Forty years have now passed since Moses was born. The approximate year would have been 1485 B.C., during the reign of Hatshepsut (pronounced haat-shuhp-soot). By this time, Moses was no longer a hidden child in a basket-he was a man fully trained in the courts of Egypt.
He had received the finest education available. Acts 7:22 tells us he was “learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.” He would have studied language, leadership, military strategy, religion, law, and administration. It is reasonable to assume he spoke both Egyptian and Hebrew fluently-comfortable in the palace and aware of his people’s heritage.
Though he was raised in Pharaoh’s household and identified publicly as an Egyptian, he knew he was a Hebrew. His upbringing shaped his skills, but it did not erase his identity. He lived in two worlds-trained as royalty, yet born among slaves.
The same is true for the believer today. We live in the world, but we are not of the world (John 17:14-16). Like Moses, we may be educated in it, work within it, and function around its systems-but our identity is not defined by it.
Living in the world should never erase who we are in Christ. Our environment may influence our experience, but it must not redefine our allegiance. Moses wore Egyptian garments, learned Egyptian wisdom, and lived in an Egyptian palace-yet he knew he belonged to God’s covenant people.
So it is with us. We are called to be salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16). Salt preserves and influences. Light exposes and guides. We are not commanded to withdraw from the world, but to shine within it. The believer’s challenge is not proximity to the world-it is conformity to it.
Our address may be earthly, but our citizenship is heavenly (Philippians 3:20).
Forty years have now passed since Moses was born. The approximate year would have been 1485 B.C., during the reign of Hatshepsut (pronounced haat-shuhp-soot). By this time, Moses was no longer a hidden child in a basket-he was a man fully trained in the courts of Egypt.
He had received the finest education available. Acts 7:22 tells us he was “learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.” He would have studied language, leadership, military strategy, religion, law, and administration. It is reasonable to assume he spoke both Egyptian and Hebrew fluently-comfortable in the palace and aware of his people’s heritage.
Though he was raised in Pharaoh’s household and identified publicly as an Egyptian, he knew he was a Hebrew. His upbringing shaped his skills, but it did not erase his identity. He lived in two worlds-trained as royalty, yet born among slaves.
The same is true for the believer today. We live in the world, but we are not of the world (John 17:14-16). Like Moses, we may be educated in it, work within it, and function around its systems-but our identity is not defined by it.
Living in the world should never erase who we are in Christ. Our environment may influence our experience, but it must not redefine our allegiance. Moses wore Egyptian garments, learned Egyptian wisdom, and lived in an Egyptian palace-yet he knew he belonged to God’s covenant people.
So it is with us. We are called to be salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16). Salt preserves and influences. Light exposes and guides. We are not commanded to withdraw from the world, but to shine within it. The believer’s challenge is not proximity to the world-it is conformity to it.
Our address may be earthly, but our citizenship is heavenly (Philippians 3:20).