August 23, 2026 "Compassion As Resistance"

This is the story of the beginning of the book of Exodus. It is one of our primal stories, a foundational one. So first, let's walk slowly through a retelling of the story and I'll comment along the way. Pharaoh has all the power. Yet he's afraid of people who have no power. He does what fearful people with power often do. Fear turns into policy, suspicion turns into laws of the land. He enslaves them, he uses them, and yet they continue to grow larger in number. So he orders that all newborn male babies are to be killed. In response to this order, two Hebrew midwives resist. They won't participate. Maybe that's something we can live into. Most of us will never stand before a Pharaoh, or a president, or a powerful politician. But we will stand before those who will ask us to diminish life. Sometimes faith isn't that complicated; sometimes faith is the refusal to participate in the diminishing of life. Next comes the story of Moses' mother and sister, and then Pharaoh's daughter. They, too, refuse to participate. We see that most people think that power is the ability to control people. In this story, we see that true power looks like courage. True power looks like compassion and empathy and love. The story gets better; Moses' sister gets Pharaoh's daughter to agree to allow Moses' mother to take care of him. And get this, Pharaoh's daughter PAYS her to take care of her own son! Pharaoh thinks he's controlling the future. But he isn't, really. God is moving. Quietly, subtly, underneath the surface, through ordinary people. Sometimes we look at all that is happening in the world and we think that we can't possibly make a difference. Exodus tells a different story. All we have is the next courageous thing, the next faithful thing, the next compassionate thing. What if those things really do matter? What if the work of God always looks smaller before it grows and gets big? What if the kingdom of God really is hidden in the small before it gets large? All we have is the next faithful step and trust that God is working through the little things. Speaker: Aaron Vis Scripture: Exodus 1:8-22; 2:1-10 http://bible.com/events/49654964