Saturday, August 27, 2016
A lesson in self worth from Pharaoh
Today I landed in Exodus.
In Chapter five Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh, asking him to allow the Hebrews a break from their work to go make sacrifices and worship God in the desert. Of course it doesn't go well.
"Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get back to your work! Look, the people of the land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working." vss4-5
As a result, Pharaoh stopped supplying the Hebrews with straw for making bricks and told them that they had to gather their own straw, but make the same amount of bricks. So instead of just denying their request, he upped their workload to an unreasonable level and then beat them when they didn't satisfy it.
Pharoah told his overseers that the reason the Hebrews said "let us go and sacrifice to our God," was because they were lazy and didn't want to work. The quote attributed to him in vs 9 is "Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies."
In response to the actions of Pharaoh, and getting beat, the Hebrews turned on Moses and Aaron - blaming them for the ridiculous demands of Pharaoh. And in turn, Moses went to God and essentially blamed God for letting this happen to the people.
In light of today's political climate I find this passage fascinating. Christians and Jews should be able to see the plight of the worker in this story, in the whole of the Pharaoh/Hebrews story. It is not only a story about the Lord leading the people out of Egypt, it is a moral tale for labor and self worth.
The Hebrews did not deserve to be treated in such a way for asking to be allowed to worship their God. Pharoah turned their words against them and instead spread lies about them to his staff, and turned the reasons for their request into "lies" ... in essence he told his people that when the Hebrews said they want to worship, what they're really saying is they want to be lazy.... He took their honest and true need (worship) and turned it into a "lie" to fit his own agenda.
Instead of standing up for themselves, the Hebrews turned against the ones who were asking for what was right. Instead of demanding fair treatment, they sided with Pharaoh against Moses and Aaron. Essentially Pharaoh's plan worked, the Hebrews forgot the moral correctness of their cause, believed Pharoah's lie that they were lazy, and turned against the ones who stood up for them.
They forgot their own worth because the one who had power over them overpowered their self will.
In turn, Moses and Aaron turned to God and blamed him for what happened.
Of course, God, being a good God knew what was happening and wanted to save his people.. he eventually did it in grand fashion. We know the story. But had they united to stand up for themselves, to not believe the lies about them, and to believe they deserved what they were asking for - perhaps the story would have been different?
We need to believe in our worth.
Employers and those in positions of power need to believe in the worth of their employees and those under their watch. In Biblical terms this story tells us that in the end Pharaoh and those who oppressed the Hebrews received punishment from God for their actions. But in some ways, the Hebrews also didn't get what they could have had either... their own refusals to stand up to Pharaoh didn't work out so well for them as they roamed in the desert for a generation.
How much better is this world when we truly care for one another... when we don't devalue ourselves for the benefit of another, and when we don't overvalue ourselves at the expense of another.
As this political season moves on, let us remember Pharaoh's words "Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies." When you are in a position where you feel obligated to continue doing something you hate, or pressured into working longer hours to avoid losing something... consider the reason you feel that way and honestly ask if there are lies you are believing as truths that keep you in such a state. The realization may surprise and free you.
In Chapter five Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh, asking him to allow the Hebrews a break from their work to go make sacrifices and worship God in the desert. Of course it doesn't go well.
"Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get back to your work! Look, the people of the land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working." vss4-5
As a result, Pharaoh stopped supplying the Hebrews with straw for making bricks and told them that they had to gather their own straw, but make the same amount of bricks. So instead of just denying their request, he upped their workload to an unreasonable level and then beat them when they didn't satisfy it.
Pharoah told his overseers that the reason the Hebrews said "let us go and sacrifice to our God," was because they were lazy and didn't want to work. The quote attributed to him in vs 9 is "Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies."
In response to the actions of Pharaoh, and getting beat, the Hebrews turned on Moses and Aaron - blaming them for the ridiculous demands of Pharaoh. And in turn, Moses went to God and essentially blamed God for letting this happen to the people.
In light of today's political climate I find this passage fascinating. Christians and Jews should be able to see the plight of the worker in this story, in the whole of the Pharaoh/Hebrews story. It is not only a story about the Lord leading the people out of Egypt, it is a moral tale for labor and self worth.
The Hebrews did not deserve to be treated in such a way for asking to be allowed to worship their God. Pharoah turned their words against them and instead spread lies about them to his staff, and turned the reasons for their request into "lies" ... in essence he told his people that when the Hebrews said they want to worship, what they're really saying is they want to be lazy.... He took their honest and true need (worship) and turned it into a "lie" to fit his own agenda.
Instead of standing up for themselves, the Hebrews turned against the ones who were asking for what was right. Instead of demanding fair treatment, they sided with Pharaoh against Moses and Aaron. Essentially Pharaoh's plan worked, the Hebrews forgot the moral correctness of their cause, believed Pharoah's lie that they were lazy, and turned against the ones who stood up for them.
They forgot their own worth because the one who had power over them overpowered their self will.
In turn, Moses and Aaron turned to God and blamed him for what happened.
Of course, God, being a good God knew what was happening and wanted to save his people.. he eventually did it in grand fashion. We know the story. But had they united to stand up for themselves, to not believe the lies about them, and to believe they deserved what they were asking for - perhaps the story would have been different?
We need to believe in our worth.
Employers and those in positions of power need to believe in the worth of their employees and those under their watch. In Biblical terms this story tells us that in the end Pharaoh and those who oppressed the Hebrews received punishment from God for their actions. But in some ways, the Hebrews also didn't get what they could have had either... their own refusals to stand up to Pharaoh didn't work out so well for them as they roamed in the desert for a generation.
How much better is this world when we truly care for one another... when we don't devalue ourselves for the benefit of another, and when we don't overvalue ourselves at the expense of another.
As this political season moves on, let us remember Pharaoh's words "Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies." When you are in a position where you feel obligated to continue doing something you hate, or pressured into working longer hours to avoid losing something... consider the reason you feel that way and honestly ask if there are lies you are believing as truths that keep you in such a state. The realization may surprise and free you.
Labels: Christian living, labor, political power, self worth
