The famine was not only in Egypt; it had also devastated the surrounding countries. And when Joseph moved his father’s family to Egypt so they wouldn’t starve, the number of his family was seventy strong. But through the years in Egypt, God blessed this family. They were fruitful and multiplied into a massive nation. They grew so strong that the Egyptians were afraid they might turn against them, so the Egyptians forced the Israelites into slavery. The slaves were worked to the bone, yet their numbers continued to grow. Finally, Pharoah had had enough. He was afraid that some Israelite would someday overtake him and become king of Egypt. He couldn’t have that, so he devised a plan to depopulate the nation of Israel.
Pharoah advised the Hebrew midwives to kill all the baby boys born to the Israelites. Because the midwives feared God more than they feared Pharoah, they disobeyed his order. These brave women deliberately saved the lives of many newborn boy babies. They decided they would not lay a hand on the infants. By staying true to their faith in God, these women prevented a genocide ordered by the king of Egypt. They didn’t set out to be courageous or to be heroes. They acted on their knowledge that God was the giver of life. And only he could take life. It wasn’t theirs to end the life of a precious human, so they allowed all the baby boys to live.
Pharoah was furious when we learned his order had been ignored. He called the midwives to appear before him in court to answer his charges. God used the midwives in a powerful way to enable the already growing nation to grow even more. As these lowly midwives were faithful to their God, so he too was faithful to them and his chosen nation.
You can read the story of the midwives in Exodus 1.
Just as the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, both now and forever. Psalms 125:2
The event had quickly spiraled out of control. Stephen was performing miracles and changing people’s lives, and then he found himself being challenged to a debate by a group of men from a local synagogue. He wasn’t the one who started the debate. The men were Jewish slaves who had been freed by Rome and then formed their own synagogue. Who knows what religious ideologies they taught their followers. What we know is that none of them could hold an argument against Stephen’s wisdom and clarity. And so they persuaded others to spread lies about Stephen. So, of course, Stephen was arrested and brought before the high court.
Stephen responded boldly and clearly to the court officials as they laid out charges against him. He shared the history of the Israelite nation. He didn’t defend himself; he instead shared how God had dealt with the Jewish nation. And he accused the Jewish leaders of deliberately disobeying God’s laws. As Stephen spoke, he suddenly saw himself on the receiving end of a death sentence. And he was totally innocent. But he didn’t waver. Stephen feared God more than he feared man, so he courageously preached to all in attendance. He may have felt a deep kinship with his Savior as he faced an angry mob, but it didn’t deter him or cause him to soften his message.
I’m sure Stephen wondered how the tide had turned so quickly. One minute he was helping the community. And suddenly, he was in the fight for his life. And it didn’t end well for him. We don’t know if this was Stephen’s first brush with the law, but it was his last. He looked death squarely in the face and asked for God’s mercy on his killers.
You can read Stephen’s story in Acts 6.
The Lord is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? Psalms 27:1
You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Psalms 139:5
Those rebelling against God will find fault with anything that reminds them of their waywardness. They will rail against believers who are steadfast in their faith. They will mock those who stand for truth and demand a substantial cost to the believers. Rebels will fight for a cause that perhaps they haven’t even identified. They’re so blinded to the truth that they may not even recognize that they’re fighting against God. They fight for evil and rebel against anything that points out their sinful ways. And so, those who are standing strong in their faith take the brunt of their evil acts and words. Those standing firm in the foundation of biblical teaching are struck with the loss of livelihoods, unending frivolous lawsuits, threats to their safety and much more. Those courageous believers know that when all is at stake in this world, their stake in eternity is firmly planted and won’t be moved.
The Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard. Isaiah 52:12
The Hebrew midwives were blessed with their own families because of their faithfulness to God. Stephen was stoned the very day he was charged with false crimes. We have no clue what type of opposition we might face when we stand for biblical beliefs, but that doesn’t mean we bow to the pressures of our accusers. We must always put our fear of God before our fear of men.
I pray that if I’m ever in the situation where my safety or stability is challenged, that I too will stand strong in my biblical faith. I pray that all believers will do the same. When we are in the fight to live out our faith freely, we must stand strong. When we are in the fight to openly speak of biblical truths, we must speak boldly. God is with us.
God go before you to lead you, God go behind you to protect you, God go beneath you to support you, God go beside you to befriend you. Do not be afraid. May the blessing of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit be upon you. Do not be afraid. Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. Amen
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Mercy for the Day 