. Over the years, as I’ve talked to people, I’ve been tempted and sometimes fallen to the temptation of bringing this subject up. Why? Maybe it was an attempt to make myself seem a little more important because I knew so and so – an attempt at self-promotion I guess you’d say – which isn’t something to really be proud of. It’s this example that I thought of as I read the passage above from Hebrews 11. It talks about Moses, a Hebrew that was raised by Pharaoh’s daughter. Unlike the other Hebrews who were slaves of Pharaoh, through the providence of God, Moses ended up in the royal family. Imagine the impact in that day of answering someone who asked you who you were with, “I’m the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” That would have put him in the place of the rich and famous. It was an identity that carried with it great power and prestige. But in the passage above it tells us that Moses “refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” He forfeited the fame and prestige that could have been his by identifying with the slaves of Egypt rather than with the royalty. And why did he do this? It was because of his faith. Moses had to choose his identity and because of his love for God and the people of God, he chose to be identified with them above all else.

Which raises a question. If you are a Christian, does anyone else know it? Like Moses, do you identify with the people of God above all else. Are you first and foremost known as a believer in Jesus Christ?

One of the tests of the strength of our faith is our answer to such questions. If we clam up when the opportunity arises to share our faith, if we are afraid to be known as a born-again believer in Jesus, why is that? Are we ashamed? If we are, perhaps the faith we say we have isn’t real. Indeed, Jesus said that “whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels” (Luke 9:26).

You will recall what happened to Peter the night before Jesus’ crucifixion when he was asked if he was one of Jesus’ disciples. He denied it three times. He feared the ramifications. He was afraid that suffering for the name of Christ would be the result. His faith, although real, was  very weak. It took the work of the Holy Spirit in his life to transform him into one who would boldly preach the gospel at Pentecost to over 3,000 people at once and eventually be crucified himself because he identified with Christ.

May the Lord give us the strength of faith to identify first and foremost with this One Who “is not ashamed to call (us) brothers” (Hebrews 2:11). The King of Kings has condescended to us to make a way for us to be a member of the family of God. Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter because he knew he had a much greater identity as a son of God. And it’s that kind of name-dropping that brings glory to God. It’s that kind of name-dropping that calls others to also become a part of His family, and that’s the most glorious identity of all.