The Bible is the beautiful interpretation of how intricate and detailed God is. Every single word was breathed by the Holy Spirit and carefully thought of to bring together the fascinating story of God restoring humanity. No stone was left unturned and no prophecy unfulfilled; God had everything in place in preparation for the first coming of His Son. As I’ve stated in the previous blog, God doesn’t do random; when it comes to God, He is deliberate. When you read the Old Testament, something always foreshadows and connects to the New Testament, bringing The Gospel and God’s plan for humanity to life. This is evident in the story of Moses and how his birth and life mirrored that of Jesus, and it was a preview of God’s salvation for all of humanity and not just Israel.
Massacre of the Innocents
The promise of The Messiah began in Genesis, so satan was on the watch, hoping to prevent the birth of The Son of God. In Exodus 1, the King of Egypt was especially cruel to the Hebrews because he feared their strength and didn’t want them to rise against him. So, to prevent this, he told the midwives for the Hebrews, in Exodus 1:16, “When you do the duties of a midwife for the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstools, if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live.”
Though Pharaoh feared the might of the Israelites, it was the devil using him in hopes that by killing these infant males, he would kill The Messiah before He took His first breath. This shows that the devil has no idea what is to come; he is the one living in fear. God doesn’t give us the spirit of fear (II Timothy 1:7); thus, anytime you are scared, know it is the enemy. If you fear going all in for God, that’s only the enemy’s dread of what you’ll accomplish. He is terrified of how many souls you’ll snatch from the depths of hell once you fully immerse yourself into your purpose. Anything fear-related is just the devil trying to stop you from living how God intended. Go all in for God, believe Him for the impossible, pray those big prayers, and see Him work wonders!
Ever since God sealed satan’s fate in Genesis 3:15, he made it his mission to try to get ahead of it and avert it altogether. However, when God speaks, it happens, and satan cannot escape his ultimate defeat. So, as Christians, when God speaks His promises, we can expect them to come to pass. Don’t doubt God because His Word never fails or returns to Him void; whether it’s a promise or a curse, it will happen. This is why the devil was frightened; he saw the might of the Hebrews and believed this was the generation The Messiah would come from. However, those midwives feared God and did not do what the King of Egypt asked. Due to this, Pharaoh, in Exodus 1:22, “commanded all his people, saying, “Every son who is born you shall cast into the river and every daughter you shall save alive.”
God gave Moses an intelligent mother, and she hid him for three months, when she could no longer hide him, she put Moses in a basket she had made and sent him down the river. Conveniently, Pharaoh’s sister found him. God’s plan would not be stopped because of a fearful man, and you have to know that no matter who is in office and what their wicked plans are, God prevails every time. God sent Moses to deliver the Hebrews, and the order to kill infant boys was not going to deter Him. God works with the impossible; babies were being killed all around Moses, but Moses survived because that was a part of God’s purpose, but also because he had an obedient mother. The children of God will not be touched by the plans of the wicked, so walk in the confidence that as long as you’re obedient and faithful, God’s plan for your life will overcome that of the enemy.
Now, jumping to Matthew 2, we see the enemy scared again and trying to kill The Messiah. This time, his vessel was Herod, the Roman King who also ruled over Judea, where Jesus was born. Herod heard of His birth through the wise men; they were looking for Jesus to worship Him. However, “when Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ” (Matthew 2:3-4). The devil was trying to get ahead of the game, but little did he know Jesus was already alive, and there was no infiltrating God’s plan. Thinking he was sneaky, Herod told the wise men, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also” (Matthew 2:8).
The devil thought that if he pretended to be excited about the coming of Christ, he could get ahead of his ultimate defeat. The devil is a liar, which is the number one thing you must know about the enemy. He will use people to lie and entice you, making it appear like they are for you, but in reality, they want to see you fail. But God knows this, so He will warn you about people scheming against you, as He did the wise men. Once the wise men reached Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, they were “divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod.”
Though the devil may try to get two steps ahead, God is always at least five steps ahead. This is why the devil is always scared because he doesn’t know what will happen next; he may try to control the outcome, but in the end, God is in control! The devil tried to change his tactic by appearing harmless but failed, as always. So, “When [Herod] saw that he was deceived by the wise men, [he] was exceedingly angry; and sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. “(Matthew 2:16).
