Read Exodus 2:16-22
Moses gets rewarded with a wife and a family for his good action of protecting the sisters. In a sense he gets “new people.”
And yet he names his son Gershom remembering that he is an ‘alien’ there.
Remember back last week when we looked at the word Hebrew? “One who crosses over” or “went from place to place, an alien, or traveler.” From the beginning, God called his people to be aliens- Abram left his home, Isaac and Jacob lived in tents, Joseph was taken to Egypt, and now Moses in Midian.
We also are called to be ‘aliens’.
1 Peter 2:11 says in the NLT:
Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.
In the NIV:
Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.
In the Message:
Friends, this world is not your home, so don’t make yourselves cozy in it. Don’t indulge your ego at the expense of your soul. Live an exemplary life in your neighborhood so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they’ll be won over to God’s side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives.
- In what way does your life reflect the truth of being an ‘alien’ here in Indiana?