Leading The Way

Guest (Male): I think if Moses lived in our day, he would have been called crazy, or he would be called nuts, or all of the above. To turn his back on an unprecedented prestige by any standards—why? For something better? No, so that he may suffer with a bunch of slaves. That was considered foolishness back then; it's considered foolishness today.

Because here is what we probably would have advised Moses. We would have said, "Now, Moses, just play it safe until you get to the throne of Egypt." Because, Moses, imagine what you can do, how much you can accomplish with that power. Wow, don't waste this golden opportunity of becoming rich and famous.

As you listen to this episode of Leading the Way, you'll get to know Moses through the insightful teaching of Dr. Michael Youssef. Now, if you attended vacation Bible school when you were a kid, you might be familiar with the life of Moses. But the depth of Moses' character goes way beyond a burning bush or plagues in Egypt, or even the Ten Commandments.

Moses is a real man following a real God by faith through real life. Let's listen now as Dr. Youssef continues the series called "They Were Just Like Us," looking at the faith-life of Moses, someone who was indeed just like us. Let's listen together as Dr. Michael Youssef begins.

Dr. Michael Youssef: Anyone who lived outside of the United States or even outside the West in general can testify to the fact—people such as myself—we can testify to the fact that there are a whole lot of choices in the West that you would not get in probably 90% of the world. I mean, choices about everything. Often when we have so many choices, it can be confusing.

There is an old story that I read this week about how not only confusing but sometimes it can be irritating when you have so many choices. Let me read to you part of that dialogue. It's a dialogue between a former Prime Minister of England by the name of Asquith and a butler in the Rothschild mansion where, back in the 19th century, he was invited to come and spend a few days.

One afternoon, the butler was serving Prime Minister Asquith, and here's how the dialogue went. The butler asked, "Tea, coffee, or a piece of fruit, sir?" He said, "Tea, please." He said, "China, India, or Ceylon, sir?" He said, "China." "Lemon, milk, or cream, sir?" He said, "Milk, please." He said, "Jersey, Hereford, or Shorthorn, sir?" He said, "Just the milk that comes out of the cow."

The reason some young people get into trouble is because they have never been trained to choose well. You see, all of life—all of life—is made up of a series of choices. You and I are choosing all day long. Learning to choose wisely, and learning to choose that which is good, learning to choose obedience to God, learning to choose that which is for our ultimate blessings, learning to choose that which is not fading and passing, learning to choose that which is lasting and everlasting, can take time and sometimes a few stumbles along the way.

Why is choosing wisely so important? Why is it so important for anybody at any age, for all of us? Listen carefully. Because our choices determine the quality of life. Our choices determine the circumstances. Because our choices can even determine our success or failure in life. Because our choices can mean either we are going to live a life of contentment or we are going to live a life of misery.

In fact, contentment itself is a choice. Obedience to Christ is a choice. We choose whether we are going to walk by faith or not. We choose whether we are going to spend time with God or not. We choose whether we are going to be in prayer or not. We choose whether we feed upon the Word of God or not. We choose whether we are going to witness to Christ in our life, in our surroundings, in our neighborhoods, in our workplaces or not. We choose whether we live for Christ or live for self. We choose whether we place God first and foremost in our lives or somewhere down near the bottom.

Life is a series of choices. In fact, I remember reading some time ago when John F. Kennedy was running for president, and a reporter kept harassing him and said, "Why do you choose to run for president?" Very simply, he said, "Because that's where the power is. That's where the power is."

Today, the scripture tells us about a man who did not run for office. He did not go after power, but power came to him. He had all the power at his disposal. He had unprecedented prestige. He had vast possessions. And yet, he deliberately and decisively turned his back on all the power, and all of the prestige, and all of the wealth of Egypt.

Turn with me, please, to Hebrews 11:25. By faith, Moses chose—there's that word again—chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short period of time. I think if Moses lived in our day, I am absolutely convinced he would have been called a fool. He would have been called eccentric. He would have been called crazy, or he would be called nuts, or all of the above.

For to turn his back on untold wealth, to turn his back on an unprecedented prestige by any standards—why? For something better? No, so that he may suffer with a bunch of slaves. That is considered foolishness back then; it's considered foolishness today. Because here's what our logic, here's what we would have probably thought, and here's what we probably would have advised Moses. We would have said, "Now, Moses, just play it safe until you get to the throne of Egypt."

When your grandpa dies and you become the Pharaoh, just play it safe because, Moses, imagine what you can do, how much you can accomplish with that power. Moses, just imagine how much you can help your people when you become the Pharaoh. Imagine, Moses, just how many people you can help with all this money. You've heard that before. Imagine, think about your place in history, Moses. I mean, think about this—you could have a pyramid named after you. Wow.

