Christians Do What Is Worldly Foolish But Spiritually Wise!

14th Sunday after Pentecost, 9/2/12
Hebrews 11:24-28

Christians Do What Is Worldly Foolish But Spiritually Wise!
I. A choice they make by faith
II. A choice God richly blesses


A little less than a year ago a very talented wide receiver in the National Football League signed a contract extension which will pay him about $4 million a year for the next 3 years. He then finished last season as one of the top receivers in the league. Those other top receivers are now commanding salaries of $8 and $9 million a year, twice as much as he’s making. When asked about it, he says he doesn’t care. He’s fine. To be honest, he doesn’t think anyone is worth the kind of money he’s receiving. His fellow players tell him constantly that he deserves more. He replies, “I’ve got bigger issues than looking for more money.”

Sounds foolish, doesn’t it? This could be his last chance to make really big money. Eight years from now he probably won’t even be playing football anymore. Shouldn’t he try to make as much as possible right now? That sounds like the wise thing to do.

But I hope that what he did doesn’t sound all that foolish to you. Because, as a Christian, that’s what we often do.

The world would tell you that you’re a fool for sitting here in this building on a Sunday morning, and on a holiday weekend to boot. In a few minutes many of you will place some of your hard-earned income into a collection plate. The world would tell you that you’re a fool for doing so. The obviously wealthy person in the checkout line ahead of you is unaware that she has dropped a $20 bill onto the floor. You pick it up and hand it to her and she thanks you. But the world would call you a fool.

Things like that have been happening in the lives of God’s people since the beginning. They are choices that God’s people make. We have the opportunity to see that in the life of Moses as the writer to the Hebrews explains it to us this morning. And one of the truths that this text presents to us is that Christians do what is worldly foolish but spiritually wise. Let’s see how that happens and what the results are as we ponder this portion of God’s word.

Part I.

What’s the difference between taking a risk and acting in faith? I took a look at the definition of the word “risk,” and it included phrases such as the possibility of loss or injury, a dangerous element or factor. Risk is synonymous with peril. In other words, there is a potential for harm, perhaps even fatal harm, to occur if a particular course of action is taken.

Acting in faith—and here I mean with faith in the one true God—is an entirely different matter. The same negative consequences involved in taking a risk may be a possibility. In fact, they may even be a certainty. But when we act in faith, we do so knowing that our God promises to bless us. That’s what always happens when we follow God’s will. Let me state that another way: that’s what always happens when we choose to follow God’s will.

We see that clearly in the life of Moses as the writer to the Hebrews presents it to us this morning. Notice that the writer doesn’t tell us that Moses took a foolish risk. Instead, he tells us, “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” Recall the details. Moses was born into a Jewish family and later was placed into a basket in the Nile River. The daughter of Pharaoh, King of Egypt, noticed him and adopted him. For the first 40 years of his life Moses lived one of the most opulent lifestyles in the world. He enjoyed the finest of homes, the finest of food, clothing and entertainment, and the finest education in the world at that time. But he gave it all up. You might say that he disowned his adopted family.

In doing so, he left behind all that the royal Egyptian court offered. Now think about that for a moment. Think about it from a worldly perspective. Does that make any sense? Who in their right mind would do such a thing?

A child of God would. And that’s what it was all about for Moses. He chose to identify with his people, not out of racial loyalty, but by faith in the God of his salvation. We read, “He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time.” Please don’t misunderstand these words. The writer is not saying that everything going on in Pharaoh’s household was sinful. What he’s saying is that Moses had a choice. Live with Pharaoh and reject his connection with his people who were God’s people or reject the earthly blessings Pharaoh’s household offered in favor of the eternal blessings God’s people offered. He made the right choice by faith. He chose disgrace with the Jewish people.

He made that choice because he knew what was at stake. “He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.” In using the word “reward” the writer has in mind the blessings that Moses and all children of God receive by grace. He’s speaking about the blessings of forgiveness, life in God’s kingdom as his child, and eternal life in heaven. Those are the blessings Jesus won for Moses and for all people by his holy life and by his death on the cross. Those are blessings all the money in the world can’t buy. Choosing them over the riches of this world isn’t foolish. It’s the height of wisdom. It’s an act of faith.

And that’s what Christians do. Christians do what is worldly foolish but spiritually wise. That’s a choice they make by faith.

Only a fool would give up a life of riches and become a citizen of a nation of slaves. Only a fool would do that. Yup. Only a Christian fool. That’s because we know what really matters. This life only lasts so long. And when it’s over, you can’t take anything from it into the next life. So we’re most concerned about making sure we have eternal riches. The fact that you have chosen to be here receiving those riches today is a wise choice.

But that’s not always an easy choice to make. We get distracted by all this life has to offer. We trade the spiritual for the worldly. We allow this life to get in the way of eternal life. But that’s where Jesus comes in. He’s the only One who always made the wise choice for us. He even chose to take the punishment for our sins on himself. By faith in Jesus we receive his forgiveness and life with him. There’s no wiser choice in life than to stay connected to Jesus by faith.

Part II.

I imagine at least weekly if not daily you fear that if you don’t agree with the world’s wisdom you’ll somehow be cheated out of some blessing. I know I do. That choice might be associated with your employment, or maybe it’s with your finances, or perhaps with a relationship. Follow the world’s wisdom or lose out.

Twice Moses decided to leave the presence of Pharaoh, once when he was about 40 and the other when he was about 80. Both times his choice led him out of all that Egypt offered into a wilderness, a place you and I would never choose to go for any length of time. Humanly speaking this choice meant losing out on all sorts of things. But Moses knew by faith that this was the right choice to make.

And the Lord richly blessed that choice. The writer tells us, “By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.” Recall that Moses’ grandfather by adoption wasn’t just any Egyptian man. He was the Pharaoh, one of the most powerful men on the earth at that time. To have Pharaoh angry with you usually meant your days on earth were numbered. Moses incurred Pharaoh’s anger by the choice he made, but he wasn’t afraid. He knew this was the Lord’s will and, therefore, the Lord would bless that choice. And that’s what happened. The Lord protected Moses repeatedly from Pharaoh’s anger. He preserved Moses’ life.

He did so because his plan for Moses involved using Moses to save his people. Our text tells us, “By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.” Painting the blood of a lamb on the doorpost of your home is going to prevent death from coming to your house on a particular night? Who would think that would have any effect? Moses did by faith and he led the rest of the Children of Israel in acting in that faith as well. In fact, that night he led the entire nation of Jews out of slavery in Egypt so that the Lord could form them into his nation of people, a people through whom he would send the Savior into the world. You talk about blessing a choice that seems foolish to the world!

But that’s what Christians do. We do what’s worldly foolish but spiritually wise, a choice God richly blesses.

As you ponder choosing what is spiritually wise over what is worldly foolish, don’t forget the phrase that the writer repeats 3 times concerning Moses. He made these choices by faith. That’s a faith you share with him, a faith that first causes you to confess your sinfulness and your dire need for a Savior from sin. That faith also then takes hold of the forgiveness and eternal life offered to you and won for you by Jesus himself. No, that faith doesn’t mean things will always turn out the way we had wanted or hoped. But, as we hold onto our Savior by faith and follow his will, he will richly bless us with the same reward Moses counted on—the reward of eternal blessings in heaven. Choosing to keep your focus on heaven is the wisest choice you could ever make. Amen.