If you thought satan was terrified in Exodus, I couldn’t imagine it compared to the fear he felt in Matthew because this child was confirmed to be The Messiah, the one who would bruise his head, as stated in Genesis 3:15. To put it in perspective, the devil was so frightened by the thought of Jesus, that two times in history, he ordered the killing of babies. Not grown men but infants and toddlers because even the devil knows of the immense power that Jesus carries. Killing innocent children is wicked and vile, but satan didn’t care because he knew once Jesus entered the scene, there was nothing he could do to escape his impending doom. Even now, satan is still trying to change the outcome of his fate, but he can’t because it is set in stone!
Sent to Deliver
In Exodus 3:10, God says to Moses, “Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” God cared so much about protecting Moses because He had a purpose for him, to deliver Israel from the oppression of the Egyptians. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” As we all know, Jesus was sent to save us from the oppression of satan, similar to how Moses was sent to save Israel. The devil tried so hard to steal their lives from an early age because the devil hates freedom. It wasn’t just trying to escape his defeat, but it was also wanting to keep people in bondage. Satan enjoys seeing people defeated like him, misery loves company. So, when it came to Moses and Jesus, they faced opposition because they declared freedom. Anytime you are trying to gain freedom, you are going to get pushback because when you’re no longer bound, the devil can no longer have his way with you. Israel leaving Egypt was fulfilling God’s promise to Abraham. God told Abraham in Genesis 17:8, “I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
The promised land was the land God promised Abraham, and as I’ve said before if God says something, you can count on it happening. The devil hates seeing God’s promises fulfilled, which is why he sought so hard to destroy Moses and to destroy Jesus. Jesus fulfilled every promise of God, as II Corinthians 1:20 says, “For all the promises of God in [Christ] are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” God’s glory was shown immensely through these births and what they did for their generation, and in Jesus’s case, what He did for generations to come as well! Christ gives us access to God’s eternal promises on earth and in heaven, and the devil hates that so much. Since he can’t target Moses or Jesus anymore, he targets us, God’s creation.
The primary way the devil tries to attack humanity is through unbelief. As you read the Bible, you will see that the children of Israel acted like modern humanity. John 3:17 says might be save, meaning not everyone will be saved, and not everyone will accept Jesus. Well, not everyone made it into the promised land; only a few who believed, as not everyone will make it into heaven; only the few who believe in Christ. We can see the parallels because the world is full of unbelief, and so was Israel despite seeing God perform miracles. The few who believe in Christ will be saved and can enter into God’s will of healing, prosperity, peace, and joy, our promised land. Our promised land is living the life that God intended us to, free from every bondage that Jesus carried for us. The Israelites were supposed to live free from bondage and an abundance of life in the land of milk and honey, but they chose unbelief and, ultimately, death as they departed from God, as we choose death if we depart from God. They worshipped other gods as modern humanity does and forsook God, as people do today. Though we have a savior, and they had Moses, their contact with God, it was their choice to listen or not, as we have a choice to accept Jesus or not.
They were sent to deliver but weren’t accepted by everyone, but you don’t have to be like the Israelites who had unbelief or the people who rejected Jesus. You can be like Joshua and Caleb, who believed in God and took the promised land! Like Peter, James, and John, and the many others who accepted Jesus as the Son of God and lived a life that glorified Him! You have free will; Deuteronomy 30:19 says, “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;” You can choose life, you can choose Jesus! So, if you want to be free from bondage and live in your promised land, say this prayer, “Dear Heavenly Father, I repent of my sins and turn my back to them. I believe Jesus is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for my sins and rose on the third day. I accept Him into my heart now. I believe Jesus is Lord, and By faith, I give Him my whole life, heart, mind, and soul. Amen!”
If you just gave your life to Jesus, fill out this form: I Just Got Saved! Your life is automatically on a better path, and you can live victoriously over the enemy! Read your Bible, pray, and engage with Jesus daily! If you need to find a church, don’t hesitate to fill out the Contact page with where you live, and I’ll help you connect with a local church! I hope this helped, and God bless! See you next time!
RefinedforChrist 
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