Our logic would have said to him, "Moses, don't waste your education. Don't waste your training. Don't waste your talent, Moses. Don't waste this golden opportunity of becoming rich and famous." How many of you agree that had Moses gone into that place of power, he could have done a lot of good? Yes, of course he could have. Of course he could have. There was a little problem here, well, it's a big problem—a big little problem. It was not God's ultimate plan for his life.

Now, some of you here are probably in a situation where right now you are walking in a time of puzzlement in your life. Some of you here are probably in a situation where you are confused about what's going on and why you're going through the circumstances you're going through. Most of them are really not of your own doing. There are some of you here probably right now thinking that I have something in my life that just does not make sense.

Now, beloved, listen to me. If you have placed your life and your future, and your family, and your business in the hand of God, God will take you to the place where His plan is to be found. You have God's word on it. There is no doubt that Moses' parents believed that God had a special plan for his life. And so by faith, they risked their own life to have him. Moses was supposed to be aborted by a decree of Pharaoh.

All Hebrew boys were supposed to be aborted as soon as they were born by a decree from Pharaoh. But by faith, his parents went through the birth. By faith, they hid him for three months. By faith, they placed the basket in the River Nile near Pharaoh's palace. By faith, they trusted that Pharaoh's daughter is going to come out at that time and she will take pity on the boy and then adopt the boy. By faith, they believed that God would protect their boy from the occultist paganism of Egypt. By faith, they entrusted their baby to God.

Listen, like all parents, we all worry about our children. We all do. That's a fact of life. But listen to me. Once you have instructed your children in the Word of God, once you have laid the foundation in their hearts and lives, you must trust them to God. By faith, Moses' mother Jochebed nursed her son for five years, and she got paid for it by Egyptian taxpayers. Isn't that great?

No doubt Moses' parents fed him upon the Word of God, upon the promise of God that was transmitted. Which we've been seeing, that promise went from Abraham to Isaac, to Jacob, to Joseph, and to Joseph's sons, and then on and all the way down to Jochebed. No doubt she passed those promises of God. "Yes, back yonder 400 years, God promised our forefather Abraham that He would take us out of the land of slavery, that He would take us to the Promised Land, and God will keep His word." All of that was fed to him from the year three months to five years old.

Here in Hebrews 11:23-29, the author of the epistle to the Hebrews wants us to know one thing, and it is this: that faith in God and faith in God's plan for your life, and faith in God's purpose in your life caused Moses to turn his back on prestige, to turn his back on pleasures, and to trust and believe in the promise of God. What was that prestige like back then? Well, to be called the grandson of Pharaoh, even though he was adopted, was the most prestigious position in the entire world at that time.

Listen, this was not just any palace of just another ruler. I mean, this was the wealthiest, the most cultured, the most advanced, and the most powerful country on the earth at the time. And so for 40 years, Moses was pampered. He was educated. He was trained. He was a powerful man in the palace. As soon as he celebrated his 40th birthday, he had to make a choice. He came at a crossroad. This is a moment of decision. This is a moment of choice, clear choice.

Will he become a Pharaoh and sit on the throne of Egypt, or would he obey the purpose of God in his life and the plan of God in his life and liberate his people from slavery? Will he choose prestige or will he fulfill God's purpose in his life? Will he choose power with man or will he choose power with God? Will he choose the fading fame of this world or would he choose the fabulous crown of righteousness in heaven? Which one will you choose?

According to the world and the world's standards, it would have said this: Moses sacrificed everything for nothing. But let me tell you what God says: Moses sacrificed nothing for everything. Listen to me, had Moses gone the other way, we may never have heard of him. Well, we might have known him as one of the Pharaohs, one of the many mummies that they keep picking up and digging out of Egypt. Probably he would be an obscure one.

Beloved, don't ever forget—don't ever forget—God promised to honor those who honor Him. I think the question that every one of us must ask ourselves, and you must ask yourself today: Do we seek the honor that society gives us, or do we seek the honor that God gives us? Let me warn you, if you say, "I choose the honor that God gives," let me tell you that it comes with a price tag. It is not cheap to choose the honor that God gives, never cheap. Because people will call you names. They may falsely accuse you. They may mock and ridicule you. They may reject and despise you.

But the only prestige that is worth the word prestige is only the prestige that comes from the hand of God. Moses not only turned his back on wealth, prestige, and power, he turned his back on pleasures. The pleasures of the world can feed our egos. The pleasures of the world can satisfy our desires. The pleasures of the world can fulfill our appetites. Let's not kid ourselves. There are two things that you must know about the pleasures of the world. Number one, they are not lasting. They are fading fast. They never last.

Verse 25 says, "Choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin." In a society that values instant gratification, in a society that caters to instant gratification, in a society that exalts instant gratification, it is not easy to choose, let alone to teach the younger generation to choose that which is lasting and everlasting. Like Moses, who had a choice, every one of us have a choice. Like Moses, he could have obeyed or disobeyed God. We too have that choice.

