I recently spent three days in Egypt doing leadership training for 500 Egyptian pastors and business leaders. During my last night there my hotel overlooked the Nile River. I was reminded once again that Moses took a little float trip down this very river as a baby, nearly 4000 years ago. I later visited The Cave Church. It is a Coptic Christian Church that is literally carved out of a huge grotto beneath a sandstone mountain. There are numerous reliefs carved into the mountain side, one of which shows Joseph, leading Mary and her baby Jesus on a donkey. They are walking by the Pyramids in the relief. In that instant I was reminded that both Jesus and Moses spent their infancy in Egypt.
As I scanned the various other reliefs at the Cave Church I can across a full size cross with a replica of Jesus breathing his last breaths. Another connection between Jesus and Moses filled my mind’s eye. It was the Mount of Transfiguration when Jesus met both Elijah and Moses before his death. In that event the long dead Moses and Elijah appeared to Jesus as Peter, James, and John looked on in wonder. The speculation has been that those two great prophets were bringing some strength and consolation to Jesus before he went to the cross.
So I began to think of all the parallels between Moses and Jesus.
1) Moses lived in the glory of Pharaohs house and left it as a result to trying to serve his people; Jesus lived in the Glory of the Father and left it in order to serve us
2) Moses has an encounter with God in the Wilderness prior to beginning a ministry of freeing his people; Jesus had an encounter with the Father in the wilderness when John baptized Him prior to beginning His ministry to free His people.
3) Moses went up on the mountain to receive the Word of God; Jesus delivered the Word of God in the Sermon on the Mount
4) Moses led a group of people to freedom yet they often grumbled and complained wanting to go back to the familiar comfort of slavery; Jesus leads a group of people to freedom yet we often grumble and complain about how hard it is to follow Him and we go back to the comfort and familiarity of our sin
5) The people Moses led were convinced that they were not strong enough to enter the promised land even though God had already parted the Red Sea and provided Manna from Heaven; Jesus leads followers who often lack faith that He will do as He promised in spite of the fact that He has done so, countless times in and numerous ways in the past
6) Moses prayed for the success of his people even though they often rejected him; Jesus prays for us constantly even though we often betray Him
7) Moses had people spread the blood of a lamb on the wooden door posts in order to save them from death and release them from slavery in Egypt; Jesus was the Lamb whose blood flowed down on the wooden post of the cross in order to save us from ultimate death and free us from captivity to our sins
Even with these parallels and the many more I can not even think of, there is still this key distinction. Moses was a man called by God to serve fellow man. Jesus is God, come in the flesh as a man to give His life as a ransom for many. We know that God loves us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Dan Lacich: Provocative Christian Living 
Hello. I’m a Portuguese catholic man. I was raised in the catholic spirit and I love to be part of our family. I’m sending this mail because I have some questions. They were posed to me by one person that I know and unfortunately I wasn’t able to respond them. Sorry.
They are:
Since Adam and Eve are mythological figures, why did Jesus came to save us from Original Sin? Shouldn’t Original Sin be also mythological?
Why did God created dinosaurs and let them die instead of, creating us first?
Why did God created so many superfluous planets? We just need two or three. Why billions of them?
Why didn’t God told Jesus to tell us information like Heliocentrism instead of letting us defend Geocentric?
Thanks in advance for the response. I copied the questions from a mail so they are exactly how he posed them to me.
Leonardo,
Thank you for your interesting questions. I hope I can help you and your friend.
1) I would not assume that Adam and Eve are mythical figures. The Bible treats them as if they were real, living people. It is interesting to note that genetic scientist who study our DNA have determined that ALL human beings can be traced back to a single woman. They have given her the name “Eve”.
2) I am not sure I understand the concern about creating us or the dinosaurs first. Could you help me understand that better? Is the idea that the dinosaurs had to die before humans could exist and that seems unfair?
3) It is not true that we only need two or three types of plants. For instance, for centuries people have used hundreds of different plants to make natural medicines. Without the variety we would not have those medicines. But that is just a utilitarian answer. I think another answer is that God loves the beauty of the variety in creation. It points us to Him and His creativity
4) There are countless similar things that Jesus could have told us. For instance, why not warn us about Hitler, or why not give us a the idea for vaccines to cure illness? Part of the reason for not doing that is the focus of the message of Jesus was on our relationship with God and our need for forgiveness. It also has to do with the fact that God deals with us based on where we are at the time and what our understanding is. If Jesus would have taught a specifically heliocentric world view, people would not have understood what he was talking about at the time. It would have been wasted effort.
I hope this helps and would be very glad to continue our conversations
Dan
What chapters and stuff
Yet where did Jesus and Moses first actually meet?
Nice parallels, I find an uncanny number of parallels between the Old Testament and Jesus Christ. It has been designed that way so his chosen people can identify Christ the Messiah when He arrived…sadly many still do not see.
The Rock being stricken, as Jesus was stricken, providing life giving water for our souls. The tree in the water, cleansing it, as Jesus died on the tree for the cleansing of our sins. The stake with the snake (sin) upon it…people had to look on to be healed, picturing Jesus taking our sin to the cross. The saving Ark, made of the tree, as the water/flood cleansed the land of sin.
Thank you for the pictures of Moses and Jesus.
I also don’t know where Jesus and Moses met in the Bible. Please give verses.
Michelle,
Jesus and Moses never actually met during Moses lifetime. He lived 2000 years before Jesus was born. The point of the blog was not that they actually met but that the parallels with their experiences in Egypt. That being said, in Matthew 17 when Jesus is on the mountain with Peter, James and John He becomes transformed before them and Moses and Elijah appear with Him.
Dan
Matthew 17, thank you…that is what I was looking for, the New Testament encounter.
Everything is right up untill the end .Jesus never said he was god.
Dear Mose’ If you are looking for the words”I am God” to come out of Jesus mouth then no He never said the words “I am God”. However, He clearly and repeatedly claimed to be God. I may never say the words, “I am Dan” but I can still claim to be Dan. If some one said to me, “hey, only Dan is allowed to do that” and I agree and then say, “in order to show you that I have that authority” and then I do that thing, I am claiming to be Dan. Jesus did this on many occasions. For example, in Mark chapter 2 the Pharisees are angry that Jesus claims the authority to forgive sins by saying that only God can forgive sins. Jesus agrees with them and then goes on to heal the paralytic saying He did so in order to show them that He had the authority to forgive sins. The Pharisees understood exactly what Jesus was claiming, that He was God and that is why they accuse Him of blasphemy and plot His death. In another example in John 8 Jesus claims to have existed even before Abraham and He does so by claiming the title, I Am, for himself Every religious leader within earshot of Jesus understood that He was claiming to the the God of the burning bush who appeared to Moses and took the name, I Am. Again they decide He must die for blasphemy. In John chapter 20 when Thomas falls at Jesus feet and declares, “My Lord and my God”, Jesus should have rebuked him for such a blasphemous statement. Unless of course Jesus really was Lord and God. Jesus received the praise of Thomas and actually praised Thomas and his belief. I could go on because the examples are many and fill the pages of the New Testament. Jesus claimed to be God. He never used the exact words “I am God”. But in every other imaginable way Jesus made it clear that He claimed to be God.
Dan
Not bad