God said: "Out of Egypt I called my Son"

I was fascinated by the prophet Hosea’s words that Matthew is bringing to us this morning. These words are: “Out of Egypt, I have called my Son.” This was read by Israelites as God rescuing them from slavery in Egypt several centuries earlier. The same terminology that God used about Israel is being used about Jesus: “I called my son out of Egypt” My son! My first-born son. Such a great passion and zeal! Do you remember the tag war between God and Pharaoh? It didn’t end well. Pharaoh lost his first-born son and God took his first born (Israel) back through the red sea to the land of Israel. God is full of zeal and love for his Son. The Apostle Matthew is bringing back this F/S rescue picture in front of us, showing us that, again this is happening: “God is calling his first-born son out Egypt”. The same passion: My first-born son! Unfortunately, circumstances in life/ beyond our control do bring many of us into spiritual exile which “figuratively” we can call Egypt. Exile is not a good place! It produces scars on us, scars on our souls. It can break us in such a way that we don’t walk a straight path because we are limping! This situation has roused God’s pity on his children, and since God’s character is compassion; mercy and grace; it prompted him to come to our rescue.

Last Sunday Fr. Jeff shared with us how the manger wasn’t a smooth crib! It was rough! God’s journey in coming to our rescue wasn’t easy. Even as a baby Jesus began to experience hardship. As I was researching, I learned that it was difficult to pinpoint at what age Jesus was actually taken into Egypt. Estimates say probably between 1 & 2 years old based on the account of King Herod’s order to kill all infants up to two years old in Bethlehem. We also don’t know how long the holy family stayed in Egypt; it must have been a number of years. I am familiar with hardships of refugee life. Your most important focus becomes: food, water and shelter. When we fled our country, our family brought all that they could carry and left everything else! It’s easy to cling to what we have! But as Christians, we often forget that we are refugees in this world. This is not our home! It must have been a nightmare for Jesus’ parents, but they survived and returned to Israel after King Herod’s death. We don’t hear anything about their time in Egypt. Not until after they were back, when Jesus was 12 years old, he was found in the temple, talking to elders! For the holy family, this was an unscheduled flight into Egypt.

We also do occasionally take unscheduled flights into “Spiritual” Egypt! It is an unpleasant place; Jesus and his family were forced to go to Egypt, not because they wanted to or done anything to deserve exile. You see, by becoming human, Jesus was limited and fragile just as we are: he became a refugee. The promise is that in God's time, he will rescue us and bring us home in His Kingdom, where we belong - Jesus had to be back where he belonged (in the temple) He knows how difficult our stay in spiritual Egypt can be, and God wants to make sure we get out safely.

As hard as "Spiritual Egypt" can be, it is an opportunity for us to learn about God's faithfulness, but also, to prepare us for the inevitable hardships of life.  Perhaps Jesus' time in Egypt drew him closer to the Father, and that's why at 12 he was speaking with wisdom beyond his age. The hardship in Egypt also helped him develop a better understanding and compassion towards those who suffer (the sick, the hungry, the guilty…) as we have seen in his life and ministry!

Jesus went through it, so that you may know, that he understands your situation, and can help you through it.