We know that it is much harder to have those things and then walk away from them than if you never had them. It was easy for me to be in a walk of faith when I had a car that I pushed it more than I drove it. Oh, yeah. You see, it's harder to walk by faith when God prospered you. It's harder to walk by faith. It's harder to turn your back on these things. That's exactly what Moses did.

Listen to me. To choose to sacrifice, to choose to give up comfort and ease, to choose to give up wealth and prestige, to choose to turn your back on power and plenty can be only called an act of faith. Only God can give you that. You cannot conjure it. You cannot do it by gritting your teeth and trying hard. God can give you the gift of faith. That can only be done by obedience, and God can give you that. It can only be done by trusting—trusting that doing what God wants you to do, not what you want to do, is immeasurably better in the long run.

You know, when they discovered King Tut's tomb, you may have seen it on television. I was privileged to see it in real life. Tut was 100 years after Moses or so, give or take a few years. You just look at the fabulous amounts of gold that he took to the tomb with him. It gives you an idea of the fabulous wealth that Moses turned his back on. King Tut wanted to hang on to these riches and he took all the gold with him to the tomb, but you know and I know it didn't do him any good.

But Moses, by faith, he looked forward 1,500 years down the road that the Messiah will come and that God will fulfill His promise to his forefather Abraham. Moses chose to be faithful to God's plan and to God's vision for his life. He chose to be faithful to God's plan of salvation for humanity rather than a fleeting moment of pleasure. He chose to be an instrument of God's deliverance than a few pounds of gold and silver that he's going to leave behind anyway.

Here's the truth. God's rewards are always better than the world's. Always. You can have God's word on it. God's rewards are always greater than the world's. God's rewards are always eternal and not temporal. Psalm 37:16 said, "Better is a little of the righteous than the abundance of many a wicked."

What choices do you make? What choices do you make? Are all of your choices focused on this life? Are all of your accumulations here on earth? Are all of your choices having to do with playing it safe in this life and never taking a risk for God? Are all of your choices having to do with fear of rejection and staying in your comfort zone? Are all of your choices having to do with this earthly life, or are you storing up treasures in heaven? Jesus said only in heaven the rust and the termites will not affect your treasure.

I'm going to tell you this story as I conclude. It's always been a great encouragement to me. I read it many years ago. There was this man from the Midwest. He and his wife served the Lord so faithfully for 40 solid years in Africa. He literally gave of himself completely and without reservation for Christ. And then he was coming home at the end of his ministry, at the end of his time. He was on the boat from England to New York. On that same boat was President Wilson. He was returning from an overseas trip.

As they got to the New York Harbor, there were crowds, hundreds, probably thousands of people welcoming the president back. Signs, "Welcome back, President Wilson." Music was playing, festivities. As Mr. Morrison looked over, there was not a solitary person waiting for him to thank him for what he had done for Christ. Being a human being like all of us, he took it hard. He began to feel sorry for himself. And then he got on a train to head for Ohio.

As he was sitting there feeling just not one person saying thank you, not one, he heard the voice of the Lord on that train. He said to him, "You're not home yet. You're not home yet." Father, we thank You that we're not home yet. It's only when we get home will we hear, "Well done." Father, I pray that You, in Your mercy and in Your grace, daily remind us that our citizenship is not here, that our home is yet to come. Father, that is what life is all about. We thank You that this is a dress rehearsal and that we're on our way home in Jesus' name. Amen.

Guest (Male): You've joined listeners across six continents for Leading the Way with Bible teacher and the author of more than 50 Bible-based life-changing books, Dr. Michael Youssef.

Steve: We were searching for someone, a pastor who believed that the Holy Bible was the true, protected Word of God. And then one Sunday morning, we had the Fox Business channel on, and here's this fellow named Dr. Michael Youssef. I felt like this is the guy.

Dr. Michael Youssef: God is the one who brought the Bible into existence by the breathing of the Holy Spirit.

Steve: We just look forward to hearing Dr. Youssef's sermons every Sunday.

Jill: We had found where we belong because we found that Leading the Way aligned with taking the Gospel to the world. And then Dr. Youssef's teachings on everything we have, everything we are, everything is from God. And to give back. How can we be a part of that? We decided to partner with Leading the Way because of all the magnificent tools they have reaching the earth—with the navigators, the Kingdom Sat, the Awake America events.

Steve: It means so much to us that we can be a part of helping Dr. Youssef bring souls to Christ. And the Cornerstone partnership allows us to continue that after we are gone from this earth. The Leading the Way ministry has been a godsend for us, and we are so thankful for it. It's making the world a better place.

Guest (Male): Your impact for Christ doesn't have to end with your last breath. Cornerstone partners like Steve and Jill are including Leading the Way in their will, leaving a Gospel legacy long after they're gone. Visit ltw.org/cornerstone to learn how you can become a Cornerstone partner today. This program is furnished by Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Youssef, passionately proclaiming uncompromising truth around the world. Learn more at ltw.org.