Dr Paul Allen

Moses and Aaron before Pharaoh (painting by Benjamin West) (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In modern stories people destined for greatness rarely start off privileged. They are dropped off at the doorstep of an orphanage or abandoned in the rain. This literary motif goes back to ancient stories, where writers use the abandoned child theme to identify a character that rises from obscurity to privileged hero status. It’s a motif found in the biblical account of Moses ’ birth. But is that really the whole story? Moses’ story begins when Pharaoh feels threatened by the growing Hebrew population in Egypt and commands that all Hebrew male infants be killed (Exod 1:16–22). Moses’ mother hides her newborn son for three months and then devises a risky but calculated plan: She sets him adrift on the Nile in a small basket made of bulrushes, waterproofed with bitumen and pitch (2:1–3). Moses’ older sister, Miriam, watches as the basket floats to where the daughter of Pharaoh bathes. God uses the...

“For our light affliction , which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” ( 2 Corinthians 4:17) THESE words supply us with a reason we should not faint under trials nor be overwhelmed by misfortunes. They teach us to look at the trials of time in the light of eternity. They affirm that the present buffetings of the Christian exercise a beneficent effect on the inner man. If these truths were firmly grasped by faith they would mitigate much of the bitterness of our sorrows. “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” This verse sets forth a striking and glorious antithesis as it contrasts our future state with our present. Here a light affliction, there a mighty glory. In our affliction there is both levity and brevity. It is a light affliction and it is but for a moment but in our future glory there is solidity and eternity! To discover the preciousness of...