By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. (Hebrews 11:27)

If we said it once, it’s worth saying again: God is King, not Pharaoh or any other ruler past, present, or future. Recall the words from my devotion two days ago. There the author of Hebrews stated that Moses’ parents were not afraid of the king. Now Moses is the one “not fearing the king’s anger.”

In that devotion, I wrote: “For someone to be unafraid of a king—whether that be the edict of an ancient emperor or a modern day elected President or Prime Minister—it means they have a view of reality that extends beyond what can be seen. They understand that there is a yet higher power behind the thin veneer of this present moment—a God who still rules and reigns as Sovereign Lord King over this earth. … Faith sees God. Right here, right now—on the move.”

This is precisely what the author of Hebrews means. Why was Moses not afraid? Because “he saw him who is invisible,” that is, God the true King.

You cannot read the Bible without this kind of vision. Think of our current series in Sunday worship. When we read the texts of Samuel & Kings, we are tempted to think that Saul, David, and Solomon are the king of Israel. They aren’t. They never were. God is still the King. And to the extent that Saul, David, and Solomon acknowledge that fact and point their people to the High King, the LORD—Israel is her true self. But when they forget and start acting as if they were the only king by taking too many wives, say, or naming a city after themselves like the “City of David,” that is when Israel becomes a nation “like all the other nations,” which is far less than Israel was called to be.

When one’s eyes are peeled to see God as King and we ourselves as citizens of HIS country who merely reside as foreign aliens in this one (Canada)—then we see things rightly. That is when Christians begin to do those strange, counter-cultural things that Christians do when they are willing to give up their own standing, wealth, even life for the sake of others or for our love of God.

Very often we see this go sideways when Christians make “strong” stands and draw hard lines, but seek to enact those stands through unrighteous means: violence, factional fighting, subverting the rules. This is not the way of the King. Not that Christians can’t make strong stands, but in his Kingdom the way something gets done is just as important as what gets done. Ends do not justify means: both ends and means must be righteous in his kingdom. And if that means we cannot get done what we think we ought to or need to get done, well then, it just doesn’t get done. We wait in trust for the Lord to do what we cannot, for we are always constrained by his law and his ways.

But even so: in our waiting we do not fear. No matter how bad things get or look, we do not fear. Even if our life is made hard and persecution comes our way: we do not fear. Why? Because we see “him who is invisible,” our God, still seated on the throne.

This is the root: faith. A “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” As John will write later in his letter: it is faith in this God and his perfect love that “drives out fear.”

As you journey on, go with the blessing of God:

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you.

May he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm.

May he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you.

May he bring you home rejoicing : once again into our doors.