Read: Exodus 2:4-9
Shall I go and call you a nurse? (v. 7)
Two girls down in the weeds: one a slave, one a princess. Two girls down in the weeds, and one baby crying in a basket. They knew the rule: the boy must die. But the princess welled up with compassion. The slave girl acted and a baby boy lived another day. In that situation, God wove events and people to shape the future. Neither girl could have known, but at that moment, down among the weeds, God was orchestrating an 80-year plan to deliver Israel from slavery. It hinged on two girls down in the weeds. The princess’s life-giving compassion and the sister’s courageous action led to unimaginable results. The boy’s own mother even received wages to nurse him!
Compassion and action find their fulfillment in Jesus, the one to whom these two girls point. The Bible says, “When [Jesus] saw the crowds, he had compassion for them” (Matt. 9:36). It also says, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). Jesus feels compassion for us and acts for us by dying in our place. We are spared hell and receive eternal life.
Thinking about your own life, who was filled with compassion for you? Who took action on your behalf? What small, defining moments can you see leading to where you find yourself now? And, while you consider your life, look around you now. Who is God placing before you down in the weeds?
As you pray, thank Jesus for his compassion and for acting on your behalf.
Rev. Jon Opgenorth serves as president of Words of Hope. Previously, he served for 18 years as senior pastor at Trinity Reformed Church in Orange City, Iowa. In preparation for ministry, he received a BA in Religion from Northwestern College, and an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary.
