Sermon Series “Exodus”
7:10-13
“God of Miracles”
Pastor John Bright
Exodus 7 “10 So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and they did so, just as the Lord commanded. And Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent. 11 But Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers; so the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. 12 For every man threw down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods. 13 And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the Lord had said.”
What is a miracle? Is it something that happens every day? Is it something that works just the way it’s supposed to work? Is it something strange people put on their sandwiches? (Personally, to me, it’s strange not to put Dukes Mayo on your sandwich! People actually use a Miracle Whip on a piece of bread – odd!)
A miracle defies the laws of nature. Look at the info box on your Teaching Sheet:
"…miracles today seem most frequent in regions where Satan has long held sway and where people require "power evangelism" to be converted. But God's sovereignty warns against trying to predict when they may occur and refutes the "name it and claim it" heresy that tries to force God to work miracles upon demand, if only one exercises adequate faith." Craig L. Blomberg https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/miracle/
Is it a stretch to believe that in countries where it takes days to walk to a doctor there are more people who turn from the local witch doctor to the healing power of God? They see more miracles in those places because of a higher expectation. Could we increase our expectation?
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Back to Pharaoh
This morning we come to the second meeting with Pharaoh. In preparation for this meeting, God shows Moses and Aaron what is to come. Exodus 7 “3 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt. 4 But Pharaoh will not heed you, so that I may lay My hand on Egypt and bring My armies and My people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.”
We know what’s coming… plagues and plagues and more plagues. (Next week’s sermon) But let’s check in right where we are in Exodus 7.
• NONE of their circumstances have changed – more work and less time
• God’s plan has NOT changed – God’s people WILL be delivered from bondage
• This is NOT new – they are directed to perform the first sign given to Moses on Mt. Sinai – staff will become a serpent.
In our Christian walks, we stay the course until God shows us a different way. Paul found this out in Acts 16 – “6 Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. 7 After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them.”
Paul was heading to Asia and God told him to stop. They kept going and God made them STOP! Then, Paul is given a vision leading him to Macedonia.
When a church starts a new ministry, how long until we evaluate and consider stopping? If it’s a weekly event, not less than 6 months. If it’s a monthly event, not less than one year. Why so long? God needs to make sure we are serious about our commitment to do His will. It also takes time for us to see what God is doing!
My God is bigger than your gods
Exodus 7 “11 But Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers; so the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. 12 For every man threw down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.”
What’s going on? Moses and Aaron perform the sign God to them – staff becomes a snake. Then the Egyptian magicians do the same thing.
Let’s talk about what we see out in the world today. If you have a Biblical world view, you will believe that there are forces in this world that are not of God. Before I go any further – 1 John 4:4 declares “Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.” The power of God in a believer is more powerful than any work of satan. There are magicians today that only describe themselves as “illusionists” and work by slight of hand. There are others who use dark/black magic to manipulate the natural world. This second group usually has very dark satanic images in their advertising/promotions. We need to be wise and avoid those folks.
Let’s get back to the snakes – we don’t know what kind of snake Moses’ staff became, but we know about the other snakes. They worked for the government so they had to be “civil serpents.” (haha)
Oh, you want more? Ok – 2 more snake puns:
• What did the man snake wear at the beach? “a py-thong”
• What article of clothing do female snakes share? “co-bras”
But seriously folks…This is a preview of what is to come – 10 PLAGUES. There’s a bigger story here – a connection to Genesis 3. Lucifer, in the form of a serpent, brought temptation (to be gods) to humanity. There is the same temptation today. People tell us we don’t have to who/what society defines or the way God made us – we can be whatever we want to be.
This power, opposed to God, can be seen in the headdress of the Pharaoh – a serpent.
This is King Tut’s death mask. There is a snake and a bird on the headpiece. The snake is a cobra and it was a symbol of the divine power of the Pharaoh – a god on earth.
There are forces today that would pull us away from God… God’s will… God’s plan. Can you see that God (embodied in the indwelling Holy Spirit) is more powerful? Can you trust Him?
God – 1 Pharaoh – 0
Exodus 7:13 “And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the Lord had said.”
God wins this battle – the first in a great war. Pharaoh will keep calling on his magicians, but God keeps winning. This was a miracle – a real serpent/snake that swallowed the magical snakes. All the plagues that follow are miracles. We are going to witness miracles and miracles and more miracles. (not according to the History Channel!)
Is the hard heart of Pharaoh a miracle – or just the nature of a dictatorial leader? I don’t think that’s a miracle. There is no evidence that he was a kind, benevolent leader but rather a cruel, violent ruler of a great empire. His heart was already hard and had the capacity to get even harder.
What I see as a true miracle is the promise of this verse in the life of a believer - Ezekiel 36:26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”
Everyone can become hard hearted. How? First – life beats us down. That’s just the way it is. Second – we become more afraid to trust after every heart break… every betrayal… every lost hope/dream. Then we start to think, “This is safer. I can keep everyone at a distance with this wall/hard heart.”
But when we keep others at a distance, we also keep God at a distance. That’s how hearts work. The Heart of Flesh is a heart filled with God’s love for others. Let’s show this world how much we can love them because they think we hate (haters). Let’s start loving one another in here more and more and God will use us in mighty and maybe miraculous ways. Amen.
Next week – Exodus 7:14-8:15 The Plagues BEGIN!
TEACHING SHEET
(date)
Sermon Series: Exodus
Exodus 7:10-13
“God of Miracles”
“…miracles today seem most frequent in regions where Satan has long held sway and where people require "power evangelism" to be converted. But God's sovereignty warns against trying to predict when they may occur and refutes the "name it and claim it" heresy that tries to force God to work miracles upon demand, if only one exercises adequate faith.” Craig L. Blomberg
https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/miracle/
Back to Pharaoh
Exodus 7 “3 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt. 4 But Pharaoh will not heed you, so that I may lay My hand on Egypt and bring My armies and My people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.”
Their first meeting was back in Exodus 5. In the verses above, Moses and Aaron are given a glimpse of the future. Remember:
• NONE of their circumstances have changed
• God’s plan has NOT changed
• This is NOT new – they are directed to perform the first sign given to Moses on Mt. Sinai
In our Christian walks, we stay the course until God shows us a different way. Paul found this out in Acts 16 – “6 Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. 7 After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them.” Paul is given a vision leading him to Macedonia.
My God is bigger than your gods
Exodus 7 “11 But Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers; so the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. 12 For every man threw down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.”
This is a preview of what is to come – 10 PLAGUES. There’s a bigger story here – a connection to Genesis 3. Lucifer, in the form of a serpent, brought temptation (to be gods) to humanity. This power, opposed to God, is now embodied in the headdress of the Pharaoh – a serpent.
There are forces today that would pull us away from God… God’s will… God’s plan. Can you see that God (embodied in the indwelling Holy Spirit) is more powerful? Can you trust Him?
God – 1 Pharaoh - 0
Exodus 7:13 “And Pharaoh’s heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the Lord had said.”
God wins this battle – the first in a great war. Pharaoh will keep calling on his magicians, but God keeps winning. This was a miracle – a real serpent/snake that swallowed the magical snakes. All the plagues that follow are miracles.
Is the hard heart of Pharaoh a miracle – or just the nature of a dictatorial leader? Ezekiel 36:26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”
Next week – Exodus 7:14-8:15 The Plagues BEGIN!
