This post was last updated on February 21, 2026

Day 349, Year 1

Faith Makes Us Strong and Determined

“By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen.” (Hebrews 11:27 NASB)

“Egypt” is a place where people enjoy the pleasures of sin but are entangled. When Moses was a child, he didn’t see any problem with the Egyptian way of living. But when he grew up, he knew there was something wrong and had to leave. Similarly, when we were young children, we enjoyed sinful pleasures but were not counted as sinful by God. However, when believers grow up, and our feelings and judgments change, we must abandon the pleasures of sin. Otherwise, God will make us accountable for that. The pleasures of sin are the superficial enjoyment people can experience, but after fleeting moments of happiness, their souls always feel empty and miserable. Moses was not satisfied with the pleasures because he sought God’s reward. After he gave up his royal status, he left Egypt, for this was his only option. In many situations, believers need to leave the place of sinning by faith so as to be freed from the evil entanglement. Probably, many believers have their “Egypt,” and that is where we must leave. The way we leave “Egypt” often needs God’s guidance and our greatest determination and perseverance.

Today’s scripture says, Moses’ faith made him “as seeing Him who is unseen.” In Greek, the word “as” is hos, which is also translated as “like, or when.” By listening to and believing in God’s Word, he seemed to see the unseen God. In my understanding, Moses might not have actually seen God, but it is noteworthy that faith made him as if he had seen God, which no man could see, so that he “endured” and “not fearing the wrath of the king.” The word “endure” is kartereo in Greek, or is translated as “to be steadfast,” which refers to a kind of strength without fear. Indeed, faith makes him and us alike as if seeing God with steadfastness without fear.

The “fear” in today’s text is phobeo (Hebrews 11:23). The authors seem to have deliberately pointed out that Moses inherited or learned from his parents that he was not afraid of Pharaoh’s commands with the threat of death. Although “the fury of a king is like messengers of death” (Proverbs 16:14a NASB), Moses might have learned the faith and courage from his parents to escape the wrath of Pharaoh. Moreover, in Moses’ experience, he might have seen God through his parents’ faith and then been fearless of human intimidation and wholeheartedly trust in Him. In any case, when we leave the place of sinning with pleasures, we are then at the dawn of spiritual life.

Reflection questions:

1) Does your faith make you see God “as” real? If not, how can you see Him more real?

2) Does faith make you strong and steadfast, and not afraid of anything? If not, what are you afraid of, and how can you overcome it by the Lord?