January 19
Somebody’s Watching
Genesis 48-50, Exodus 1-2
It’s funny to me how much we say we understand that God sees everything – affirming that we can hide nothing from Him – but then live otherwise, only to learn that we can indeed hide nothing. Moses learned that lesson the hard way. Seeing an Egyptian beating one of his fellow Hebrews, he defended the Hebrew by beating the Egyptian to death. He had been raised in Pharaoh’s house, but he had clearly identified more with his people; he could not sit still and watch this Egyptian beat a Hebrew. The one who would be their deliverer already had turned his heart to them, and his zeal on their behalf was obvious.
When Moses defended the Hebrew, though, he also looked all around to make sure nobody was looking. Then, he killed the Egyptian and “hid him in the sand” (Exo 2:12). Moses apparently thought about the act enough to try to get away it, and he then sought to hide the evidence. Surely, he was surprised the next day when he intervened in another fight, only to hear a Hebrew ask him, “Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” (Exo 2:14). Apparently, his looking both ways and his burying the body didn’t prevent somebody from seeing what he did.
That’s a reminder for all of us: somebody’s always watching us. If it’s not other people, it’s God. We are wise to live accordingly.
RESPONSE: Live today in such a way that you would have nothing to hide.
